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Leah Gordon's avatar

This reminded me of the book "The Yiddish Policemen's Union":

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Yiddish_Policemen%27s_Union

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Not so young anymore.'s avatar

Just be aware that the writer of that book Michael Chabon is a Jewish Israel hater.

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Jen Gilman Porat's avatar

Oh no. The worst kind of Israel hater! Actually, if memory serves, I think his wife is a big Israel hater too?

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Not so young anymore.'s avatar

Yes. Ayelet who was named by Hebrew speaking or Hebrew loving parents also hated Israel long before that was so popular. They both suck

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Leah Eichler's avatar

There is also Yiddish for Pirates

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Jen Gilman Porat's avatar

OMG! I had not known of this novel. This is so interesting--thanks for sharing with me.

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EKB's avatar

I thought the book was awful. 20 pages in and you thought it was written by an antisemite….well it actually was

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Leah Gordon's avatar

To be fair, I didn't love the book, and I'm not advocating for the author! :) The concept of Jews settling in Alaska just rang a bell.

Sadly, much literature and music has been created by antisemites. My niece just performed last night in a Camp Ramah performance of a story by Roald Dahl of all people.

Remember when someone made a list of books by Jewish/Zionist authors to "boycott"? That made the core of what I bought for summer reading. It was a good way to support people.

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Vivalicious's avatar

Thanks gals! Now I won’t waste time on the aforementioned book..but I’d very much be interested in the Jewish/Zionist authors book list you read!

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Jen Gilman Porat's avatar

The list was a black list that went viral. It color coded authors according to their ostensible degree of Zionism. Very Nazi-esque, but a helpful list for supporting Zionist authors!

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Leah Gordon's avatar

I can't find it at the moment, but asked my daughter-in-law if she knew where it was? I ended up buying nearly every book on there, and some have been excellent.

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EKB's avatar

I was just trying to write a quick book review 😉.

Yes the Alaska post rang a bell.

In response to that list Elissa Ward (I think that’s her name) and Howard Loy are trying to start a Jewish/Zionist publishing company of sorts.

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Sara Roi Ferguson's avatar

Elissa Wald and Howard Lovy. With Sarah Einstein.

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Janet Zinn's avatar

I am proud to be Jewish. I will be traveling this summer and will not have any jewelry or signs of being Jewish, but I am happy to share my religion and viewpoint should it come up, even when the listener may or may not be happy about it. I have not owned a Jewish star for years. As a personal choice, I am not intentionally purchasing something now to prove myself as this has not been my aesthetic for decades. Jen, I have been enjoying your writing. Thank you for sharing about this personal and globally fraught issue of anti-semitism.

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Jen Gilman Porat's avatar

Thank you for reading. I don’t wear jewelry myself. But my lack of style stems from contact allergies. I’m a lost cause.

Where are you headed this summer?

After this Covid catastrophe, I fear ever leaving home again, but perhaps I’ll buy more travel insurance next time. I bought a policy for the cruise, but didn’t do anything toward an extended hotel stay!

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Julie Zuckerman's avatar

Sorry to hear about your Covid! Refuah shlema. We were in France last month…here’s what I reported in my July 1 newsletter: I'm happy to report that we felt no negativity towards us in Corsica or in Paris...my husband literally whipped out his tefillin and davened outside the Marseille airport; someone in Corsica stopped him when he was on a run wearing his Bring Them Home/Bring Hersh Home running shirt to show her support; someone else honked at us in Paris and gave a thumbs up when seeing his Michigan shirt in Hebrew; we were at kosher restaurants that were full and had outdoor seating; and five minutes before I had to leave for the airport, I bumped into a pro-Israel rally in support of the hostages a block away from our hotel...When we were in Paris, my niece and nephew went out dancing and someone did show up with pro-Palestinian signs, but that’s it..

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Jen Gilman Porat's avatar

That sounds really good! I appreciate you taking the time to share your experiences. ❤️

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Leah Eichler's avatar

Great piece -- and so sorry about your Covid. I love the fact that they did "wellness checks" in the hotel.

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Jen Gilman Porat's avatar

In all these years avoiding Covid, I never imagined finally getting it in Vegas. And what happened in Vegas didn’t even stay in Vegas. I’ve got Paxlovid rebound now. But the whole world feels surreal. What’s this about a global IT outage now? And a Houthi strike on Tel Aviv? Did I see Hulk Hogan at the RNC? It’s all too much…

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Leah Eichler's avatar

So true!

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Vivalicious's avatar

Wishing you fully better quickly!

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