Reviews
Review
Review of Der Nister’s Soviet Years: Yiddish Writer as Witness to the People by Mikhail Krutikov.
Krutikov’s philological skillset and meticulous archival research shine throughout this book, a landmark study of both Der Nister and Yiddish literature under Stalin.
Jan 12, 2021
Review
How to be Both: Officials and Artists Vying for the Limelight
Mayhill Fowler’s book shines light on the blind spots of national cultural histories of turn of the century Ukraine, following the often uneasy interface between authorities and art institutions.
Mar 26, 2018
Review
Judgment
In time for the one hundredth anniversary of the October revolution, Dovid Bergelson’s novel Mides-hadin is out in a new translation by Harriet Murav and Sasha Senderovich.
Nov 07, 2017
Review
“The Worst Good Idea Ever”? The Birobidzhan Project and Soviet Jewish Culture
Masha Gessen’s new book explores the history of the Jewish Autonomous Region of Birobidzhan through the story of David Bergelson and Simon Dubnow, whose thought and writing influenced its development.
Jun 26, 2017
Review
“To what might the yard have been compared?”
“Ach, the things a poor tailor has lived to see! We live in times when the coats go around making themselves.” A review of a recent translation of Kulbak’s Zelmenyaner.
Oct 11, 2015