Julie Salamon is a culture writer and critic for The New York Times and was previously a reporter and film critic for The Wall Street Journal. Her journalism has appeared in The New Yorker, Vanity Fair, Vogue, Bazaar, and The New Republic. Salamon is the author of six books, "White Lies," a novel; "The Devil's Candy," a study of Hollywood film making gone awry; "The Net of Dreams," a family memoir; "The Christmas Tree," a novella that was a New York Times best-seller; and "Facing the Wind," a nonfiction narrative about a killing and the lives affected by it, published by Random House in 2001. Her new book, "Rambam's Ladder: A Meditation on Generosity and Why it is Necessary to Give," was published this October [2003] by Workman Press. Salamon received a B.A. degree from Tufts University and a J.D. degree from New York University Law School. She lives in New York with her husband and two children.

SG = Soul Graffiti
JS = JULIE SALAMON

SG: WHAT MOTIVATED YOU TO WRITE A BOOK ABOUT GENEROSITY?

JS: The immediate motivation was the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center. I live with my family less than a mile from ground zero. In the days and weeks following Sept. 11, I witnessed an amazing outpouring of generosity to New Yorkers from all over the world. Yet I, who had been a lifelong volunteer and considered myself a generous person, felt myself consumed with simply dealing with my family and friends, especially my two children, and our own feelings of terror and uncertainty. I wanted to find out where the impulse to give comes from--why for some people it's an ordinary part of life, for others something that is triggered by calamitous events.

SG: WHY IS IT NECESSARY TO GIVE?

JS: Whether we realize it or not, giving is an essential part of being a fully realized human. Giving of one's time, money or wisdom forces us to become connected to other people, to empathize, to step outside our own concerns and place them within a larger context. By coming to grips with our desire to give - as well as our reluctance to do so - we come to an understanding of who we really are.

SG: HOW HAS "RAMBAM'S LADDER" CHANGED YOUR LIFE?

JS: Learning about Maimonides, or Rambam, a Jewish rabbi, physician and philosopher from the late Middle Ages, has helped me better understand the timelessness of basic ethical dilemmas. Doing the research for the book forced me to evaluate what is most important to me, and to feel less afraid to challenge those who are cynical about the value of generosity and giving.

SG: WHAT DO YOU FEEL MOTIVATES PEOPLE TO BE KIND?

JS: Certainly what they are taught by example. Children raised by kind parents have a better chance of being kind themselves. Yet for some people kindness emerges from terrible experience, and the desire to help others from suffering. My own parents were forced into concentration camps because they were Jews. Yet instead of reacting to this with bitterness or selfishness, they urged my sister and me to seek the best in people, to be generous, to reject cruelty.

SG: DO PERFORMING ACTS OF KINDNESS OR CHARITY MAKE US BETTER PEOPLE?

JS: Yes, so long as those acts of kindness and charity reflect an overall approach to life. In other words, you can't be cold to your children and generous to strangers; you can't rip people off and then compensate with charitable acts.

SG: IF THERE WAS ONE THING THAT YOU WOULD LIKE PEOPLE TO TAKE AWAY FROM "RAMBAM'S LADDER," WHAT WOULD IT BE?

JS: I hope people can use the book to help them understand what giving can mean to them.