Books


Mark Helprin's Politics Doesn't Get in Way of Prose

By Ranen Omer-Sherman

His strident politics notwithstanding, Mark Helprin’s magically descriptive powers have rendered up some of the most genuinely adventurous writing of our time.Read More

A.M. Homes' Novel Addresses '70s Childhood

By Jennifer Gilmore

A.M. Homes calls her new work a ‘midlife coming-of-age novel,’ which makes ‘May We Be Forgiven’ sound sweet or langorous. In truth, it’s neither.Read More

Hans Keilson’s First Novel Depicts Life Before Nazis

By Erika Dreifus

Unlike Hans Keilson’s bestsellers, ‘Life Goes On’ is not grounded in the crises and moral dilemmas posed by the Nazis’ reign. It takes on the period of economic decline that preceded it.Read More

Rachel Tzvia Back’s Verse Confronts Devastating Loss

By Sarah Wildman

Poet Rachel Tzvia Back palpates the edges and depths of grief and mourning. The text in her latest book of verse, ‘A Messenger Comes,’ is unflinching and raw.Read More

Michael Feinstein Strikes Up The Bland

By Erik Tarloff

Michael Feinstein’s ‘The Gershwins and Me,’ is a sustained act of homage to the legendary composers. Unfortunately, that doesn’t make it a great book.Read More

Jami Attenberg Phones Home

By Jami Attenberg

Jami Attenberg wanted to investigate why she’s so interested in food (which plays a big role in her novel, ‘The Middlesteins’). So she called her father to find out.Read More

Némirovsky’s ‘Wine of Solitude’ Confirms Her Place

By Andrea Palatnik

‘The Wine of Solitude’ is the most autobiographical novel from Irene Némirovsky, who died in Auschwitz in 1942. It confirms her place in the pantheon of Jewish writers.Read More

Don’t Know Much About Semitism

By Susan Isaacs

Susan Isaacs came from an assimilated family that had a Christmas tree. The author explains how coming to faith late in life informs her approach to Jewish fiction.Read More

Teenage Hero Is a Distinctly West Coast Jew

By Amy Klein

Has any Jewish teenager in recent American literature felt as much antipathy toward attending Hebrew school as Sanskrit Aaron Zuckerman?Read More

Holocaust Memoir Fraud Inspires Novel

By Joshua Furst

After a Holocaust memoir was revealed as a fraud, Benjamin Stein wove a fictional tale of a literary hoax that takes on the sentimental link between Jewish identity and the shoah.Read More




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  • Lusia Horowitz left pre-state Israel to fight fascism in Spain — and wound up being captured by the Nazis and sent to die at Auschwitz. Share her remarkable story — told in her letters.
  • Vered Guttman doesn't usually get nervous about cooking for 20 people, even for Passover. But last night was a bit different. She was cooking for the Obamas at the White House Seder.
  • A grumpy Jewish grandfather is wary of his granddaughter's celebrating Easter with the in-laws. But the Seesaw says it might just make her appreciate Judaism more. What do you think?
  • “Twist and Shout.” “Under the Boardwalk.” “Brown-Eyed Girl.” What do these great songs have in common? A forgotten Jewish songwriter. We tracked him down.
  • What can we learn from tragedies like the rampage in suburban Kansas City? For one thing, we must keep our eyes on the real threats that we as Jews face.
  • When is a legume not necessarily a legume? Philologos has the answer.
  • "Sometime in my childhood, I realized that the Exodus wasn’t as remote or as faceless as I thought it was, because I knew a former slave. His name was Hersh Nemes, and he was my grandfather." Share this moving Passover essay!
  • Getting ready for Seder? Chag Sameach! http://jd.fo/q3LO2
  • "We are not so far removed from the tragedies of the past, and as Jews sit down to the Seder meal, this event is a teachable moment of how the hatred of Jews-as-Other is still alive and well. It is not realistic to be complacent."
  • Aperitif Cocktail, Tequila Shot, Tom Collins or Vodka Soda — Which son do you relate to?
  • Elvis craved bacon on tour. Michael Jackson craved matzo ball soup. We've got the recipe.
  • This is the face of hatred.
  • What could be wrong with a bunch of guys kicking back with a steak and a couple of beers and talking about the Seder? Try everything. #ManSeder
  • BREAKING: Smirking killer singled out Jews for death in suburban Kansas City rampage. 3 die in bloody rampage at JCC and retirement home.
  • Real exodus? For Mimi Minsky, it's screaming kids and demanding hubby on way down to Miami, not matzo in the desert.
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