Have I got a story for you : more than a century of fiction from the Forward / edited by Ezra Glinter ; introduction by Dara Horn.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Glinter, Ezra, editor.

Horn, Dara, 1977- writer of introduction.

Language:

English

Yiddish

Subjects (All):

Jews--Fiction.

Jews.

Short stories, Yiddish--Translations into English.

Short stories, Yiddish.

Genre:

Short stories.

Physical Description:

xxi, 433 pages ; 25 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

New York : W. W. Norton & Company, [2017]

Summary:

Collects forty-two short stories translated into English, originally published in the American Yiddish newspaper, the Forward.

"The Forward, founded in 1897, is the most renowned Yiddish newspaper in the world. It welcomed generations of immigrants to the United States, brought them news of Europe and the Middle East, and provided them with sundry comforts such as comic strips and noodle kugel recipes. It also published some of the most acclaimed Yiddish fiction writers of all time: Nobel Prize laureate Isaac Bashevis Singer on justice slyly being served when the governor of Lublin comes to town; celebrated Forward editor Abraham Cahan on how place and luck can change character; and Roshelle Weprinsky, setting her story in Florida, on the rupture between European parents and American children. Cahan described the newspaper as a "living novel," with good reason. Taken together, these stories reveal the human side of the challenges that faced Jews throughout this time, including immigration, modernization, poverty, assimilation, the two world wars, and changing forms of Jewish identity. These concerns were taken up by a diverse group of writers, from novelists Sholem Asch and Chaim Grade to short-story writers like Lyala Kaufman and Miriam Karpilove. Ezra Glinter has combed through the archives to find the best stories published during the newspaper's 120-year history, digging up such varied works as wartime novellas, avant-garde fiction, and satirical sketches about immigrant life in New York. Glinter's introductions to the thematic sections and short biographies of the contributors provide insight into the concerns of not only the writers but also their avid readers. The collection has been rendered into English by today's best Yiddish translators, who capture the sound of the authors and the subtleties of nuance and context." -- Publisher's description.

Contents:

Golde's lament / Rokhl Brokhes

Shneur Zadobnik and Motke the Hatter / Abraham Cahan

Collecting rent / Morris Rosenfeld

Brownsville looks to the heavens ; Yente describes a strike ; Yente and Mendel look for rooms ; How Pinnie celebrated Election Day ; Yente and Mendel and Mendel Beilis ; Pinnie grows to be a businessman ; Rooms with steam heat ; Yente at the Metropolitan Opera / B. Kovner

Annie ; By a far shore / Roshelle Weprinsky

Compatriots / Sarah Hamer-Jacklyn

Friends / Hersh Dovid Nomberg

Who will prevail? / Avrom Reyzen

The devoted cousin ; The young widow ; She waits / Yente Serdatsky

At prayer ; A country girl ; To go, or not to go? ; The grandmother ; Poor Sammy! ; Her dowry / Lyala Kaufman

She wants to be different ; In the automat / Miriam Raskin

The Jewish soldier / Sholem Asch

On the eve of battle / David Bergelson

Bakhmatsch Station / Israel Joshua Singer

The edge of death / David Zaritski

After liberation / Wolf Karmiol

A holiday / Yona Rozenfeld

That which is forbidden / Zalman Schneour

In a friendly hamlet / Miriam Karpilove

A house on the hill / Kadya Molodowsky

The hotel / Isaac Bashevis Singer

Grandfathers and grandchildren / Chaim Grade

A journey back in time / Blume Lempel

Mona Bubbe / Yente Mash

Hallo / Mikhoel Felsenbaum

Studies in Solfège / Boris Sandler.

Notes:

Consists of forty-two short stories translated into English, originally published in the Yiddish newspaper, the Forward.

Contains:

Golde's lament.

Shneur Zadobnik and Motke the Hatter.

Collecting rent.

Brownsville looks to the heavens.

Yente describes a strike.

Yente and Mendel look for rooms.

How Pinnie celebrated election day.

Yente and Mendel and Mendel Beilis.

Pinnie grows to be a businessman.

Rooms with steam heat.

ISBN:

9780393062700

0393062708

OCLC:

957696482