Welcome to the Forward’s coverage of Jewish culture. Here, you’ll learn about the latest (and sometimes earliest) in Jewish art, music, film, theater, books as well as the secret Jewish history of everything and everyone from The Rolling Stones to…
Culture
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I have seen the future of America — in a pastrami sandwich in Queens
San Wei, which serves pastrami sandwiches along with churros and biang biang noodles, represents an immigrant's fulfillment of the American dream
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Books What Is a ‘Jewish Bakery’?
Stanley Ginsberg, a native of Brooklyn, grew up in a close-knit neighborhood where generations lived side by side. He learned to cook and bake from his grandmother, who lived just upstairs in the same apartment building, and has continued cooking and baking ever since. His book, “Inside the Jewish Bakery: Recipes and Memories from the…
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Photographer to ’30s Literary Stars
From James Joyce to Virginia Woolf, camera-shy European writers were captured on film in the 1930s by German Jewish photographer Gisèle Freund. These psychologically revealing images, in vividly tight close-up — as if the viewer were crammed into an elevator next to the great writer — are enough to guarantee Freund, who died in 2000…
The Latest
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Third Time’s L’Chaim
We can’t seem to get away from l’chaim. At least it’s a happy word. In two previous columns, as you may remember, I spoke of l’chaim as a Jewish toast deriving from the Kiddush, the blessing said before drinking wine on Sabbath eves and holidays; dismissed several explanations offered by readers as to why Jews…
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The 8-Year-Old Girl Who Woke Up Israel
Israel has a new and unlikely national heroine. She is a small, blond, bespectacled Orthodox 8-year-old girl, the daughter of American immigrants who live in Beit Shemesh. Her name is Na’ama Margolese and she was featured in a news broadcast on Israel’s Channel 2 about the ongoing Haredi harassment of the girls who attend the…
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The Soulful Kittel: Lit From Within
The Kittel Collection is a series of clothing pieces that explores the different ways clothing is used as a vehicle for meaning and identity within our tradition and literature. The kittel is a simple, white, garment used as a burial shroud, and customarily worn by men on various Jewish holy days. Each month, The Sisterhood…
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Gimme Some New Time Religion
The Last Testament: A Memoir by God (with David Javerbaum) By David Javerbaum 381 pages, Simon and Schuster, $23.99 The Final Testament of the Holy Bible By James Frey 398 pages, Gagosian, $50 You can find divine justification for just about anything. One preacher declares that God wants us to be “loving and compassionate,” but…
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Single Malt Scotch for Feminists
The Men’s Section: Orthodox Jewish Men in an Egalitarian World By Elana Maryles Sztokman University Press of New England, 288 pages, $85 A few years ago, a friend announced that he intended to start a “Kiddush club” at our synagogue. “Our shul needs more of a social scene,” he declared, “and some high-quality single malt…
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Books Adventures in the Cartoon Trade
Earlier this week, Richard Codor wrote about his cartoon education and how he came to write “Too Many Latkes!” His blog posts are being featured this week on The Arty Semite courtesy of the Jewish Book Council and My Jewish Learning’s Author Blog Series. For more information on the series, please visit: When I walked…
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Forward Fives Mark Best in Arts
For the third consecutive year, the Forward is celebrating the top five productions in five areas of Jewish arts and culture: music, performance, exhibits, books and film. While we aim for choices that are both discriminating and balanced, we recognize that there are far more than five worthy picks in each category. To add to…
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Books Forward Fives: 2011 in Fiction
In this, the third annual Forward Fives selection, we celebrate the year’s cultural output with a series of deliberately eclectic choices in music, performance, exhibitions, books and film. Here we present five of the most important works of fiction of 2011. Feel free to argue with and add to our selections in the comments. ”Life…
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Books Forward Fives: 2011 in Poetry
In this, the third annual Forward Fives selection, we celebrate the year’s cultural output with a series of deliberately eclectic choices in music, performance, exhibitions, books and film. Here we present five of the most important poetry books of 2011. Feel free to argue with and add to our selections in the comments. 2011 has…
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