A well-crafted anthology of musings from a giant of Jewish literature.
Stromberg offers newly translated essays by Nobel laurate Isaac Bashevis Singer that shed light on the Polish American author’s postwar transformation.
Singer’s novels, short stories, and essays not only garnered him the Nobel Prize for Literature, but also two National Book Awards, among a host of other accolades. He’s a leading figure in 20th century Yiddish literature, and his major works have been published in English translations, but not all of his mid-20th century musings. In this, the second volume of select Yiddish essays by Singer, translator and editor Stromberg focuses on a pivotal era of the writer’s intellectual development, from 1946 to 1955. Although The Family Moskat (1950) and other novels have driven much of the scholarly understanding of Singer during this period, Stromberg suggests that the writer’s lesser-known essays, published in the Yiddish newspaper Forverts under the pseudonym Yitskhok Varshavski, reveal a “total transformation,” as he questioned “everything he knew” about his Jewish faith and identity. This theme of “spiritual reappraisal” is seen throughout these essays, which blend an orthodox understanding of Jewish history and faith with frustration regarding contemporary Jewish movements and organizations, particularly among American Jews. Singer’s 1951 essay “What Is the Foundation of Jewish Culture?,” for example, highlights the growing number of people who “say they just happen to be Jewish” and “have the sense that being Jewish obliges them to nothing.” Another essay on Yiddish literature notes the dearth of writings on immigration, socialism, and other topics central to Jewish diasporic histories. “When Actions Achieve Nothing” offers a powerful reflection on the tension between religious systems that prioritize “the thought itself” and the more secularist prioritization of taking action.
Stromberg, a literary scholar who’s served as editor of the Isaac Bashevis Singer Literary Trust, has an intimate familiarity with the nuances of Singer’s idiosyncratic beliefs. The book’s introductory essay offers an astute survey of the author’s postwar changes, contextualizing this period by not only considering his seven decades of writing, but also by putting them in historical context. Singer’s inner tumult, Stromberg argues, paralleled the chaos of events in the world around him, from the Cold War and McCarthyism to the formation of Israel and post-Holocaust Zionism. Similarly, short editorial introductions place each essay in specific contexts within Singer’s life, such as his travels to Europe and Israel, and emphasizes their relevancy to 21st-century debates within Jewish communities. The translations themselves are accessible and admirably reflect Singer’s iconic style and vision of Jewish idealism. At the heart of this vision, reflected in both the author’s essays and Stromberg’s analysis, is the Yiddish language. Critiques of contemporary Jewish movements aside, Singer viewed Yiddish as both practically and spiritually important, hoping to “ensure not only that it will be possible to learn Yiddish but that people will want to learn it so they can gain access to its treasures.” By offering a glimpse of Singer’s own literary treasures, this volume usefully adds to readers’ understanding of a 20th-century icon.
A well-crafted anthology of musings from a giant of Jewish literature.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: Dec. 4, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A frank and funny but uneven essay collection about neurodiversity.
An experimental, illustrated essay collection that questions neurotypical definitions of what is normal.
From a young age, writer and comedian Myers has been different. In addition to coping with obsessive compulsive disorder and panic attacks, she struggled to read basic social cues. During a round of seven minutes in heaven—a game in which two players spend seven minutes in a closet and are expected to kiss—Myers misread the romantic advances of her best friend and longtime crush, Marley. In Paris, she accidentally invited a sex worker to join her friends for “board games and beer,” thinking he was simply a random stranger who happened to be hitting on her. In community college, a stranger’s request for a pen spiraled her into a panic attack but resulted in a tentative friendship. When the author moved to Australia, she began taking notes on her colleagues in an effort to know them better. As the author says to her co-worker, Tabitha, “there are unspoken social contracts within a workplace that—by some miracle—everyone else already understands, and I don’t….When things Go Without Saying, they Never Get Said, and sometimes people need you to Say Those Things So They Understand What The Hell Is Going On.” At its best, Myers’ prose is vulnerable and humorous, capturing characterization in small but consequential life moments, and her illustrations beautifully complement the text. Unfortunately, the author’s tendency toward unnecessary capitalization and experimental forms is often unsuccessful, breaking the book’s otherwise steady rhythm.
A frank and funny but uneven essay collection about neurodiversity.Pub Date: Oct. 28, 2025
ISBN: 9780063381308
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Morrow/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Sept. 12, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2025
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.
A compendium of charts, time lines, lists and illustrations to accompany study of the Bible.
This visually appealing resource provides a wide array of illustrative and textually concise references, beginning with three sets of charts covering the Bible as a whole, the Old Testament and the New Testament. These charts cover such topics as biblical weights and measures, feasts and holidays and the 12 disciples. Most of the charts use a variety of illustrative techniques to convey lessons and provide visual interest. A worthwhile example is “How We Got the Bible,” which provides a time line of translation history, comparisons of canons among faiths and portraits of important figures in biblical translation, such as Jerome and John Wycliffe. The book then presents a section of maps, followed by diagrams to conceptualize such structures as Noah’s Ark and Solomon’s Temple. Finally, a section on Christianity, cults and other religions describes key aspects of history and doctrine for certain Christian sects and other faith traditions. Overall, the authors take a traditionalist, conservative approach. For instance, they list Moses as the author of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Hebrew Bible) without making mention of claims to the contrary. When comparing various Christian sects and world religions, the emphasis is on doctrine and orthodox theology. Some chapters, however, may not completely align with the needs of Catholic and Orthodox churches. But the authors’ leanings are muted enough and do not detract from the work’s usefulness. As a resource, it’s well organized, inviting and visually stimulating. Even the most seasoned reader will learn something while browsing.
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2005
ISBN: 978-1-5963-6022-8
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 23, 2010
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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