Notes from Around the Web: Jewish Literary Links for Shabbat

  • Adam Langer likes David Bezmozgis’s new novel. A lot.
  • This New York Times article describes eating disorders among the Orthodox–and spotlights memoirist Naomi Feigenbaum.
  • A highlight of this week: chatting with my Jewish Book Council hosts and all the participants who stopped by the Twitter Book Club discussion of my story collection, Quiet Americans.
  • Another highlight: attending a preview performance of the new musical, The People in the Picture.
  • Finally, for the Sabbath, enjoy Marge Piercy’s poem, “Wellfleet Shabbat.”
  • Shabbat shalom, and chag Pesach!

    Job Alert: Media/Research Manager

    Based in New York, the Israel Action Network (IAN) seeks a Media & Research Manager. Details about the position are available here. Meantime, here’s some background on the IAN:

    “The Israel Action Network (IAN) is an unprecedented community driven effort by the North American Jewish community to counter the assault in Israel’s legitimacy. IAN is a partnership between the Jewish Federations of North America (JFNA) and the Jewish Council for Public Affairs (JCPA) to provide resources, expertise and other support to combat the growing efforts to de-legitimize the State of Israel and the including calls for boycotts, divestment and sanctions (BDS Movement), and other means to isolate Israel from the international community, to distort and blur Middle East reality and undermine the effort to achieve a viable two-state solution where both Israelis and Palestinians can live in peace and prosperity. The IAN will work with Federations and Jewish Community Relations Councils across the continent as well as with other local and global partners to develop a strong, unified Jewish communal as well as a civil society response to these dangerous efforts.”

    Notes from Around the Web: Literary Links for Shabbat

  • It’s still April, which means that it’s still National Poetry Month. To celebrate, The Forward‘s Arty Semite blog is featuring new poetry every weekday.
  • Also celebrating: Moment magazine, with a feature on “Ten Great Jewish Poets.”
  • Moment may have to add another poet to its list. This week, The Writer’s Almanac featured an absolutely stunning poem by Jacqueline Berger: “Why I’m Here.” Go read it.
  • In other news, Linda K. Wertheimer reports on an unusual writing workshop: at a mikveh.
  • New Jersey Jewish News interviews author Anita Diamant.
  • The shortlist for the Jewish Quarterly-Wingate Prize has been announced. (Hat tip: The Literary Saloon.)
  • Mark Shechner, Thane Rosenbaum, and Victoria Arons–judges for the Edward Lewis Wallant Prize–share their thoughts on “The New Jewish Literature.”
  • Don’t forget, it’s just a few days until the next meeting of the Jewish Book Council’s Twitter Book Club. Up on Tuesday (April 12): Quiet Americans! I really hope to see you there!
  • Meantime, Shabbat shalom!

    Words of the Week: Richard Goldstone

    As you may have heard by now, a certain Richard Goldstone has had second thoughts about a certain report that bears his name. In The Washington Post, Goldstone writes, among other things, that “If I had known then what I know now, the Goldstone Report would have been a different document.”

    Too little, too late. His report’s damage has been done. As always, Jeffrey Goldberg sums it all up perfectly, in a blog post and in an even more concise tweet: “Shorter Goldstone: Without evidence, I accused Israel of premeditated murder. My bad!”