From My Bookshelf: Vacation Reads

Well, I managed to read all four books I had with me on vacation. I won’t mention one of them, because I really did not enjoy it, and I think it has already received more publicity than it merits, but the other three are well worth your attention:

Both Ways Is the Only Way I Want It is Maile Meloy’s latest story collection. Sad, creepy, and oh-so-smoothly-crafted. The story “The Girlfriend” is still haunting me.

Fearless Confessions: A Writer’s Guide to Memoir. Stay tuned for an interview here on the blog with this book’s super-smart author, Sue William Silverman.

–Unnamed novel. I think it’s generally bad form to publicize the titles of books you have under review before the actual review appears. So you’ll have to wait a little while to hear about this one. But you WILL hear about it (my editor is expecting the review on Saturday, which is going to be a bit of a challenge, but I’m up for it!). Sorry for the delay.

What have you all been reading lately?

National Yiddish Book Center Launches Post-Baccalaureate Fellows Program

From the National Yiddish Book Center Web site:

The National Yiddish Book Center has openings for two Post-Baccalaurate Fellows during the 2009-2010 academic year. The full-time Fellows will be mentored by senior members of the Book Center’s staff, and will undertake assignments in each of our six major program areas.

* Bibliography: Work with the Center’s bibliographer to shelve and organize Yiddish books in our new, climate-controlled, on-site Deposit Library; help sort, process and index periodicals and ready them for digitization; answer reference questions and help students, scholars and visitors find Yiddish books; and provide support for users of the Center’s online library at yiddishbooks.org.
* Interpretation: Provide guided tours to visitors of all ages.
* Ethnography: Conduct structured oral history interviews with visitors, index archival recordings, and select excerpts for inclusion on the Book Center’s website, New Discoveries exhibition, Pakn Treger and other publications.
* Exhibitions: Help track down artifacts and provide curatorial assistance for the Book Center’s new, 10,000-square-foot permanent exhibition.
* Education and Public Programs: Provide support for the Book Center’s new educational programs, including Yiddish classes and residential Jewish Cultural Encounters for adults; a Winter Program for college students; teacher training and other endeavors.
* Web, Translation and Publications: Provide content and help coordinate online forums and communities on the Book Center’s expanded website; assist with translation from Yiddish to English; assist the editor in researching and writing for Pakn Treger, the Book Center’s English-language magazine.

Compensation:
$20,000 stipend plus health insurance. This is a nine-month position.

Qualifications:
B.A. in Jewish Studies or equivalent; working knowledge of Yiddish; flexibility, good nature and a spirit of adventure.

Check the Web site for application instructions and more information.

Follow-up on The Atlantic’s Latest Fiction Issue

Just wanted to follow-up on my earlier mention of The Atlantic‘s latest fiction issue and point you to some of the work I most enjoyed and am still thinking about. You can access each piece here.

–“The Laugh,” a story by Téa Obreht (see also the interview with Obreht)
–“Furlough,” a story by Alexi Zentner (see also the interview with Zentner)
–“Eyes on the Prize,” an essay by Alice Sebold adapted from The Best American Short Stories 2009.

Have you had a chance to read the issue yet? What impressed you? Please share, in comments (but do recall that I will be on the Internet only intermittently this week and therefore it may take some time for your moderated comment to appear).