Jewish Literary Links for Shabbat

Photo Credit: Reut Miryam Cohen

Every Friday morning My Machberet presents an assortment of Jewish-interest links, primarily of the literary variety.

  • The Association for Jewish Studies annual conference begins on Sunday, December 15. I’ll be following along via the Twitter hashtag #AJS13.
  • My thanks to Zackary Sholem Berger for this introduction to the poetry of Yermiyahu Ahron Taub, on The Forward‘s Arty Semite blog.
  • This week I’m reading Jason K. Friedman’s prize-winning short-story collection Fire Year, described by Publishers Weekly as “seven funny, fearless outsiders’ tales set in Savannah and Atlanta—some depicting bygone orthodox Jewish communities, others the rife-with-irony ‘New South’.” The opening story, “Blue,” previously won the Moment-Karma Foundation fiction contest.
  • Must confess that I’m not satisfied with the conclusions drawn in “What is a Jewish Poem?” But the piece did add another essay to my tbr list.
  • “The YIVO Institute and Bard College are pleased to announce the third year of the Winter Program on Ashkenazi Civilization. This program, the first of its kind in the U.S., presents an integrated curriculum in the culture, history, language, and literature of East European Jews.” Courses offerings include “The Other Sholem Aleichem,” with Jonathan Brent; “New York Intellectuals Revisited,” with Adam Kirsch; “Jewish Literary Life in the Soviet Union,” with Gennady Estraikh; and more.
  • Shabbat shalom.

    2 thoughts on “Jewish Literary Links for Shabbat

    1. R Klempner says:

      I thought the “What is a Jewish Poem?” post didn’t answer the question, so well either, but I really liked the quote from Philip Terman that it used: “My childhood was guided by two calendars, my poetic education by two traditions. Every good poem transcends any one category.”

      And the other essay you pointed out on the topic is interesting…but I’m not finished yet! I’m going to have to sit with it at a point I can give it more undivided attention.

      1. Erika Dreifus says:

        Hi, Becca. That other essay is a challenging read, all right. I’m going to have to give it a second read. And I liked that Terman quote, too.

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