Dorothea Shefer-Vanson is a freelance journalist based in Mevasseret Zion, Israel.
Her published works, available on Amazon, include:
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* All Quiet on the Midwestern Plains: A Tale of Deception, Betrayal, and Vindication
* The Balancing Game: A Child Between Two Worlds, A Society Approaching War
* Chasing Dreams and Flies: A Tragicomedy of Life in France
* The Diary of Anne Frank (Cliff Notes)
* Levi Koenig: A Contemporary King Lear
* Time out of Joint: The Fate of a Family
Shefer-Vanson also is a Hebrew to English translator, with those works on Amazon including:
* The Rainy Day Man by Amnon Jackont
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By Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — So, this is the moment I’ve been waiting for. My new book is out. Hooray! So far it’s only available as an ebook, but the paperback version is in the pipeline and will be available soon, I hope. It’s taken about two years to write, which is almost […]
Dorothea’s book: ‘All Quiet on the Midwestern Plains’ Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, USABy Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — The name of the author, the actress Simone Signoret, caught my eye and I bought Adieu Volodia for 50 cents (521 pages, hardback) last summer while browsing the stalls at a village brocante, a kind of flea-market in rural France where the locals bring out the items they wish
1985 novel by Simone Signoret still captivates Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, International, Theatre, Film & BroadcastBy Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — As ever, returning to Israel after two months of absence is something of a culture shock, particularly when it comes to driving a car. One is reminded with alarm that rules are no longer rules, the word ‘courtesy’ does not exist in the Hebrew language, and the overall feeling
Home again in Israel Read More »
Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, International, Middle East, Theatre, Film & Broadcast, Travel and FoodRed Sky at Noon by Simon Sebag-Montefiore; Penguin, Random House, UK, 2017 By Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — This novel gives a detailed account of the days leading up to the German attempt to take Stalingrad in the summer of 1942, doing so by tracing the exploits of a group of former prisoners, taken
Novel shines a light on Soviet WWII decison- making Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, InternationalBy Dorothea Shefer-Vanson DOMEYROT, France — One of the first things we encountered when we came to France was the prevalence of do-it-yourself (DIY) shops. Actually, shops would hardly be the right term, as they’re more something of an emporium. On that first visit Yigal thought he had died and gone to heaven. All there was
For others it’s DIY, for her it’s Do- It- Themselves Read More »
Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, International, Middle East, Travel and FoodBy Dorothea Shefer-Vanson DOMEYROT, France — It’s that time of the year again. Over the summer weekends every self-respecting village and town in central France holds its annual fete or saint’s day, meaning that bowls competitions are held, food and drink is served for a minimum fee and both local people and ‘outsiders’ can set
Enjoying a ‘brocante’ in central France Read More »
Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Travel and FoodChasing Lost Time The Life of C.K.Scott Moncrieff; Soldier, Spy and Translator by Jean Findlay, published by Chatto and Windus, 2014 MEVASSERET ZION, Israel – As a former translator and great admirer of the works of Proust, both in the original French (a bit of a struggle for me) and in their delightful English version,
Moncrieff’s 40 packed years Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Dorothea Shefer-VansonBy Dorothea Shefer-Vanson BOUSSAC, France — The region around Limoges has been known since medieval times for its weavers. The art of tapestry-making once flourished there for many generations, passing down from father to son. Today the towns of Aubusson and Felletin are no longer famous for that particular specialty, though remnants of those ancient
Tapestries in a medieval castle inspire visitors Read More »
Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, International, Music, Dance, and Visual Arts, Travel and FoodDoing His Will (Osah Kirtzono) by Esti Weinstein, published in Hebrew by Kinneret, Zmora-Bitan, Dvir, 2016. By Dorothea Shefer-Vanson JERUSALEM –The poor woman who wrote this book (and eventually committed suicide) was born into a specific sect, tantamount to a cult, of ultra-Orthodox Judaism known as the Gur Hassidim As a child and teenager the author
Suicide’s memoir indicts the Gur sect of Hassidim Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Jewish Religion, Middle EastBy Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — The recent furore over Donald Trump’s policy of separating migrant children from their parents and placing them in enclosures that have been likened to cages, seems in the end to have brought out the best in American society. After all, virtually all Americans, Trump included, can trace their roots
Bravo, Americans, for standing up for the children! Read More »
Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, International, USABy Dorothea Shefer-Vanson JERUSALEM — The exhibition of paintings by Francisco de Zurburan, a seventeenth-century Spanish painter, has been a major attraction at the Israel Museum for the last few weeks. I had never heard of him, so I made use of a free morning to go and take a look. What met my eyes
‘Jacob and his Sons’ at the Israel Museum Read More »
Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, International, Jewish Religion, Middle East, Music, Dance, and Visual ArtsBy Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — Six weeks, eleven flights, six states, one one-week cruise and four countries (not including the USA). That is feeble compared with the Beatles’ tour of the USA in 1965 (twenty-five cities in thirty days), but they were much younger than we were (and probably flew first class). One
Exhausting, yet fun, travel in North America Read More »
Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Travel and Food, USAUscolia by Gabriel Lanyi; Sycorrax Books, Boston, 2017 By Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — It is many years since I read material on the theory of education, and this book on the subject came into my hands through the kindness of our new neighbor, who also happens to be the author. But it is no
Book describes education in utropia Read More »
Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Science, Medicine, & EducationBy Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSARET ZION, Israel — It was one of those weird coincidences that sometimes makes me wonder what is going on in the world, or at least in my own little world. One evening last week we went to see the Swiss film, The Divine Order, because it had been recommended by a
Media focuses on women’s rights in Switzerland, Egypt Read More »
Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, International, Middle East