Jewish Literary Links
Toward the end of each week, the My Machberet blog presents a collection of links, drawn primarily from the world of Jewish books and writing.
- Exciting news from the Miami Book Festival: “We’re excited to share that we’re launching a brand-new series: Jewish Life & Culture. Made possible through the generous and transformative support of The Stacey and Eric Mindich Fund for Jewish Stories, the program will present more than 35 books at the Fair in November, including new novels, memoirs, and histories by authors such as Lihi Lapid, Esther Chehebar, Elizabeth R. Hyman, and Rabbi Angela Buchdahl. The full MBF25 schedule will be released very soon; in the meantime, feel free to browse the JL&C lineup and schedule here and start marking your calendars!”
- “The Canadian Jewish Literary Awards is pleased to announce nine outstanding winners for 2025.”
- From Amy E. Schwartz at Moment magazine: reflections and reporting on “October 7 fiction”—much of which, for me, echoes some earlier discourse regarding “September 11 fiction.”
- Also inspiring some flashbacks this week: news of the passing of Czech novelist Ivan Klima; not too many years after September 11, I was a finalist for a fiction-writing fellowship named in Klima’s honor.
- It has taken me a little while, but I’ve finally read the latest issue of The Jewish Quarterly, which is devoted to a single, long-form essay by Tanya Gold. Titled “Shameless: Exploiting the Holocaust,” the piece is a fascinating, fierce examination of Holocaust fiction and film. (Be forewarned: If you’re an admirer of William Styron’s work before you read this piece, you may not still be one afterwards!) I’m not sure how much non-subscribers can access freely; I can point you to a Melbourne Jewish Book Week recording in which Gold recently discussed the essay.
Moadim l’simcha, Shabbat shalom, and may the good news that was coming in as I drafted this post Wednesday night continue. I dare not say more!
