Reviewing: “The Dad Jokes Haggadah” by Martin Bodek. Lulu.com. 2024. Paperback. 174 pages. ISBN-10: 1300862653.
I can’t be the only one who’s thought, “My gosh, our Seders could really use a lot more humor.”
Which is why I’m so delighted that Martin Bodek, the esteemed author of the critically acclaimed “The Parsha Cuff Link” column in The Jewish Link, recently published “The Dad Jokes Haggadah.”
How much fun is this Haggadah?
Let me share some examples of the dad jokes in the Haggadah.
Kadesh
I trained my dog to fetch a glass of wine. It’s a Bordeaux collie.
Bodek has made publishing parodies of the Haggadah a pastime. This Haggadah is his sixth, joining his work on “The Emoji Haggadah,” “The Festivus Haggadah,” “The Coronavirus Haggadah,” “The Shakespeare Haggadah” and “This Haggadah Is the Way: A Star Wars Unofficial Passover Parody.”
Urchatz
Working at the docks is hard, but it’s wharf it.
Bodek readily fesses up, in the introduction to this new book, that part of his passion for the parodies is fueled by his sense of good-natured competition with Dave Cowen, who has also published six Haggadah parodies. The friendly rivalry is surely reciprocated, as Cowen has scheduled a “Book Launch/AKA O-Punning Day” book with Bodek on February 23 at 4:30 p.m. To view their exchange that day, go to: TinyURL.com/HaggadahLaunch
Karpas
Some people dislike parsley in their liquid dishes, but I think it’s soup herb.
What inspired Bodek to write “The Dad Jokes Haggadah”? As he reveals in the introduction, it all started with a Facebook post by Valerie Levin on January 30, 2024 that was forwarded to Bodek by a few friends. Levin wrote, “Why hasn’t anyone made the ‘Dad Jokes Haggadah’? As Bodek tells it: “That was it. That was all it took. I was off to the races from there.”
Yachatz
If anybody wants any copies of Orthopedic Monthly … I have back issues.
How did Bodek gather the 652 jokes contained in this volume?
I’ll let him tell you (also from the introduction): “I dove into every internet pun group, browsed every pun squads clip on Instagram, read pun books, found pun resources, attended several Punderdome events in Brooklyn for inspiration, exercised my own creative spark, and proceeded to drive my family up a wall.”
Magid
How long was the Rabbi’s Seder? It was so long that when it was finished, it was okay to eat bread again.
So who is this fellow pumping out humorous Haggadot and other publications at a remarkable rate? (This is his 13th book.) As he describes himself: “He currently lives in New Jersey with his wife and three children. He is an avid marathoner, Daf Yomi participant, Wordler, vexillologist [I looked this one up; It’s someone who undertakes scholarly investigations of flags. Sheldon Cooper would be quite impressed.] and halvah aficionado. He is a technologist by day and a writer by night. He has been writing freelance for nearly three decades, mostly on Jewish interest topics.”
Rachtza
People who take good care of their hair with just shampoo and water must love it unconditionally.
When you get this Haggadah, and you should, make sure to take note of the icons that separate each joke from the next one. They were carefully selected to reflect that joke. Now that’s remarkable attention to detail!
Motzi Matza
What’s a Matzah’s favorite exercise? Crunches.
I got such a kick out of this Haggadah, I’ve already given it as a gift (to someone I really like). But he lives in another country, so I’m safe if he decides to sprinkle all his favorite jokes in everyday conversation for the next few weeks.
Marror
The man who invented spreadable margarine got scammed out of every penny he made. I can’t believe he’s not bitter.
When you read this Haggadah, don’t miss the diagram of a pun-enabled Seder plate, before Kadesh.
Korech
What do you call a bunch of sandwiches on a skateboard? Meals on wheels.
Bodek thought of everything! He even offers a “How to Read This Book” section, at the end of the introduction.
Shulchan Arech
What do you call steaks ordered by ten Jews? Filet minyan.
My favorite dad joke in this book might be:
The hungry time-traveler went back four seconds.
Think about it.
If I only got this joke from the book, dayenu. But there’s so much more.
Tzafun
What did the thesaurus have for dessert? A synonym bun.
Bodek really put a lot of thought into the organization of this Haggadah, and the jokes. You can see this in the two-paged table of contents, which lists the location of the 12 major sections of Magid and the nine songs in Nirtzah, each accompanied by their own set of jokes.
Barech
God bless America. Why, did it sneeze?
One of the other aspects of the book that I really appreciate is the extensive acknowledgements section, which runs a full two pages long and includes citations of Torah verses by the 10 family members he thanks and selected friends as well. Full disclosure—I’m fond of this feature in part because I’m included in it, in the final paragraph, as a member of Bodek’s “sounding board” for this publication. It was difficult work but very satisfying too, even if he declined to accept my advice on using an AI image of Moshe Rabbeinu as a stand-up comedian on the front cover. (No, I didn’t.)
Hallel
The man standing on one leg at the ATM was probably checking his balance.
Most of the dad jokes in this 174-page volume, which includes the entire Haggadah text in Hebrew, are one-liners. Yet the book ends with a one-page-long joke that will rock your socks off; it’s a gas, gas, gas.
Nirtzah
If you buy a goat for $10, name him Isaiah, then sell him for $15, did you make a prophet?
This book is available on Amazon.com, at Judaica House Ltd. in Teaneck, and in other locations. I found it quite amusing and suggest you get a copy, or two, to add some jest to your Matzo-fest.
Harry Glazer is the Middlesex County editor of The Jewish Link. He welcomes reader feedback and can be reached at [email protected]. He is a really big fan of Martin Bodek’s humor publications and is awed by his prodigious output.
