Zackary Sholem Berger
Sacrifice through Heresy
An autobiographical collection of poems explores the metaphor of sacrificial offerings.
Here I Am in Texas, At the Gates of a Refugee Camp
A physician rallies against the detention of immigrant children, sharing Yiddish poetry with fellow protesters.
Amazon Is Dooming New Yiddish Publications. Can It Be Stopped?
Since a takeover of Amazon’s self-publishing company, neither Yiddish nor Hebrew are among the 40 languages in which content can be uploaded.
My Daughter’s Eighth-Grade Class is in Israel — And I’m Conflicted
My 14-year-old daughter is in Israel with her eighth-grade day school class. I don’t know what to think about the trip.
Gun Control – Mandated by Health, Supported By Jewish sources
A classic example in the Talmud’s laws on damages offers an interesting response to supporters of the Second Amendment.
Faith Leaders and Doctors Disrupt the Senate For the Sake of Health Insurance
Read why this Jewish physician and others were arrested demonstrating support for patients in need
The Gloom and Redemption of Yiddish Poet Yisroel Shtern
The poet Yisroel Shtern was reluctant to publish his own work, writing about the ‘over-proliferation of books on this planet.’ Only in 2014 did a true collection of Shtern’s work appear.
Poems of Heresy and Transformation
Yermiyahu Ahron Taub left the ultra-Orthodox community, but that is not the subject of his poems. Rather, Taub’s experience of change makes him able to perceive it in others.
Q&A: Poet Elinor Nauen on Writing Ottava Rima for Derek Jeter
Elinor Nauen is Manhattan’s unofficial poet laureate of cars and baseball. Her newest book, “So Late Into the Night,” is a rollicking road trip on the model of Byron’s “Don Juan,” with over 600 stanzas of ottava rima about Derek Jeter (her non-Platonic obsession), road trips, her husband, morning minyan and herself. Nauen chatted with The Arty Semite about moving to New York from South Dakota, writing about shul, and whether Derek Jeter will ever read her poems.
Torah Poems That Bring Comfort, Not Questions
Each Thursday, The Arty Semite features excerpts and reviews of the best contemporary Jewish poetry. This week, Zackary Sholem Berger reviews “70 Faces” by Rachel Barenblat.