#jewish authors

[magnetothemagnificent]

Do you have any favorite books written by jews that you think are really cool/worth reccomending?

Just a few of my favourite off the top of my head, in no particular order:

"Up Up and Oy Vey" - by Simcha Weinstein. Non-fiction.

"Wrestling with God and Man"- by Rabbi Steven Greenberg. Non-fiction.

"The Red Tent"- by Anita Diamant. Biblical fiction.

"The Chosen"- by Chaim Potok. Novel.

"My Name is Asher Lev"- by Chaim Potok. Novel.

"The Secret Chord"- by Geraldine Brooks. Biblical fiction.

"Where the Wild Things Are"- by Maurice Sendak. Children's book. Holds a special place in my heart because my Grandmama used to read it to me all the time as a kid and she would do different voices for the different characters and it always makes me think of her.

"Man's Search for Meaning"- by Viktor Frankl. Memoir.

"The Fixer"- by Bernard Malamud. Novel.

"Ecclesiastes"- by King Solomon. Book in the Tanakh.

[adiradirim]

"I asked Parlea: Aren't you afraid it's going to end again with cracked skulls and broken windows? Don't you ask yourself if it's going to end up with an anti-Semitic disturbance, and go no further? Don't you think calling this thing of yours a "revolution" is just using a new word for an ancient wretchedness?' He frowned, and answered: "There's a drought, and I await the rain. And you stand there and tell me: "A hard rain is what we need. But what if it comes with hail? If it comes with a storm? If it ruins what I've sowed?" Well, I'll tell you: I don't know how the rain will fall. I just want it to come. That's all. With hail, storm, lightning, as long as it comes. One or two will survive the deluge. Nobody will survive drought. If the revolution demands a pogrom, then give it a pogrom. It's not for me, or you, or him. It's for everybody. Whose time is up and whose isn't, I don't care, even if I myself die. I only care about one thing: that there's a drought and rain is needed. Apart from that, I want nothing, expect nothing, wonder about nothing.' I could reply. I could tell him that a metaphor is inadequate in the face of a bloodbath. That a Platonic inclination for dying doesn't balance out the serious decision to kill. That through the ages there has never been a great historical infamy committed for which there couldn't be found a symbol just as big, to justify it. That, in consequence, we would do well to pay attention to great certainties, to great invocations, to the great 'droughts' and 'rains'. That the temper of our most violent outbursts might benefit from a shade less enthusiasm. I could reply. But what good would it do? I have a simple, resigned, inexplicable sensation that everything that is happening is in the normal order of things and that I am awaiting a season that will come and pass - because it has come and passed before."

Mihail Sebastian, Two Thousand Years (trans. Philip Ó Ceallaigh), originally published 1934, Romania

[forsapphics]

Imogen & Tessa from “Imogen, Obviously” by Becky Albertalli

Art by Venessa Vida Kelley

[rebel-girl-queen-of-my-world]

Hi thank you for your pinned post. Do you have A masterlist for anti-zionist Jew or books from Jewish author who oppose Zionism? Thank you

Ooh… I don’t offhand, but here’s a list of excellent authors and publishers to look into:

Ilan Pappé

Norman Finkelstein

Noam Chomsky

Miko Peled

Gideon Levy

Avi Shlaim

Naomi Klein

Judith Butler

Leslie Feinberg

Lillian Rosengarten

Gabor Maté

Masha Gessen

Omer Bartov

Some others who may not call themselves explicitly antizionist but who are definitely pro-Palestinian liberation:

Michael Chabon

Ayelet Waldman

Tony Kushner

Abbi Jacobson

Tavi Gevinson

Many more who signed on to this letter opposing conflation of criticism of Israel with antisemitism:

Publishers like Verso, Better World Books, and Haymarket Books all have tons of antizionist works by Jews and Palestinians, including a collaborative effort published by JVP called “On Antisemitism: Solidarity and the Struggle for Justice” that’s definitely essential reading.

[ebookporn]

An anonymous literary agent has said that half of publishing houses in the UK will not take books that have Jewish content or are by Jewish authors.

The agent was speaking to Stephen Games, founder of the independent publisher EnvelopeBooks, who revealed their conversation to The Telegraph.

 “A very well-known literary agent of great repute and associated with books that one would immediately recognise said that he is having difficulty with his Jewish authors or writings on Jewish subjects because he just finds that much of literary London is now a no-go zone for Jews."

READ MORE

[noahhawthorneauthor]

“Because I’m going to do whatever it takes to keep you here. Because I believe in you, and me. I listen to you because no one else has, but I always will.”

“Fuck, Arlo.” I bite out through tears and try to look away. “You can’t fight this.

He gently shakes me, forcing me to look him in the eyes, to face this. “Then I will love you with everything I have, right here, right now, and I will be here when you return.” Arlo promises, like it’s a given. I close my eyes, and he shakes me again until I open them. “I will not forget you again. I promise.”

“You can’t promise that,” I cry, staring deep into twin pools of simmering gold. “You’ve forgotten me once. Everyone does. It’s … a side effect. It’s something I’ve been fine with until I met you.”

He smiles, wet and breaking and brilliant. “I’m pretty great, aren’t I?”

📚🏳️‍🌈🦉✨

[wahlpaper]

"You're meant to be too late to some things, don't worry about it."

- The talking skull in The Last Unicorn by Peter S Beagle

[elliepassmore]

A Dark and Drowning Tide review

5/5 stars Recommended if you like: dark academia, light fantasy, Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia, rivals to lovers

Big thanks to Netgalley, Del Rey, and the author for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I really liked the vibe of this book, especially once the characters are all introduced. It definitely gave me the feel of setting up a murder mystery game/party, which I enjoyed. We know that someone is a murderer, and so we're side-eyeing everyone except our narrator, Lorelei, from the get-go. Later on, the book takes on Emily Wilde vibes, which I also love and I enjoy the rather obsessive nature of the various expedition members.

The setting for this book is a fantasized Germany (or perhaps Austria, but since the language is German and the history is vaguely German, I'm going with that) shortly after unification. The characters are in the capital city for the first handful of chapters, and you definitely get that cobblestone-city feel while there. After the first couple of chapters, the characters are on the expedition and are in a variety of places and I enjoyed getting to see the different elements of culture.

In terms of culture, while all the characters are Brunnisch, the majority of them come from different ducal states, which previous to unification were their own countries (I think?), and so have their own cultural nuances that we get to see through the characters. Lorelei is from Brunnestaad's capital city, Ruhigberg, though she grew up, and still frequently visits, in the city's Yevanverte, or the quarter for Yevanis (i.e., fantasy Jews) and thus has a mix of Brunnisch and Yevani culture. Similarly, her mentor, Ziegler, was also Brunnisch but lived most of her life in Javenor before being called back to her birth country, and so she brings a blend of cultures to the table as well.

Lorelei is prickly but pragmatic, and she has something to prove. She keeps pretty much everyone at a distance and tries to use logic and reasoning to guide her through life. She does this in part because it makes the most sense and is easiest for her, but also in part because that means things are explainable, even when they feel as though they are not. I liked how focused Lorelei could be on her work and how that dedication also lends itself to a strong sense of loyalty toward the people she does decide to let in. On top of that, Lorelei also has somewhat of a chip on her shoulder, though admittedly it's founded in experience and reason.

Sylvia, on the other hand, is pretty much the exact opposite and is bright and bubbly and almost never unhappy, at least not for long. She is also wildly determined, but in a more spontaneous, empathetic way, and she seems to make friends with everyone, and everything, she meets. I can definitely see why Sylvia might be annoying, but I enjoyed the lightness she brought to the book and I think she balances out Lorelei's outlook and way of doing things well. Being both nobility and acceptably Brunnisch, Sylvia does have some naivete to her about how things work for other people, but it's also clear she's willing to learn and that she does care for the common folk.

Lorelei and Sylvia are rivals for most of the book, though their relationship does start trending toward being friendlier and more understanding. It's a situation where they take two steps forward and then Lorelei takes a step or two back. I think their dynamic works pretty well and when they're working in conjunction with one another, they're very adept at reaching their goals. I've heard Daphne Press picked this book up for UK publication in a two-book deal, so I'm wondering if that means we'll get a sequel, which, if so, I really want to see Sylvia and Lorelei on a new expedition now that they're both on the same page (mostly).

As mentioned, I liked the murder mystery vibe and trying to figure out who did it. Lorelei tries to keep her investigation on the down low, so there is a weird gap where she immediately tries to figure it out, then gets side-tracked with expedition stuff, and then finally goes back to the murder. At the beginning I had a suspicion on who it was, then revised my guess to someone else, then had to revise it again about 50-60% of the way through, and I have to say I was surprised at who it turned out to be. I will say though that I'm not sure we ever get a satisfactory answer to who got the alpdrücke involved.

Overall I enjoyed this story and think it's a bit like a dark academia, sapphic Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia. I definitely recommend it if you're looking for a blend of light fantasy adventure and a mystery.

[rockislandadultreads]

Fiction Recommendations: Jewish American Heritage Month

The Matchmaker’s Gift by Lynda Cohen Loigman

Even as a child in 1910, Sara Glikman knows her gift: she is a maker of matches and a seeker of soulmates. But among the pushcart-crowded streets of New York’s Lower East Side, Sara’s vocation is dominated by devout older men—men who see a talented female matchmaker as a dangerous threat to their traditions and livelihood. After making matches in secret for more than a decade, Sara must fight to take her rightful place among her peers, and to demand the recognition she deserves.

Two generations later, Sara’s granddaughter, Abby, is a successful Manhattan divorce attorney, representing the city’s wealthiest clients. When her beloved Grandma Sara dies, Abby inherits her collection of handwritten journals recording the details of Sara’s matches. But among the faded volumes, Abby finds more questions than answers. Why did Abby’s grandmother leave this library to her and what did she hope Abby would discover within its pages? Why does the work Abby once found so compelling suddenly feel inconsequential and flawed? Is Abby willing to sacrifice the career she’s worked so hard for in order to keep her grandmother’s mysterious promise to a stranger? And is there really such a thing as love at first sight?

We Were the Lucky Ones by Georgia Hunter 

It is the spring of 1939 and three generations of the Kurc family are doing their best to live normal lives, even as the shadow of war grows closer. The talk around the family Seder table is of new babies and budding romance, not of the increasing hardships threatening Jews in their hometown of Radom, Poland. But soon the horrors overtaking Europe will become inescapable and the Kurcs will be flung to the far corners of the world, each desperately trying to navigate his or her own path to safety.

As one sibling is forced into exile, another attempts to flee the continent, while others struggle to escape certain death, either by working grueling hours on empty stomachs in the factories of the ghetto or by hiding as gentiles in plain sight. Driven by an unwavering will to survive and by the fear that they may never see one another again, the Kurcs must rely on hope, ingenuity, and inner strength to persevere.

An extraordinary, propulsive novel, We Were the Lucky Ones demonstrates how in the face of the twentieth century’s darkest moment, the human spirit can endure and even thrive.

Eternal by Lisa Scottoline

Elisabetta, Marco, and Sandro grow up as the best of friends despite their differences. Elisabetta is a feisty beauty who dreams of becoming a novelist; Marco the brash and athletic son in a family of professional cyclists; and Sandro a Jewish mathematics prodigy, kind-hearted and thoughtful, the son of a lawyer and a doctor. Their friendship blossoms to love, with both Sandro and Marco hoping to win Elisabetta's heart. But in the autumn of 1937, all of that begins to change as Mussolini asserts his power, aligning Italy's Fascists with Hitler's Nazis and altering the very laws that govern Rome. In time, everything that the three hold dear--their families, their homes, and their connection to one another--is tested in ways they never could have imagined.

As anti-Semitism takes legal root and World War II erupts, the threesome realizes that Mussolini was only the beginning. The Nazis invade Rome, and with their occupation come new atrocities against the city's Jews, culminating in a final, horrific betrayal. Against this backdrop, the intertwined fates of Elisabetta, Marco, Sandro, and their families will be decided, in a heartbreaking story of both the best and the worst that the world has to offer.

Unfolding over decades, Eternal is a tale of loyalty and loss, family and food, love and war--all set in one of the world's most beautiful cities at its darkest moment.

Weather Girl by Rachel Lynn Solomon

Ari Abrams has always been fascinated by the weather, and she loves almost everything about her job as a TV meteorologist. Her boss, legendary Seattle weatherwoman Torrance Hale, is too distracted by her tempestuous relationship with her ex-husband, the station’s news director, to give Ari the mentorship she wants. Ari, who runs on sunshine and optimism, is at her wits’ end. The only person who seems to understand how she feels is sweet but reserved sports reporter Russell Barringer.

In the aftermath of a disastrous holiday party, Ari and Russell decide to team up to solve their bosses’ relationship issues. Between secret gifts and double dates, they start nudging their bosses back together. But their well-meaning meddling backfires when the real chemistry builds between Ari and Russell.

Working closely with Russell means allowing him to get to know parts of herself that Ari keeps hidden from everyone. Will he be able to embrace her dark clouds as well as her clear skies?

[feywildfancypants]

This book was good and I hate it. I needed to read it, and I wish I’d never picked it up. I will be reeling from this story for a long time because as scared as I am, I also know that maintaining the status quo is not an option.

[oatmilk-vampire]

So was anyone going to tell me about the Expulsion of Jews from Spain or was I just supposed to learn about it from Danya Ruttenberg in her new book On Repentance and Repair because my church recommended it?

[forewordreviewsmag]

ICYMI: A reading list for Jewish Book Month from CLMP.

For Jewish Book Month, observed annually during the month before Hanukkah, clmp asked our members—independent presses, literary journals, and others—to share with us some of the books and magazines they recommend reading in celebration

[theculturedmarxist]

While arguing with some friends about The Last Train Home, I descended down a small rabbit hole about Czechoslovakia and came across the Slansky Trial, an allegedly antisemitic "show trial," and while looking for more information on it came across this response by Louis Harap from 1953.

Behind this case is the all-important question of the relation of the capitalist and socialist worlds upon which the peace of the world depends. Are we dealing with a conspiracy to make Czechoslovakia a base for a war against the socialist world? Would this bring World War III closer? If so, the people should know it. We hope that our examination will throw light on the implications of this trial for world peace. The answer to this 'question of war and peace in relation to .this case should emerge from our scrutiny of a number of issues specifically raised by it. Some of the questions we must try to answer are these: Are the charges against the Slansky group true? Was anti-Semitism and scapegoating really the motivation for the Prague trial, as the press is dinning into our ears? Is anti-Zionism equivalent to hostility to the Jewish people? Is criticism of the Ben Gurion government to be equated with opposition to Israel and the people of Israel? Is anti-Zionism the same as anti-Semitism?

[...]

In other words, Zionism is an ideology that is held by some Jews-and, it must be emphasized, opposed for a variety of reasons by many others, including certain Jewish religious groups, thousands of Israeli citizens and even by bourgeois assimilationists among wealthy Jews all over the world (for instance, the American Jewish Committee) and also by communists. Hence, it is simply untrue to equate anti-Zionism with anti-Semitism, for what anti-Zionism opposes is an ideology and not Jews as such. To hold otherwise is to assert something as absurd as, "anti-Republicanism is anti-Americanism" or "anti-Jimcrow is anti-American" or "to be anti-Tory is to be anti-British" or "anti-Malanism is anti-South Africa."

Regardless of the Slansky trial, it seems like the "anti-Israel is anti-Semitic" coin is currency long in circulation.

[jewish-american-boy-toy]

My new glasses came in.

(Ps- lets have more second-hand books in aesthetic photos)

[sadgirlnoga]

looking for people who can volenteer as sensitivity readers for my ao3 story!

i have this story on ao3 called dancing in the devils auditorium, its the first ever story i wrote and it has a pretty diverse cast. the story takes place in late 2012 and focuses on julian, a 13 year old cishet white boy that comes from an evangelical christian household, on his first day of 7th grade he notices this other girl in his class named aya, a mixed jewish girl(ashkenazic father and cuban jewish mother) with a unique style that can pretty much be described as a mix of many types of jfashion, alternative fashion and inspired by cartoons and anime. they bump into eachother and start talking, afterwhich she makes him a tumblr account. but when he comes home and mentions her name to his parents they snap, out her as a "homosexual male" and forbid him from talking to her ever again. so he decides to investigate after his friends, marco and ben, convince him to keep talking to her. 2 days later and julian is sitting with his extended family, in which his dad mentions that julian talked to aya, while also outing her as trans in a very dehumanizing and degrading way, which aya overhears from the table across them. the next day julian is forced to stay inside the house because he isnt feeling well, yet he isnt contagous, alloing him to do his on research about the trans community and also allowing allowing aya and her friend tina to sneak past his clueless housekeeper and visit him, tina gives them some alone time and they end up talking, and than julian asks aya about her trans identity. aya reveals that shes not only trans, but shes also intersex and has klinefelters syndrome 48, XXXY. she opens up to julian about her bullying, religious trauma and mistreatment by the town she used to live in. after talking some more they both kiss but before they can establish their status aya has to walk tina home. tina and marco create a plan to set julian and aya up on a free movie date, which they end up successfully as the date ends with a kiss and they become a couple. as the story continues, both of their world begin to collide. aya helps julian think for himself and be a good boyfriend, and julian makes aya feel loved and helps her get over her past trauma and expiriences with horrible online relationships. there are also other characters that play pretty big roles in the story.

Im looking for:

Exvangelical sensitivity readers

Transfem sensitivity readers

Nonbinary sensitivity readers

Intersex sensitivity readers(preferably ones with Klinefelter Syndrome.)

Jewish sensitivity readers

Muslim sensitivity readers

Latinx sensitivity readers(preferably Cuban and Dominican)

black sensitivity readers(preferably darkskin black girls)

East asian sensitivity readers

Southeast asian sensitivity readers

South asian sensitivity readers

Bipoc sensitivity readers

Readers with cluster B personality disorders(preferably ASPD and HPD, also people with conduct disorder can really help)

Indiginous sensitivity readers

Genderfluid sensitivity readers

WLW sensitivity readers

Pansexual sensitivity readers

Transracial adoptee sensitivity readers

Sensitivity readers who are children of divorce

Shut in sensitivity readers

Physically disabled sensitivity readers

Intellectually disabled sensitivity readers

Sensitivity readers with all kinds of mental illnesses

Low income sensitivity readers

Older Gen Z sensitivity readers who were on tumblr during the early 2010s

And sensitivity readers who were in middle school from 2010-2014.

if your interested you can either comment, DM me on here or simply read the story on ao3 and comment there.

[tigger8900]

Happily: A Personal History — With Fairy Tales, by Sabrina Orah Mark

⭐⭐⭐ 1/2

What happens when a Jewish woman from New York City marries a Black man and moves to the deep south? Serving first as stepmother to his three existing daughters — from two previous marriages — then also as mother to the two sons they have together, Sabrina turns to the familiar patterns of storytelling to make sense out of her life. From her experiences back in NYC and the struggles involved in being a wife, mother, and stepmother, to the struggles of raising boys who are both Black and Jewish and the trials of the Covid-19 pandemic, there's few areas where fairy tale lessons don't have something to say on the matter.

When I picked up this title, I wasn't familiar with Sabrina Orah Mark or her column. I do, however, enjoy reading about fairy tales. I wasn't sure what exactly to expect from this collection of memoir essays, but I was pleasantly surprised.

Every essay had an event or theme from her life being related to one or more lessons from a fairy tale. This might be a general musing on mothers and stepmothers in story and life, a discussion of hair loss being related to Rapunzel, or wicked wonderings about the role of mother-as-fairy as a child begins to lose their baby teeth. A few of them felt like they'd been a bit shoehorned, but most were interesting. I particularly enjoyed that she often cited multiple versions of the same story, noting where they differed and where they agreed in relation to the point she was making. The tales explored stayed largely within what we'd consider to be the western canon, which may be disappointing to some readers who were looking for more diversity. While there are frequently references to Jewish tradition, it's not quite the same thing.

The most distinct thing about the essays is their seamless blend of the real and the fantastical. She might be relating an event that happened to her, then suddenly halfway through the scene it begins to feel implausible, as if we've slipped sideways through the fabric of reality and wound up inside a story. It took me a few chapters to catch on and embrace this method of storytelling. There were a many times when I read along for several sentences, unsure whether I was in reality or fairyland. Ultimately I enjoyed it more than I didn't, but I know this won't be for everybody.

These are incredibly personal essays. She frequently discusses her family — parents, sister, husband, children, and step-children — which is to be expected in memoir. But where it gets a bit uncomfortable is at certain points in the chapters when she mentions her writing alienating those close to her, presumably due to her including them in the works. Obviously there's a conversation to be had around boundaries and oversharing when you're emotionally close to someone who makes their life public, in whole or in part. As the consumer, our assumption is that the creator has done the necessary work to have those conversations, avoid sensitive areas, and secure any necessary consent. But her admission that she'd run into troubles with this before left me uncertain, devoid of context, and feeling almost voyeuristic at times. I certainly hope nobody was harmed by any content included in this volume. But ultimately I'm not sure I trust that was the case, which left me feeling conflicted.

Time for The Question! Does the tarantula die? Very mild spoilers ahead. Some of the essays have to deal with her stepdaughter's pet tarantula. The tarantula survives just fine.