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Carolyn
(new)
Oct 12, 2021 01:58PM
I didn't disagree with anything in Horn's book, but did not want to believe all of it. Example: Varian Fry, who rescued hundreds of Jewish artists during the Holocaust, may have had non-humanitarian motives. The Auschwitz exhibit in the Museum Of Jewish Heritage in NYC was underwritten by a Spanish company for profit-making reasons. The antisemitism in Merchant of Venice is excused by modern academics, even Jewish ones. And her long list of recent attacks on Jews and Jewish institutions in the US is minimized as "no big deal." She views the reverence given to the Holocaust and other past atrocities (i.e. dead Jews) as anything but benign, while the attacks on living Jews continues.
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Mod
Ah, thank you, Carolyn. I've already come across somewhere some of what she says about The Merchant of Venice. So I get your drift. I look forward to when I can read it. Also, maybe it will come up in various classes being taught. I am signed up to hear her interviewed soon. Also, now that we're talking about this, I remember her ELI talk. There are many ways we in the diaspora are subject to norms to go along to get along but that aren't good for us individually or as a people. Thanks Carolyn for reminding me of some of this
If this book arrives on our group bookshelves eventually, we'll be able to click and see member reviews. That could be useful!
Mod
I am reading a Beverly Magid novel SOWN IN TEARS as well AN OBSERVANT WIFE by Naomi Ragen and JANE AUSTEN AND SHELLEY IN THE GARDEN by Janet Todd.
I am looking forward to getting my copy of Dara Horns new book and reading it. Honestly i am not shocked. My christian fanatic friend once told me i wasnt a real Jew because i didnt follow Judaism of Hebrew testament. And of course the news and hatred that seem to be everywhere and very little attention goes to that, as if we arent important enough. Sadly enough, my family hasnt found haven in USA to be ourselves...
I am looking forward to getting my copy of Dara Horns new book and reading it. Honestly i am not shocked. My christian fanatic friend once told me i wasnt a real Jew because i didnt follow Judaism of Hebrew testament. And of course the news and hatred that seem to be everywhere and very little attention goes to that, as if we arent important enough. Sadly enough, my family hasnt found haven in USA to be ourselves...
Mod
Haven't got this one yet but just read the Moment Magazine review. She said as a result of the antisemitic events and the way the culture at large responded that she joined Daf Yomi (page of Talmud a day x 7 1/2 yr) program. Living well is the best revenge.... https://momentmag.com/people-love-dea...
Did your friend mean to become literally observant in full? That came up in Malamud's The Assistant! Or did she mean live now according the Hebrew Bible? Actually, that was a thing in antiquity, where the church tried to make Jews stick to biblical Judaism. No development allowed! It was (and is!) a thing to tell Jews what they are & what they are supposed to be. 😲
Long time not here.Just finished the new biography of Ethel Rosenberg by Anne Sebba. Fantastic telling of the very sad politics and ultimate execution of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg. The bio focuses very clearly on Ethel,her immigrant parents, her childhood poverty,her strong belief in communism,her position of being a woman=mother in the fifties,and the very sad and outrageous execution of her and her husband for the most inane reasons. Sebba treats Ethel with the most respect and dignity and throughout she discusses,in very painful ways the distress Ethel feels knowing she will not live to see her young children grow. Great book.
Mod
Just finished the new biography of Ethel Rosenberg by Anne Sebba. Fantastic telling of the very sad politics and ultimate execution of Ethel and Julius Rosenberg. The bio focuse..."
I've missed you, Alan. ...even though it might not seem like it. I didn't recognize you when replying on another thread, and even though that shouldn't make any difference, it probably did. 😁
Thanks for telling us about the Ethel Rosenberg biography. Although I think I heard about it I haven't read, and input here is the next best thing for the ones I don't get to!
After a first reading of Dona Horn's book and then listening to an interview of her on The Jewish Review of Books website, I was better able to retain it. I believe she is saying that Holocaust memorials, and the like, sentimentalize (not her word) Jewish genocide in the past, while living Jews are still under attack. We in the diaspora collude, while observing our traditions, with the majority to protect ourselves. We mistakenly thought educating the majority about the Holocaust would end antisemitism--it did not.
I highly recommend "Apeirogon" by Calum McCann. I just finished it for my synagogue's book club. It made for a terrific discussion.
Mod
Melissa- I second that!!
Loved it too. We have to wait a bit until this genre comes up.
So.. you have some time to get yourself ready :)
Im curious what the bookclub read the month before?
Hi all, I haven’t had much time to read this year. I haven’t read this book but Colum McCann is one of those generational writers who I feel is can’t miss. If a group of you decide to read this let me know.
Mod
Hi Brina..
I'm so glad to see you came up for air. :)
I would read again as a buddy and with others.
Time is the other issue. My mid winter break starts Jan 20 so that’s when I’ll be able to read if that works for others’ schedules.
We read Florence Adler Swims Forever. I think that was one of our choices, here, as well?
Mod
Melissa,
I just looked it up on the group bookshelf and either missed or we haven't read it. But I do recall it was a nomination or used as a listed example. Moderators Choice- maybe.
How was the discussion on it?
Stacey B wrote: "Melissa wrote: "We read Florence Adler Swims Forever. I think that was one of our choices, here, as well?"Melissa,
I just looked it up on the group bookshelf and either missed or we haven't read ..."
Mixed. Most people liked it, but had some difficulty with the actions of the mother in the story. We discussed how some of the decisions were a function of the time period in which the story takes place, whether or not we would have made similar choices, and how we wanted to know what happens when secrets are revealed. We also had one member whose family lived in Atlantic City during that time period who had some interesting insights to add. (e.g., It was never referred to as the Boardwalk, but, "Walking the Boards."
Am reading THE LAST ROSE OF SHANGHAI by Weina Dai Randel ( which is pretty good...) A SWORD AMONG THE RAVENS by Cynthia Ripley Miller, DUST OFF THE BONES by Paul Howarth and last but not least A HISTORY OF THE ROMAN PEOPLE a nonfiction history textbook, which is pretty interesting.
Mod
Right, Stacey: it was a nomination but not on our bookshelf. Fair game for some future genre. :)
Mod
Aurora,
I have been trying to open "The Last Rose of Shanghai" for awhile.
Your saying its pretty good - not great or good.
At least you didnt say its ok. :)
Let me know your opinion when you finished it.
Mod
Melissa,
I just looked it up on the group bookshelf and either missed or..."
I was raised in the Midwest. I knew about the Boardwalk but wasn't familiar with Walking the Boards then.- Reminds me of the book about the Catskills. Readers were familiar with "bungalows, hotels etc All I knew was Dirty Dancing which gave me a visual, and famous game of Simon Says with the person who was famous - at least I think so, whose name I cant remember) for leading it.
It sounds like your discussion had some interesting sidebars.
The Jewel Trader of Pegu, by Jeffrey Hantover (2008)In the late 1500s, Abraham, a young, widowed Jewish trader, traveled from the ghetto of Venice to seek jewels in Southeast Asia to send back to his uncle in Italy. He traveled to Pegu, a kingdom in Burma, where he encounters a way of life vastly different from the one in which he grew up. The novel is written mostly in letter form that Abraham sends to his cousin in Venice. Abraham describes the lush jungle of Pegu and the people and the customs, as well as his struggles with keeping up his religious practices.
He found that the local people are tolerant of foreigners, and he resides in a house that had previously been occupied by another Italian trader. Abraham is not the only European in Pegu. Jesuit priest have come to convert the Buddhist to Christianity. The Jesuits treat Abraham with scorn, but the local population he encounters are tolerant, although somewhat mystified by Abraham’s religious practices.
Abraham is fascinated by some of the local customs but is horrified to learn that it is a practice for foreigners to sleep with a bride-to-be on her wedding day, before sleeping with her husband. Abraham at first resists this honor, but ultimately succumbs to this practice, although not without his coming to grips with his moral dilemma.
Young Mya entered the town to marry, but first was given to Abraham. The next morning, her groom failed to come for her. He had overindulged the night before and died, leaving Mya a widow. Abraham allows her to stay in his house, and soon falls in love with her.
Abraham works with Win, a local broker, and as they become friends, they discuss their religious and cultural differences. They respect each other’s differences and form a strong bond, which will help them both during the pending uprising. Abraham realizes that, as a Jew, he has far more freedom in Pegu than he had in Italy, despite the cruelty of the Peguian king.
Pegu and a rival kingdom begin a violent war. Abraham realizes that he must depart, but not without Mya, whom he as entered into a common-law marriage. She is pregnant, so he doesn’t want to return to Italy until after the birth of their child. They depart for deep into the country.
I enjoyed this novel. The author provided vivid descriptions of the country as it existed so many years ago.
4 Stars
Hahtoolah wrote: "The Jewel Trader of Pegu, by Jeffrey Hantover (2008)In the late 1500s, Abraham, a young, widowed Jewish trader, traveled from the ghetto of Venice to seek jewels in Southeast Asia to send back to..."
I have had this on my TBR list for a while. Your review just moved it up the list for me! Thanks!
I just finished Sidura Ludwig's story collection You Are Not What We Expected and it was excellent! Linked stories about a Jewish community in Toronto. See below to hear her speak...Just started Maggie Shipstead's Great Circle
Posting again here bc I don't know if anyone sees the other thread...but this Sunday, Dec 12, 2021, is Literary Modiin's next event and you're all invited. Register here for the Zoom link: https://bit.ly/3xtS5Am
We'll be hearing from:
- Sidura Ludwig, author of You Are Not What We Expected
- Kathleen Alcalá, author of Spirits of the Ordinary: A Tale of Casas Grandes
- Marcela Sulak, author of City of Skypapers
Hope you can join us!
ISO -historical fiction re early Israel -appropriate for YA
Mod
It caught my attention based on the second half of the synopsis; I decided not to read any reviews until after I finish it.
The Art of Resistance<>/i, by Justus Rosenberg (2020)The author, Justus Rosenberg, was well into his 90s when his memoir was published. He was born in 1921 in the Free City of Danzig, a semi-autonomous city-state that existed for about 20 years between 1920 and 1940. He was immersed in both Polish and German culture. His grandparents lived in Poland, but his parents had moved to Danzig. They believed that the Jewish residents of Danzig would be insulated from the rise of Hitler.
At age 16, Rosenberg was sent to Paris to further his education. The rest of his family remained in Danzig. When the Germans invaded France, Rosenberg’s studies came to an end. The blond-haired, blue-eyed Rosenburg didn’t “look Jewish” and soon found himself joining the underground resistance movement. The fact that he was also fluent in Polish, German and English was a major asset to the underground.
Rosenberg recounts his imprisonments and escapes in vivid detail. The book reads like a suspense story. We know from the beginning, of course, that the author survives, but that doesn’t distract from the tensions of the narrative.
After the War, Rosenberg settled in the United States where he became a literature professor at Bard College. He died in October 2021 at age 100.
4 Stars
Mod
The author, Justus Rosenberg, was well into his 90s when his memoir was published. He was born in 1921 in the Free City of Danzig, a semi-autono..."
I love reading these reviews and comments ♥
Justus Rosenberg's long life must have given him a great vantage point!
Mod
by one of our members. Mel has been active in this group long before we found out he was publishing a book. He taught me during that time the importance of documentation opposed to what one may assume is documented.
Congrats Mel !!!!
NONFICTION
What They Didn’t Burn: Uncovering My Father’s Holocaust Secrets
Mel Laytner
Review For Book Clubs
By Renita Last – December 27, 2021
Joseph Laytner owned a candy store and then a linen shop on New York’s Upper West Side after World War II, but, before that, Josef “Dolek” Lajtner survived forced labor, Nazi ghettos, numerous selektions, the Blechhammer Camp in Auschwitz, and desperate death marches. The dad Mel Laytner grew up with is a quiet, often passive man. The man he was during the Holocaust turns out to be quite different. Who was he?
In What They Didn’t Burn, a meticulously researched memoir, Mel Laytner, a noted journalist and broadcaster, commits himself to uncovering his father’s story. Laytner’s detective work begins years after Dolek’s lifetime Polish friend and fellow survivor, artist Walter Spitzer, tells him, “Dolek was a bastard. A real bastard. You had to be if you wanted to live.” Years later, Laytner decides to pursue the subject of his father’s experiences. He had listened to bits and pieces of his dad’s occasional war stories, which never gave much personal information or details. His mother, a Hungarian survivor, never spoke of the war. He gleaned bits of knowledge from relatives and friends.
Laytner shifts into journalist mode in his writing. His background, education, and extensive broadcast work serve him well in his book. He knows witnesses are often suspect or unreliable, and he must separate their testimony and his own emotional involvement by finding documentation, corroboration, confirmation, and firsthand original sources.
As he persistently searches and follows the Nazi paper trail, his investigations lead him to return to Poland many times. He visits museums, archives, libraries, his father’s former towns and residences, and the infamous camps. He speaks to experts and ordinary citizens. He is able to track down specific documentation despite the bureaucracy and secrecy he encounters. Laytner’s explanations of his obtaining information read like a treasure hunt. One chapter thoroughly guides the reader through checking and verifying sources like a primer. The ensuing powerful narrative is dramatic, harrowing, and haunting. Dolek’s personal story turns into a historical story of Holocaust survival and determination.
The book chronicles Dolek’s early life in an old-world wealthy and cultured family that owned many factories. He is forced to work for the German war machine as an iron welder and is later transported to the Blechhammer labor area of Auschwitz. He is looked up to but rejects the offer of becoming a Kapo. He does engage in stealthily trading and smuggling small diamonds for food and contraband. Bread is the chief commodity for trading, and he quickly learns how to obtain and hide it. Dolek endures years of beatings, hunger, and exhaustion.
The author factually recounts the history of German ghetto aktions, the role of the Judenräte, the efficient killing machines of gas chambers and crematorium, POW stories, and the status and daily work of prisoners. Laytner remembers his father always saying that luck, more than money, smarts, or skills, was most important for survival.
The author also explores the subject of children of survivors and how the Second Generation view their parents’ lives in complex and contrasting ways. He discusses current and past research and studies, as well as his own thoughts on this issue.
The immigrant story plays out as Laytner explores his father’s life and legacy. He describes his dad’s journey from Ripley’s pants presser to small business owner. He was a quiet, voracious reader with a past, who worked arduous days to better himself and his family while building a new life in the United States.
What They Didn’t Burn includes many photos, drawings, graphic sketches, documents, Notes, and a valuable bibliography that bring the Laytner experience to life. This is a well-written potent story of memory and tribute told with integrity and weight.
Stacey B wrote: "Please see a wonderful review written by the Jewish Book Council by one of our members. Mel has been active in this group long before we found out he was publishing a book. He taught me during tha..."
Stacey -- Greatly appreciate the shout-out -- thank you! The review's plaudits aside, it's clear the reviewer took careful notes and, in fact, read the entire book. Authors who sniff they don't crave this kind of validation are lying, period.
I wanted to write a book that would appeal to the educated lay reader. Someone who knows the Holocaust happened, but not much more, and doesn't really care. A fan of Erik Larson micro-histories, but one who raises a reasonable eyebrow at some of those "amazing" stories of survival.
Early on I ask, how do we show the truth, especially to future generations further and further removed from the war? The rest of the book is an answer to that question.
So it's very gratifying to see a review that gets what I was trying to do.
Mod
by one of our members. Mel has been active in this group long before we found out he was publishing a book. He tau..."
As well as the many who read your book.
Mod
Lori Banov Kaufmann whose book "Rebel Daughter"
just won the National Jewish Book Award in the category
of Y/A Jewish Literature last night.
Lori, you make us proud!!!
So thrilled for Lori! Rebel Daughter is phenomenal. Mazel tov! ❤️
Mod
Article from AP and The Tmes of Israel
In tears, Knesset speaker recites mourner’s Kaddish in German parliament
Addressing the Bundestag in Berlin on International Holocaust Remembrance Day, Mickey Levy says world has a duty to educate the next generation in these horrors
By STUART WINER and AP
27 January 2022, 5:21 pm
Knessset Speaker MK Mickey Levy breaks down in tears during a ceremony to mark International Holocaust Remembrance Day held in the Bundestag, the German Parliament, January 27, 2022. (Courtesy Boaz Arad)
Knessset Speaker MK Mickey Levy breaks down in tears during a ceremony to mark International Holocaust Remembrance Day held in the Bundestag, the German Parliament, January 27, 2022. (Courtesy Boaz Arad)
Knesset Speaker MK Mickey Levy stood before the German parliament on Thursday to mark International Holocaust Remembrance Day and urged those gathered to protect democracy and educate future generations against hatred.
It was the first time that a speaker of the Knesset addressed the full German parliament.
During his address, Levy recited part of the Kaddish, a traditional Jewish mourner’s prayer, that he read out from a prayer book used by a teenager at his bar mitzvah on October 22, 1938, shortly before the Kristallnacht pogrom instigated by the Nazis against Germany’s Jews.
“A moment, before the life they were meant to live — shattered in the face of the reality in Germany,” Levy said, unable to contain his emotion as he spoke.
Hi, it’s been a while since I sent anything to this group. Here is a little bit of a catch up. Most recently I have been lucky enough to find several books I’ve really enjoyed. I finished the Rise of David Levinsky, which was recommended highly in this group. I was fascinated by the early part of the book which takes place in Russia in the 1870s and 1880s, I believe. The author talked a lot about the cheder classes and how he was treated and mistreated by the instructors who belittled him constantly and were freer with their physical abuse. He had nothing to eat for days on end. As an orphan he sleeps on the bench at the school. He comes to NY in the late 1880s, (I forget the year, maybe 1888) and he is living in the Lower East Side(of Manhattan) and gets involved with the garment trade. After several starts and stops, he is lucky enough and brash enough to start a little business and to build it up to a million-dollar company. Throughout this latter part of the book, he mentions several times in his thoughts, that he is a man who has a million dollars. He is impressed with this knowledge of himself. Interesting portrayal of a man that, in my opinion, is trapped between two worlds. To say more might be a spoiler.
Mod
Is it similar to "Button Man"by Andrew Gross ?
No, if I remember Button Man was a family of brothers in the garment industry and their disagreements with the mob. This is about Levinsky's interactions with the socialists and Unions of the times. He was Big Capital, a manufacturer, and therefore on the other side of the table.
Mod
I appreciate you answering. Thank you.
Mod
Mod
Mod
To: All Eighth Graders, McInn County, Tennessee
From: School Board District of McInn County, Tennessee
Effective immediately:
The novel "Maus" is banned as part of our curriculum.
We, the School Board are just simply appalled and mortified by the picture(s) of a naked mouse and eight foul words which are printed in the novel. Although we recognize that you are indeed thirteen, we feel you are still too delicate to learn about hate in a world of many uneducated people. Of course we know our schools are free from bullies and you would never repeat inappropriate language nor
write it as graffiti on any surface.
We maintain this decision holds until you enter ninth grade. By this time next year you will have passed a form of social science such as biology, language arts, and sex education taught in our schools ..
Please be aware that since our decision was made, "Maus" is becoming a best seller. If you choose to bring it to school, it will be confiscated.
With respect,
Stacey- a non-member of the School Board
I just finished, "The Rabbi who Prayed with Fire" by Rachel Sharona Lewis. The main character, Rabbi Vivian, is a queer, single woman who is trying to turn her more conservative congregation into one focused on social justice and local politics. If you've ever served on a temple Board of Trustees, you will recognize several characters in this novel. I read it because it is the current "One Book, One Hadassah" (https://www.hadassah.org/virtual-prog...) choice, and I am looking forward to Hadassah's interview and Q&A with the author Thursday (2/17) night.
Mod
Melissa-
Im all about social justice- this book looks good.
I have to agree with Maggie regarding the Rabbi Small series.
Those are fun reads - and always written with lasting moral messages.
Stacey B wrote: "I don't often read graphic novels, but I took offense at a recent review of "Maus" My comment is below.
To: All Eighth Graders, McInn County, Tennessee
From: School Board District of McInn County,..."
Oye, hypocritical bastards is all i can say... i wonder if anyone has thought of what children and adults suffered when they were in camps while in the modern day they are fretting over bad words and a naked cartoon mouse in a book about Holocaust...do they also make sure to block out Youtube completetly?
Bible is filled with a lot uglier stories and details, yet none are worried about that. ( namecalling, constant war, destruction, anti-Judaic references, etc.)
To: All Eighth Graders, McInn County, Tennessee
From: School Board District of McInn County,..."
Oye, hypocritical bastards is all i can say... i wonder if anyone has thought of what children and adults suffered when they were in camps while in the modern day they are fretting over bad words and a naked cartoon mouse in a book about Holocaust...do they also make sure to block out Youtube completetly?
Bible is filled with a lot uglier stories and details, yet none are worried about that. ( namecalling, constant war, destruction, anti-Judaic references, etc.)
Mod
I re-read "The Assignment" which is a true story in novel form.
As in above book, assignments are given to 3rd graders and high school kids to defend the Holocaust as we speak.
I have read, so far, these books about FDR (I may have left some out):While Six Million Died: A Chronicle of American Apathy
1944: FDR and the Year That Changed History
book:FDR and the Jews|16691938]
FDR and the Jews
FDR Stalin: A Not So Grand Alliance, 1943–1945
American Default: The Untold Story of FDR, the Supreme Court, and the Battle Over Gold
I personally rank him with Buchanan and Pierce as U.S. Presidents. FDR was right, though, on the subject of the last book, on the gold standard.
Jan wrote: "I just finished Rebecca Goldstein's Betraying Spinoza: The Renegade Jew Who Gave Us Modernity. A good one!"This is in my TBR pile.
I haven't read the Rabbi Small series. I may have to do so and see if it enhances my enjoyment of Rachel Lewis' book.
Mod
While Six Million Died: A Chronicle of American Apathy
[book:1944: FDR and the Year That Changed History|2349283..."
James, I read two from your list.
What was feeling regarding the first one on the list?
I've been diving into Jewish fiction in the last 8 months, as anyone who reads my Goodreads reviews can see. Here's the last 4 months' worth from most recent to late October: The Rabbi Who Prayed with Fire=4, Spinning Silver=5, A Bintel Brief: Sixty Years of Letters from the Lower East Side to the Jewish Daily Forward=4, The Source=5 - a reread, The Sisters of the Winter Wood=5, Street Dreams=5, An Observant Wife=5, Dave at Night=5, From Sarah to Sydney: The Woman Behind All-of-a-Kind Family=2, Florence Adler Swims Forever=3, The Hidden Palace=4, Mrs. Everything=4, Rebel Daughter=4, The Forest of Vanishing Stars=5. I'll post my earlier 4 months' worth, from mid-Oct back through July, tomorrow.
How about reposting with stars near the titles so we know which ones you recommend or even highly recommend (or even don't)?Thanks.
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