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.

  • Atar Hadari explains why we read the book of Ruth on Shavuot.
  • “The Rabbi’s Wife”: a short story by Robin Black.
  • In “Ex-Hasidic Writers Go Off the Path and Onto the Page,” Ezra Glinter explores “How OTD Literature Became Its Own Literary Genre.” (See the article for a definition of “OTD”.)
  • On my agenda: listening to this podcast featuring George Prochnik, talking about his new biography, The Impossible Exile: Stefan Zweig at the End of the World.
  • Judith Thurman reports on Philip Roth’s honorary degree from JTS.
  • Shabbat shalom.

    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.

  • Mazel tov to the latest winners of Canadian Jewish Book Awards, who will be honored later this month.
  • A poem for Yom HaZikaron.
  • And a poem of mine.
  • New resource: YIVO Digital Archive on Jewish Life in Poland.
  • Finally, as Mother’s Day approaches here in the U.S., I recommend that you spend a few minutes watching filmmaker Judith Helfand’s “Love and Stuff” on NYTimes.com. (It would have moved me to tears even if I hadn’t known the family and attended Florence Helfand’s funeral myself.)
  • Shabbat shalom.

    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.

  • A new issue of JewishFiction.net.
  • My review of Aharon Appelfeld’s Suddenly, Love (trans. Jeffrey M. Green) for Jewish Journal.
  • Coming soon (on Sunday and Tuesday), courtesy of radio station WQXR: “A Musical Feast for Passover with Itzhak Perlman.”
  • Also for the holiday: “Five Passover Movies You’ll Love.”
  • And on a similar theme: The National Library of Israel has recently acquired what is thought to be one of the first Braille haggadot.
  • Shabbat shalom and Chag Pesach Sameach!

    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.

  • Via JewishFiction.Net: a Purim-related excerpt from the forthcoming translation (by Jeffrey M. Green) of Aharon Appelfeld’s Suddenly, Love.
  • Publishers Weekly interviews Boris Fishman, whose debut novel A Replacement Life I am looking forward to reading.
  • Not sure how long this discount will last, but you can currently register for The Whole Megillah Seminar on Jewish Story for $99.
  • Interesting story from Tablet on Halban, “the best little Jewish publishing house in London.”
  • New Moment magazine contest, “Become a Senior Critic,” invites book and movie reviews from those 70+. Prizes: publication & gift subscriptions. Enter by August 1.
  • Shabbat shalom & chag Purim!

    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.

  • One of this week’s favorite reads: Roz Chast’s “Can’t We Talk About Something More Pleasant?” in The New Yorker.
  • Just in time for Purim, Rebecca Klempner shares some literary lessons from the Book of Esther.
  • Superb profile of Molly Antopol by Sandee Brawarsky for The Jewish Week. (I’ve finally bought Antopol’s The UnAmericans–now I just need to find the time to read it!)
  • From the same source that brought us the PJ Library: “The Massachusetts-based Harold Grinspoon Foundation recently launched Maktabat al-Fanoos, Arabic for Lantern Library, which provides Arabic children’s books to Arab Israeli children in kindergarten and pre-K.”
  • I’m unfortunately not likely to make it to this event, but if you’re in New York, you may want to try to attend “Making it New: Contemporary Novelists and the Jewish Literary Tradition,” a program that will feature Jonathan Rosen, Tova Mirvis, and Josh Lambert ($10 admission fee).
  • Shabbat shalom.