Literature

'Disasters of Biblical Proportions': From ancient Exodus to lessons in fear and faith - review

The book Disasters of Biblical Proportions: The Ten Plagues Then, Now, and at the End of the World provides a history of the interpretations of each of the 10 plagues in the Book of Exodus.

‘The seventh Plague of Egypt,’  hail and fire, by John Martin, 1823.
'Pride and Prejudice' was first brought to the silver screen in 1940, and was reprised in 2005.

250 years later, Jane Austen lives on at the Jerusalem Cinematheque

Touro Synagogue, built in 1759, in Newport, Rhode Island, is the oldest synagogue building in the United States.

Mastering the short story: Twelve vignettes capture America’s Jewish world - book review

Romance and erotica novels are gaining popularity among religious women in Israel, with some rabbis quietly endorsing the genre for 'peace in the home.'

From Talmud to temptation: How erotica found a home in Orthodox Israel


'Yoko: A Biography': Have we underestimated Yoko Ono all along? - review

As more of her albums have been released and the number of art exhibitions has mounted, however, Ono has increasingly been recognized for what one critic called “the breadth, charm, and brilliance."

 JOHN AND Yoko on their honeymoon at the Hilton Amsterdam, March 1969

Terms of enrichment: Wandering into the wonderful world of words

When it comes to cleverly crafted fine lines in prose or poetry, a palindrome is a word, phrase, or sequence of words that reads the same backward as forward, such as 'Madam, I’m Adam.'

Reading a book (Illustrative)

'Letters from Home': Exploring tension among Jews in in the Second Temple era - review

The relationship between the Jewish communities of Egypt and Israel created an underlying tension, not unlike the modern-day relationship between world Jewry and the Jews of the State of Israel.

 A RECONSTRUCTION of the blue-tiled Ishtar Gate, the northern entrance to Babylon, on display at the Pergamon Museum, Berlin.

Rescued from the archives and wrestled into print: Behind Chaim Grade's last Yiddish novel

Finished or not, “Sons and Daughters” is a vivid, Tolstoyan examination of what Kirsch calls “a family struggling with the meaning of Jewishness in the twentieth century.”

Chaim Grade’s "Sons and Daughters" was originally serialized in the 1960s and '70s, in New York–based Yiddish newspapers.

Canarit Audiobooks: An Israeli firm making books more accessible for busy consumers

A new Israeli venture makes literature more accessible and alluring for busy consumers.

 An illustrative image of headphones around books.

Yossi Avni-Levy wins Sapir Prize for Literature

Avni-Levy will receive NIS 180,000 ($50,000) and his novel will be translated into Arabic and another language of his choosing, broadening its reach and fostering cross-cultural dialogue.

 FROM LEFT, winner of the 2024 Sapir Prize, Yossi Avni-Levy, Mifal Hapais chairman Avigdor Itzhaky, former president of the Supreme Court Esther Hayut, Mifal Hapais CEO Benjamin Dreyfus. and winner of the 2024 Sapir Prize for a debut book, Ayal Hayut-Man.

'Dictionary of Fine Distinctions': A book on subtle differences in the English language - review

Dictionary of Fine Distinctions merits study at your leisure. Burnstein describes his little volume as “Nuances, Niceties, and Subtle Shades of Meaning.

 An illustrative image of an excerpt from an English dictionary.

Rebecca Makkai, whose grandfather drafted a Nazi-era antisemitic law, is writing a novel on fascism

Bestselling author Rebecca Makkai, whose grandfather wrote WWII-era laws that Jews from public spaces, will be writing a book on fascism.

 Selection of Hungarian Jews on the ramp at Auschwitz-II-Birkenau in German-occupied Poland, May/June 1944, during the final phase of the Holocaust. Jews were sent either to work or to the gas chamber.

The SASA-Setton Prize for Children's Literature celebrates creativity, healing, and heritage

The SASA-Setton Prize honors authors and illustrators who inspire through children’s literature, bridging art and healing and uniting diverse communities in Israeli hospitals and beyond.

Sonia Gomes de Mesquita, representing the donor family, alongside the recipient of the 2024 SASA-Setton Prize for Children's Literature in the Lifetime Achievement category, Tamar Verete-Zehavi.

Benny Edvy’s The Lost Orphan Boy Brings resilience and forgotten histories to life

Exploring themes of courage, women’s strength, and survival, Edvy’s debut novel sheds light on the harrowing journey of Yemenite Jewish orphans and the enduring legacy of their community.

 Benny Endy, author of "The Lost Orphan Boy"