It’s YA; aren’t you embarrassed to be caught with that book? First of all… repeat after me: “There is no such thing as ‘YA LITERATURE‘.” There isn’t. Not really. Not…Continue readingDON’T READ THAT!
Did Ashkenazi Jews descend from ancient Turkey? Everett Historical/Shutterstock Yiddish – which consists of Hebrew, German, Slavic elements and is written in Aramaic – has been spoken for centuries, but…Continue readingOy vey! Where Yiddish was born
I’ve been writing all my life, producing my first poem, about a broken alarm clock, when I was five — don’t ask, I have no idea. I’ve been at it…Continue readingWhich one first?
‘Reading Proust on My Cellphone’ No, not me! It was Sarah Boxer and she writes about the experience in The Atlantic: “When I tell people this, they look at me…Continue readingYou read it WHERE?
Several years ago I wrote ‘The Secrets of Jin-shei‘, a novel about sisterhood that was embraced by readers all over the world and received some astonishing critical attention. “Combine ‘The…Continue readingSisterhood
Running late For reasons too boring to elaborate on, I’m running behind on this week’s blog entries. Please bear with me.I’ll be back on schedule shortly. Meanwhile… An “Embers of…Continue readingMea culpa
A New Zealand friend just sent me a note: I thought I should tell you, I finally talked my youngest into reading ‘Random’ last night. This morning – at 6.45…Continue readingA reader demands action!
I’ve done my share of dedications. Some of them are obvious, if a little sentimental and whimsical: To the REAL Spanish Gardens, now long vanished. Thank you for the Irish…Continue readingThank you for the Irish Coffees
Of the close to 60 million Latinos in the U.S, a generous portion speak Spanglish. At LitHub.com, Ilan Stavans offers a new version of English literature’s most famous scene. Hamlet…Continue readingDo you speak Spanglish?
Bellingham is a bookish town. The plentiful new and used bookstores which we spotted as soon as we arrived on a scouting trip were in no small part the reason…Continue readingThe measure of a town