A book on the London’s Jewish community has just been published and will be launched in Toronto in May.

A History of the Jewish Community of London Ontario by Bill Gladstone (Now and Then Press) chronicles the history of the Jews in the southwestern Ontario city,  from the 1850s to the present.

Based on interviews, birth, marriage, naturalization papers, and death and census records, the book traces the lives of prominent Jewish figures who emerged from London and left their mark on the world. It outlines the rise of the community, its organizations and its leaders over the decades.

One chapter is devoted to the wave of immigrants that arrived in London from Europe between 1900 and the early 1920s.

Subsequent chapters chronicle 50 Holocaust survivors’ families and the wave of assimilation that hit the city in the late 1960s, when previously “restricted” areas opened their doors to Jews for the first time.

Gladstone, a CJN columnist and a contributor to the Globe and Mail, has written several other books, including Roots and Remembrance, a book on Jewish genealogy, and a commissioned history of Toronto’s Beth Tzedec Congregation, due for publication in 2011.

A History of the Jewish Community of London Ontario was launched in London on April 3, with all book-sale proceeds donated to the London Jewish Federation.

In Toronto, the Ontario Jewish Archives is holding a second book launch at the Lipa Green Centre on May 4 at 7:30 p.m., with a portion of sales going to the OJA.

To attend the OJA launch, RSVP by phone by calling 416-635-2883, ext. 5170, or e-mail [email protected].