At his Rebbi's Side

As a child, he played under Rav Ruderman's desk and noshed on the Rebbetzin's cookies. (The Rosh Yeshivah gave him and his friend ice-cream money, just to get a little quiet to learn!) As a youngster, he lent Rav Moshe Feinstein a dime for a payphone, and learned from that encounter a lesson for a lifetime. As a young man, he drove in his car -- a rarity in Eretz Yisrael in those days -- gedolim such as Rav Chaim Shmulevitz, Rav Beinish Finkel, Rav Mordechai Gifter, and Rav Elyashiv connecting with and learning from each one. As a respected mechanech, he consulted with gedolim like Rav Shach, Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach, Rav Shimon Schwab, and Rav Nosson Tzvi Finkel. Many, many people know Rabbi Yehoshua Liff as a master educator, the Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshivas Ner Yaakov for more than two decades, with hundreds of devoted talmidim. Less well known is Rabbi Liff's penchant, beginning from his earliest childhood, for connecting with gedolim on a deep and personal level. In this absorbing memoir, penned by bestselling and beloved author Rabbi Nachman Seltzer, we will meet many of the greatest Torah personalities of the past half-century. We will see how their greatness in Torah and middos was reflected in their every action, both at home and in their communal lives. And we will also see their warm and personal sides, through the eyes of a talmid who was intimately connected with them. Everywhere he went, Rabbi Liff encountered Torah greatness, and his relationships with more than 25 gedolim makes for incredible reading. Follow him and be inspired, as he stands at his rebbi's side.