Annette Gendler's Blog, page 15

Book Companion Post: Remembering Kristallnacht in Liberec

Today marks the 79th anniversary of Kristallnacht, the night of broken glass, when most of the synagogues in the German Reich were destroyed along with Jewish shops and businesses. Until I researched my Jewish family history while writing Jumping Over Shadows, I didn’t know that the destruction of the synagogue in my grandparents’ hometown of Reichenberg (now Liberec) was directly connected to my Jewish great-uncle Guido:

“Guido never found out that the synagogue his father had helped build...

Cloisonné – Beauty Below the Surface

With all the barbarism we’re facing these days (the truck-ramming terror attack in New York being the latest), I find it’s good to remind ourselves of all the beauty and exquisite craftsmanship we humans can create when we’re at our best and most civilized. This image got me thinking about how much richness lies beneath the surface, and how much depth there is to everything, especially fine art, when you look a little closer and delve a little deeper. This is the cover of a note card I bough...

Book Companion Post: Answering Reader Questions

Storefront in Liberec, 2016 (Sadly, I wasn’t able to figure out the exact site of Guido and Resi’s store.)

What happened to Ludwig during the war? Was he sent to the “Front”? 

Let me first answer this by quoting a passage that was cut from the book:

Towards the end of 1943, Resi was not able to hold Ludwig at home anymore. Wartime service was tightening its noose. The Reich needed all able-bodied men to support the war effort. As a half-Jew, Ludwig was drafted into Organization Todt. Named af...

Jewish Encounters in a Non-Jewish Land

 

Today I’m happy to share my essay “Jewish Encounters in a Non-Jewish Land,” published recently in the brand-spanking new Sasson Magazine. Please head on over […]

The post Jewish Encounters in a Non-Jewish Land appeared first on Annette Gendler.

Book Companion Post: Görlitz

I received this picture of my book from a reader in Germany. Without any input from me, she chose to take it in front of the post office in Görlitz (doesn’t it look like a castle?). How perfect! Görlitz is mentioned in Jumping Over Shadows as my grandparents are experiencing the end of World War II in their hometown of Reichenberg (now called Liberec) in the Czech Republic:

In those early days of 1945, the thunder of the cannons near Görlitz, across the border on Reich territory, could be he...

Finalist! Giveaway!

It’s celebration time! I am thrilled to share that Jumping Over Shadows was named a finalist for the 2017 Book of the Year Award organized by the Chicago Writers Association! Today is the 6-month publication anniversary! And I received my first royalty check today, which a) wasn’t too shabby, but b) is just a GREAT feeling.

To celebrate, I’m hosting a giveaway:

I’m giving away six copies of my book to new subscribers to my newsletter, The Art of Living & Writing. For a chance to win, all y...

#Spreadalittlekindness

On a day like today, when you wake up to such terrible news as the mass shooting in Las Vegas, what is there to do? Of course I’m following the news for updates, but that’s so terribly paralyzing and unproductive.

Thankfully, I had scheduled a post on my Facebook page for this morning and when that notification popped up it reminded me: The thing to do is to spread a little kindness, to connect. I was sharing this most wonderful email from a reader (including this picture):

“I wanted to tell...

The Ups and Downs of the Author’s Life

“So how’s it going with your book?” is the question I’m most often asked these days when I meet someone I haven’t seen in a while. The truth is I’m never quite sure how to answer because it depends on the latest developments. The author’s life is a roller coaster ride, or a ride on the ferris wheel, up and down, up and down.

Case in point: Today I followed up on the only invitation I’ve received so far as a member of the Jewish Book Council’s Authors Network–I was to speak for Kristallnacht a...

Remembering 9/11

It’s been my custom to commemorate 9/11 by taking my Portraits 9/11/01 off the shelf and opening it at random to read some of the obituaries the New York Times so admirably collected of those who died on 9/11. Monuments are great markers of tragedy, but only obituaries provide a glimpse of the lives that were lost. As always, I am struck by how in the midst of their lives the victims were, and I cherish learning a little about them.

This time I opened the book more deliberately to see if I co...

I Always Wanted To…

…visit the Montfort Castle in northern Israel. As my contribution to the Field Guide to Everyday Magic Blog Hop, I’m sharing how I finally did so because I have found that making magic happen is often a matter of following through and actually doing what I said I wanted to do.

I’m thrilled to be participating in this blog hop organized by Bella Grace Magazine in celebration of publishing their Field Guide to Everyday Magic. For a chance to win a copy, please think about what you’ve followed...