Books, Poetry & Short Stories

‘Fairy Tales’ tells of family’s Anschluss ordeal, recovery

Fairy Tales (nonfiction) by James Josef Allina; PublishAmerica (c) 2013; ISBN 9781462659692; 182 pages, $13. By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO —Fairy Tales is a two-part memoir. The first part, in the voice of the author’s uncle, Josef Benesch, focuses on living conditions for Jews in Vienna after the Anschluss with Nazi Germany  The second

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, Jewish History

Go beyond brisket with Passover recipes that celebrate the diversity of the Jewish table

Long before shakshuka, the saucy egg dish so popular in Israel, hit tables in Canada, and pomegranate molasses and za’atar became pantry staples for many, Evelyn Rose and Joyce Goldstein were transforming the world of Jewish cuisine. One of Evelyn’s guiding principles was that food should have ta’am – a quality that makes it taste

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, International, Travel and Food

Chava Rosenfarb’s Yiddish works on tap at UCSD

LA JOLLA, California (SDJW)–The Holocaust Living History Workshop of UCSD will present the life and works of Chava Rosenfarb, described as “one of the great Yiddish writers of the second half of the 20th century” in a two-part, free program Wednesday, May 4, at the UCSD Geisel Library (Seuss Room). At 3 p.m., the workshop

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, San Diego Calendar

Palestinian novelist denounces anti- Semitism

A Palestinian Arab author condemned anti-Semitism last month, Palestinian Media Watch reports Tuesday – defying, on Palestinian Authority (PA) official television, the constant undercurrent of hatred against Jews the PA instills in its national consciousness. “The world is trying to split us apart,” author Ounallah Abu Safieh stated in a March 14 interview. In his

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Middle East

‘Sage Advice’ unlocks some Pirkei Avot mysteries

Sage Advice: Pirkei Avot Translation and Commentary by Irving (Yitz) Greenberg; Maggid Books, New Milford, Connecticut; ISBN 978-1-59264-444-5 ©2016, $24.95, p. 336 plus index By Fred Reiss, Ed.D. WINCHESTER, California — Pirkei Avot, literally meaning “Chapters of the Fathers,” but often translated as “Ethics of the Fathers,” is part of the Talmud, the written form

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Fred Reiss, EdD, Jewish Religion

The spy Ashraf Marwan and the Yom Kippur War

The Spy Who Fell To Earth: My Relationship with the Secret Agent Who Rocked the Middle East by Ahron Bregman; CreateSpace; © 2016; ISBN 13: 9781523339970; 120 pages including appendices. By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO –Having read the San Diego Jewish World article by Joe Spier about the master spy Ashraf Marwan, historian Ahron

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison, Jewish History, Middle East

A post- Holocaust tale of ill-gotten diamonds

Max’s Diamonds by Jay Greenfield; © 2016; Chickadee Prince Books; 385 pages; ISBN 978-0-9913274-2-3;  $15.99 By Donald H. Harrison SAN DIEGO –Paul Hartman is incredibly bright, extraordinarily calculating, and horribly conflicted about the diamonds that his cousin, Max, a survivor of Auschwitz, conferred upon his family before he committed suicide.  Even as a boy, Paul

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories, Donald H. Harrison

Author Meg Rosoff wins Sweden’s 2016 Lindgren prize

Stockholm (dpa) – US author Meg Rosoff was Tuesday named winner of Sweden’s 2016 Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award in literature for children and young people. Rosoff’s novels for young adults “speak to the emotions as well as the intellect,” the jury said, adding that her “brave and humorous stories are one-of-a-kind. She leaves no reader

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Books, Poetry & Short Stories