Jewish Literary Links for Shabbat

Photo Credit: Reut Miryam Cohen
Every Friday morning My Machberet presents an assortment of links, primarily of the literary variety.

  • A new issue of JewishFiction.net is always a cause for celebration.
  • Some background on the Sophie Brody Medal for outstanding achievement in Jewish literature (includes a shout-out to Quiet Americans!).
  • Mazel tov to Francesca Segal, winner of the 2013 Sami Rohr Prize for Jewish Literature for her novel The Innocents.
  • Some context for how I discovered Atar Hadari’s stories “about how a man loses pieces of his life on a religious kibbutz in Israel.”
  • This weekend, BookTV will air coverage from the “Roth@80” conference that was held last month to honor Philip Roth.
  • Shabbat shalom.

    Wednesday’s Work-in-Progress: Subscriber Success Story

    ourplaceI can’t overemphasize how much I love hearing good news from newsletter and blog subscribers, especially when that good news stems in some small way from a piece of information that I’ve passed along. So I’m grateful to Atar Hadari for making my Monday this week with the following message:

    Dear Erika,

    Just a note to thank you for drawing my attention to Wordrunner echapbooks. Their Spring chapbook is my novella “Our Place”, three stories about how a man loses pieces of his life on a religious kibbutz in Israel. They’ve been a joy to work with, and even paid money.

    This is the link, in case you’re not on their mailing list.

    http://echapbook.com/fiction/hadari/index.html

    All best,

    Atar Hadari

    Truly, it’s messages like this one that make all of the time and effort I put into the newsletter and blog so worthwhile. (It’s a bonus when I can go right ahead and read the work that has been recognized, and, as in the case of Hadari’s fiction, find it to be fresh, provocative, and moving.)

    By the way, Wordrunner’s current submission period runs until May 31, and it’s open to poets.

    From My Bookshelf: Three Reading Recommendations

    I’ve been reading some wonderful new books lately. Although I may not have the opportunity to write full reviews of all of them, I wanted to make sure I brought at least three of this spring’s releases to your attention. All three can described as “Jewish books”–and they’re all books of fiction–but I think that they also demonstrate what I’m always trying to point out: “Jewish literature” is, in fact, remarkably diverse.

    Tsabari
    First up: Ayelet Tsabari’s The Best Place on Earth. Tsabari is an Israeli-born writer of Yemeni descent who currently lives in Canada. Her new book of short stories hasn’t yet been published in the United States, but once I became familiar with her work, I simply had to splurge and order my copy via Amazon.ca. I’m so glad that I did. These finely crafted stories feature the voices and experiences of Mizrahi Jews–Jews from the Middle East/North Africa–a group that I haven’t often seen depicted in fiction (at least, not in English-language or translated fiction).

    Sinners and the Sea
    Next: Minnesota-based Rebecca Kanner‘s Sinners and the Sea. If you liked the way that Anita Diamant brought the biblical Jacob’s daughter Dinah to life in The Red Tent, you’ll surely admire Kanner’s novel as well. Sinners and the Sea depicts the story of Noah and the famous Ark from the perspective of Noah’s wife (who doesn’t even get a name in the Bible). Creative and compelling. I consider myself lucky to have been offered a review copy.

    gerber
    Finally: Merrill Joan Gerber’s The Hysterectomy Waltz, which traces–with sly wit and humor–the diagnosis, surgery, and recovery of a Brooklyn-born Jewish woman. I requested a review copy from the publisher, Dzanc Books, after reading an excerpt online in The Literarian. I suggest that you read the excerpt, too, and if it appeals, be sure to put the novel on your list (it will be out in May). Although Gerber’s work is new to me, she has published many books (now available in digital formats through Dzanc’s rEprint series), and is a past recipient of Hadassah‘s prestigious Ribalow Prize for outstanding Jewish-themed fiction.

    What have you read lately that you’d recommend?

    Monday Markets for Writers

    Monday brings the weekly batch of no-fee competitions/contests, paying submission calls, and jobs for those of us who write (especially those of us who write fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction).

  • Not much time left to enter the “Heroes of Geriatric Care” competition from the John A. Hartford Foundation: “We need heroic stories! We need stories that convey how a person with geriatric expertise (in any profession and discipline) can save the day when those without couldn’t get the job done; where special knowledge and hard-won skill in geriatric training programs make a difference in peoples’ lives. Enter our contest by April 15th and share your heroic story of exemplary geriatric care. The top prize winner will receive $3,000 and your story will be shared widely.” NB: “Stories must be true….” There is no entry fee. A second prize ($1,000) and third prize ($500) will be awarded.
  • The Writer’s Center in Bethesda, Md., is currently taking applications for its Emerging Writer Fellowship program. “We welcome submissions from writers of all genres, backgrounds, and experiences in the following genres: fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. Emerging Writer Fellows will be featured at The Writer’s Center as part of a special celebration and reading. Fellows living within a 250-mile radius of the center will receive a $250 honorarium, and all others will receive $500.” There is no application fee, and the deadline is May 3, 2013.
  • “Recommended Reading, a magazine by Electric Literature, publishes one story a week, each chosen by today’s best authors and editors. Though Recommended Reading features original fiction as well as reprints, we will only consider previously unpublished stories during our spring submission period. Before submitting, please take some time to read Recommended Reading, especially the first issue in every volume, in which we showcase original fiction recommended by Electric Literature. Recommended Reading publishes fiction ranging in length from 2,000 to 10,000 words, and pays each contributor $300.” Current submission period closes May 1. (via @bookfox)
  • “Earlham College [Ind,] invites applicants for a one-year visiting assistant professor for the 2013-14 academic year with the ability to teach Creative Writing, as well as general education and literature courses in the applicant’s specialty. The position is renewable for up to two additional years.” (via David Ebenbach)
  • “SUNY Potsdam invites applications for an Assistant Professor in Creative Writing — Poetry.”
  • The Wick Poetry Center at Kent State University (Ohio) is looking for a Program Manager, and Other Press (New York) is advertising for a Publicity/Marketing Assistant.