Jewish Literary Links

an open book (with Hebrew pages visible); subtitle reads "Jewish Literary Links"
Image by Yedidia Klein from Pixabay

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.

[Apologies to subscribers: This went out earlier than it should have. An error as I typed!]

This week I discovered that Amiram Cooper—a resident of Kibbutz Nir Oz who, at 84, is among the oldest Israeli hostages captured by Hamas—is the author of three books of poetry and one children’s book (source: The Times of Israel). I’m trying to find out more, including whether his work has been translated into English. May he be returned home swiftly and safely.

And I learned that another Nir Oz resident, Israeli-American-Canadian Judih Weinstein Haggai—whose death was announced late last week and whose body remains captive in Gaza—was also a poet. You can find some of her work on her YouTube channel; you might begin with some poetry that she shared there last spring. May her memory—and that of her husband, Gadi Haggai, whose death was announced some days earlier—be a blessing.

#BringThemAllHomeNow.

Shabbat shalom.

Words of the Week

“I do not pretend to know what will happen in the years to come. I do not know if Gazans will choose to concentrate their efforts on rebuilding Khan Younis rather than burning Nir Oz. I do not know if young families will ever come back to my kibbutz and pick the fruit from its trees. All I am focused on is getting my husband back home.”

Source: Ruti Munder, “My Second Trip to Gaza Was as a Hostage: I Will Never Return.” (The New York Times; gift link provided.)

Jewish Literary Links

an open book (with Hebrew pages visible); subtitle reads "Jewish Literary Links"
Image by Yedidia Klein from Pixabay

  • In which Aviya Kushner closes out “the year of Chava Rosenfarb.”
  • Lilith magazine previews “21 Books We Want to Read in 2024.”
  • “The Sephardic Studies Program of the University of Washington in Seattle and the Sephardic Jewish Brotherhood Foundation are thrilled to partner in presenting the inaugural National Sephardic Essay Competition to open a new space for the telling of Sephardic stories.” (“Essay” is somewhat misleading, as entrants are encouraged to “share an original, previously unpublished work of prose [fictional or memoiristic] that gives voice to the Sephardic American experience [whether from family lore, lived experience, community heritage, life stories, etc.]”) No entry fees. Cash prizes. Deadline: March 22. (Hat tip: Sarah Aroeste.)
  • From Gary Rosenblatt: a critique of The New York Times’s recent Israel/Hamas coverage.
  • And if you haven’t checked it lately, you may want peruse the “After October 7: Readings, Recordings, and More” document-in-progress.

Shabbat shalom.

Jewish Literary Links

an open book (with Hebrew pages visible); subtitle reads "Jewish Literary Links"
Image by Yedidia Klein from Pixabay

  • “As journal after journal, press after press, began to share statements of support for Palestine, with no mention of the massacre of Israelis or the hostages who remain captive in Gaza, as incidents of antisemitic hate crimes rose on campuses around the country, we realized we needed to address this issue more directly.” From Yetzirah Poets Executive Director Jessica Jacobs’s introduction to a current advocacy/outreach project.
  • Mazal tov to the authors longlisted for the 2024 Wingate Prize.
  • As noted in Los Angeles Magazine, Artists Against Antisemitism “is launching an online auction on Dec. 15-Dec. 22….The auction’s proceeds will support Project Shema, an organization that trains and supports the Jewish community to nurture compassion for Jews and disrupt the spread of anti-Jewish ideas.”
  • Aviya Kushner is “reading the Uruguayan poet Laura Cesarco Eglin [in translation by Jesse Lee Kercheval and Catherine Jagoe] –and singing Ladino in candlelight.”
  • If you missed it (I did), I highly recommend this recording of Literary Modiin’s second Israel Solidarity event, which featured readings by Yonatan Berg, Joanna Chen, Vivian Cohen, Sherri Mandell, Aviya Kushner, Joan Leegant, and Haim Watzman. And in related news: Literary Modiin’s third Israel Solidarity event is scheduled for this Sunday (December 17). It will feature readings by Rachel Neve-Midbar, Sarah Sassoon, Jonathan Dunsky, Diti Ronen, Elizabeth Edelglass, host Julie Zuckerman, and yours truly! Register here.

Quick reminder that you can continue to find new material in the document-in-progress titled “After October 7: Readings, Recordings, and More.” Wishing everyone a light-filled eighth night of Hanukkah and a Shabbat shalom.