Some recent novels feature rebellion among the Orthodox, and the pernicious effects of endemic gossip in their communities. (Jbooks)
A look at a book club at London’s Home for Aged Jews where “most members are in their 90s and their stories are more extraordinary than the books they discuss.� (Guardian)
An overview of the veritable explosion of books about the Kabbalah which have been published over the past decade, including both popularizing texts and scholarly tomes. (Forward)
Three published authors – Joseph Kertes, David Bezmozgis, and Dara Horn, critique the work of I.B.Singer. (Cjnews)
Some 300 rare and valuable books, including a 1487 commentary on the Book of Job confiscated from Iraq’s Jewish community by Saddam Hussein’s regime have been secretly spirited into Israel. “We bought them from thieves,” said Mordechai Ben-Porat.(AFP)
A look at how Leo Rosten, a middle-aged immigrant from Kiev, came to create “one of the great and enduring characters in English literature,� Hyman Kaplan, and why the creation was such a success. (Nextbook)
