Synopses & Reviews
Best Jewish Writing 2003 Contributors include:
Leo M. Abrami
Joseph Alpher
Benjamin Blech
Norman Berdichevsky
Susan Berrin
Lawrence Bush
Talia Carner
I. Century
Phyllis Chesler
Leslie Cohen
Ralph de Toledano
Enid Dame
Alan M. Dershowitz
Carol Diament
Amos Elon
Lawrence J. Epstein
Mordechai Gafni
Herbert Gold
Shefa Gold
Gloria Goldreich
David Grossman
Blu Greenberg
Irving Greenberg
Leo Haber
David A. Harris
Arthur Hertzberg
Yitzhak Husbands-Hankin
Paula E. Hyman
Yoel Jakobovits
Rodger Kamenetz
Edward I. Koch
Jane Leavy
Amy-Jill Levine
Andrei S. Markovits
Bezalel Noor
Cynthia Ozick
Marge Piercy
Todd Pitock
Daniel Polish
Daniel Asa Rose
Alvin H. Rosenfeld
Gilbert S. Rosenthal
David Saks
Zalman Schachter-Shalomi
Peninnah Schram
Eliezer Shore
Lewis D. Solomon
Adin Even-Israel Steinsaltz
William C. Speed
Andrew Wallenstein
Arthur Waskow
Avi Weiss
Sheila Weinberg
Margaret Moers Wenig
Elie Wiesel
Valerie Wohlfeld
The Editor
Arthur Kurzweil is the former director of the Jewish Book Club and editor-in-chief of Jason Aronson Publishers. He is the author of From Generation to Generation: How to Trace Your Jewish Genealogy and Family History (Wiley, 2004).
Review
"The book goes beyond its subtitle's promise to extend wisdom and enlightenment for troubled times. It presents an optimish tempered by history - an optimish that is uniquely Jewish. Kurzweil's inclusiveness not only makes this a timely collection, but a timeless one as well." (Jewish.com)
For its third annual anthology of the best Jewish writing, Jossey-Bass has installed a new editor, Arthur Kurzweil. He is well qualified for this task, having served as director of the Jewish Book Club and as editor-in-chief of Jason Aronson Publishers, a company that specializes in books of Jewish interest. He casts a wide net for this judicious selection of articles, short stories, poetry and book excerpts. The material is grouped thematically, covering topics such as Israel, current issues, religious education and practice, Jewish spiritual thought, Kabbalah, the Holocaust 9/11 and anti-Semitism. There are also sections of poetry, fiction and Jewish humor. Kurzweil presents an impressive list of prominent authors and allows them to speak for themselves. Among the better-known writers are Elie Wiesel, Alan Dershowitz, Arthur Waskow, Blu Greenberg, Carol Diament, Adin Steinsaltz, Arthur Hertzberg, Cynthia Ozick, Irving Greenberg, Avi Weiss, Edward Koch, Marge Piercy and Herbert Gold. What is remarkable about the roster is its comprehensiveness - all shades of Judaism and of political opinion can be found, thus fully demonstrating the editor's objectivity in making his choices. Yoel Jakobovits contributes an excellent essay on stem cell research, in which he considers the ethical issues arising from this cutting-edge technology. In a sprightly introduction, Kurzweil denies any claim to such objectivity, asserting that decisions about what to include were highly subjective. Objective or subjective, he has done readers a fine service by bringing together a stellar, diverse collection for their enjoyment. (Sept.) (Publishers Weekly, August 11, 2003)
Kurzweil (From Generation to Generation: How To Trace Your Jewish Genealogy and Family History) collects works dealing with the complex problems and difficult situations characterizing the modern Jewish experience. The volume is divided into sections on Israel, current issues, education, religion, Kabbalah, the Holocaust, 9/11, anti-Semitism, humor, poetry, and fiction. Questions of ethics, political action, and personal illumination are all discussed. Amos Elon's fair and detailed coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian struggle and Andrew Wallenstein's discussion of the commercial aspect of Holocaust artistic representation are noteworthy. Jane Leavy's essay on Sandy Koufax, Gilbert S. Rosenthal's discussion of religious law, and Cynthia Ozick's article on Gershom Scholem are expansive and wide-ranging views of religion. A good addition to the series, this is recommended for Jewish studies collections.—Gene Shaw. NYPL (Library Journal, October 15, 2003)
Synopsis
This third annual volume of "Best Jewish Writing" marks the debut of a new editor, Arthur Kurzweil. It brings together the best work from across the spectrum of Jewish interest, including articles, essays, short stories, poems, polemics, personal memoir, sections of novels, and other writing on a broad variety of topics. The contributors will include the best work of the most important and able Jewish authors, some very well known, others who are new but powerful voices from the next generation of spiritual leaders, artists, teachers, and activists.
Synopsis
Leo M. Abrami
Joseph Alpher
Norman Berdichevsky
Susan Berrin
Benjamin Blech
Lawrence Bush
Talia Carner
I. Century
Phyllis Chesler
Leslie Cohen
Enid Dame
Alan M. Dershowitz
Ralph de Toledano
Carol Diament
Amos Elon
Lawrence J. Epstein
Mordechai Gafni
Herbert Gold
Shefa Gold
Gloria Goldreich
Blu Greenberg
Irving Greenberg
David Grossman
Leo Haber
David A. Harris
Arthur Hertzberg
Yitzhak Husbands-Hankin
Paula E. Hyman
Yoel Jakobovits
Rodger Kamenetz
Edward I. Koch
Jane Leavy
Amy-Jill Levine
Andrei S. Markovits
Bezalel Naor
Cynthia Ozick
Marge Piercy
Todd Pitock
Daniel Polish
Daniel Asa Rose
Alvin H. Rosenfeld
Gilbert S. Rosenthal
David Saks
Zalman Schachter-Shalomi
Peninnah Schram
Eliezer Shore
Lewis D. Solomon
William C. Speed
Adin Even-Israel Steinsaltz
Andrew Wallenstein
Arthur Waskow
Sheila Weinberg
Avi Weiss
Margaret Moers Wenig
Elie Wiesel
Valerie Wohlfeld
About the Author
Arthur Kurzweil is the former director of the Jewish Book Club and editor-in-chief of Jason Aronson Publishers. He is the author of From Generation to Generation: How to Trace Your Jewish Genealogy and Family History (Jossey-Bass, 2004).
Table of Contents
ARTHUR KURZWEIL
Introduction.
ISRAEL.
ELIE WIESEL
Letter to President George W. Bush, May 7, 2002.
JOSEPH ALPHER
What Everyone Should Know About the Conflict.
ALAN M. DERSHOWITZ
If a Visitor from a Far-Away Galaxy.
AMOS ELON
Israelis and Palestinians: What Went Wrong?
DAVID GROSSMAN
Fictions Embraced by an Israel at War.
DAVID A. HARRIS
Letter from an Anguished Soul.
ARTHUR WASKOW
Torah, War, and the “Gentle Heart” Today: Israeli Soldiers’ Refusal to Serve in the Occupation Army.
ANDREI S. MARKOVITS
Europe’s Unified Voice and Passion.
CURRENT ISSUES.
BLU GREENBERG
Orthodox, Feminist, and Proud of It.
YOEL JAKOBOVITS
Stem Cell Research: What Does Halachah Say?
AMY-JILL LEVINE
Jesus Who?
DANIEL POLISH
Judaism and the Ultimate Punishment.
DAVID SAKS
Why Only the Orthodox Can Avoid Intermarriage.
WILLIAM C. SPEED
Y Marks the Spot.
LAWRENCE BUSH
Drugs and Jewish Spirituality: That Was Then, This Is Now.
JANE LEAVY
King of the Jews.
RELIGIOUS EDUCATION AND PRACTICE.
PAULA E. HYMAN
Who Is an Educated Jew?
LEWIS D. SOLOMON
Rabbinical Education for the Twenty-First Century.
MARGARET MOERS WENIG
Oops! I Shouldn’t Say This . . . Or Should I?
SUSAN BERRIN
Creating a Moral Legacy for Our Children.
NORMAN BERDICHEVSKY
Hebrew vs. Yiddish—The Worldwide Rivalry.
CAROL DIAMENT
The Parent Is the Child’s First Teacher.
YITZHAK HUSBANDS-HANKIN
Ethical Kashrut.
GILBERT S. ROSENTHAL
Halacha: Divine or Human?
PENINNAH SCHRAM
Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel of Apt on Listening.
SHEILA WEINBERG
Facing an Uncertain Future: What Jewish Meditation Teaches.
JEWISH SPIRITUAL THOUGHT.
ADIN EVEN-ISRAEL STEINSALTZ
The Tree of Knowledge and the Tree of Life.
MORDECHAI GAFNI
A Hundred Blasts Shatter the Somber Silence.
SHEFA GOLD
Power and the Open Heart.
ARTHUR HERTZBERG
Religion Is Not the Answer.
ELIEZER SHORE
The Temple of Amount.
KABBALAH.
CYNTHIA OZICK
The Heretic: The Mythic Passions of Gershom Scholem.
ZALMAN SCHACHTER-SHALOMI
So You Want to Learn Kabbalah.
RODGER KAMENETZ
What I Know From Kabbalah.
TODD PITOCK
Safed, Israel: Mystic Echoes from the Middle Ages.
THE HOLOCAUST.
IRVING GREENBERG
A Force for Life, Not for Anger.
ANDREW WALLENSTEIN
Shoah Business.
DANIEL ASA ROSE
Hiding Places.
9/11.
BENJAMIN BLECH
Forgive the Terrorists?
BEZALEL NAOR
From a Kabbalist’s Diary: Pensées on a Post-9/11 Universe.
AVI WEISS
A Congregation of Holy Souls: Reflections on 9/11 One Year Later.
ANTI-SEMITISM.
PHYLLIS CHESLER
The New Anti-Semitism.
EDWARD I. KOCH
Letter from Former New York Mayor Ed Koch to Woody Allen.
ALVIN H. ROSENFELD
Feeling Alone, Again: The Growing Unease Among Germany’s Jews.
POETRY.
RODGER KAMENETZ
Allen Ginsberg Forgives Ezra Pound on Behalf of the Jews.
ENID DAME
Miriam’s Seders.
MARGE PIERCY
The Late Year.
LEO HABER
Villanelle: Is Butter Churned These Days, Is Love Denied?
LEO HABER
What the Returning Raven Said.
I. CENTURY
Yiddish.
LESLIE COHEN
To Dream in Hebrew.
VALERIE WOHLFELD
Veined-Garden.
FICTION.
TALIA CARNER
Empty Chairs.
HERBERT GOLD
Religion: Goy.
GLORIA GOLDREICH
Mazal’s Day.
JEWISH HUMOR.
RALPH DE TOLEDANO
The Wit and Practicality of the Talmud.
LEO M. ABRAMI
It Is Not a Joke . . .
LAWRENCE J. EPSTEIN
Seinfeld.
THE EDITOR.
THE CONTRIBUTORS.
CREDITS.