Itzig Manger was a Yiddish poet, playwright, prose writer and essayist. He was born Isidor Helfer in Czernowitz (then in Rumania, now known as Chernivtsi in the Ukraine), the son of a Jewish tailor. His family moved to Jassy, in Rumania, when he was 14 and learned Yiddish. He published many poems and ballads in … Continue reading Volkns Ibern Dach (Clouds over the roof), Itzig Manger, London, 1942.
Category: Yiddish
Meloche Bezuye (A Humiliating Profession) by Y. A. Lisky, London, 1947.
This is a short novel in Yiddish by the longtime journalist Y. A. Lisky, who fled anti-Semitism in Vienna and ran England’s longest-surviving secular Yiddish newspaper until he was 89. His real name was Yehuda Isamar Fuchs, and he was the brother of the writer A. M. Fuchs. He was born in Yezerna in Eastern … Continue reading Meloche Bezuye (A Humiliating Profession) by Y. A. Lisky, London, 1947.
Bei Unz in Veitshepel (This Whitechapel of Ours), A. M. Kaizer, London 1944 (Yiddish)
Arye Myer (Arnold) Kaizer was a writer, humourist, journalist and also an Anglo-Jewish communal leader. However, the story starts with his father, Rabbi Alter Noah Michalensky, who was born in 1852 in Neschitz, near Kovel. He was the first Chassidic Rebbe to settle in London. In January 1895 he came to London, bringing his three … Continue reading Bei Unz in Veitshepel (This Whitechapel of Ours), A. M. Kaizer, London 1944 (Yiddish)
Heimland, Literisher Sammelbuch (Literary Scrapbook), Yiddish, Moscow, 1943.
Seventy Years ago, on Purim (1st March) 1953, Stalin was struck down with a stroke, leading to his death four days later. It seems appropriate to write about my copy of Heimland, a literary scrapbook which includes contributions by many of Stalin's Jewish literary victims. The Jewish Anti-Fascist Committee was a group of Soviet Jewish … Continue reading Heimland, Literisher Sammelbuch (Literary Scrapbook), Yiddish, Moscow, 1943.
Loshen un Leben (Language and Life), edited by A. N. Stencl, London, July 1951.
This is another nice issue of A. N. Stencl's monthly Yiddish literary magazine. Avrom Nochem Stencl came to London in 1936. He was born in Poland, into a rabbinical family, and had lived in Germany for some years, where he was a published author. His first volume of poetry in London was published in 1937. … Continue reading Loshen un Leben (Language and Life), edited by A. N. Stencl, London, July 1951.
First Steps in Yiddish, H. Heathcote, London 1907.
This is not just another Yiddish text book. It was written for non-Jews so that they could communicate with the Yiddish-speaking Jewish immigrants who had been arriving in relatively large numbers and settling in the East End of London since 1882. Although the book has been reprinted, and you can buy a new copy on … Continue reading First Steps in Yiddish, H. Heathcote, London 1907.
Lemech, by Ben-A Sochachewsky, Yiddish, London, 1941.
Ben-A Sochachewsky (1889-1958) was a journalist, poet and teller of Chassidic stories. He was born in Lodz, Poland, and arrived in London about 1913. He was on the editorial staff of Di Zeit, the London Yiddish newspaper, of which I have written about here. His actual name was Yechiel Meir or “Chil Majer” Sochachewsky, but … Continue reading Lemech, by Ben-A Sochachewsky, Yiddish, London, 1941.
Pesach, Lag BeOmer, Shavuos, by Rabbi Shiya Szpetman, Yiddish, London 1955. (2 – Lag BeOmer).
I've written about this little book before (click here), but did not include Rabbi Szpetman's ideas on Lag BeOmer (The 33rd day of the Omer). Lag BeOmer is a festive day in the Jewish calendar. It is the 33rd day after the second night of Pesach (Passover), and is a day of great joy. It … Continue reading Pesach, Lag BeOmer, Shavuos, by Rabbi Shiya Szpetman, Yiddish, London 1955. (2 – Lag BeOmer).
Pesach, Lag BeOmer, Shavuos, by Rabbi Shiya Szpetman, Yiddish, London 1955.
Here (if you read Yiddish), are some things to say at your Seder table. This is another little book by Rabbi Joshua Szpetman, known by his diminutive name “Shiya”. Rabbi Szpetman was a native of Lublin, who had already been a Rosh Yeshiva (Head of a Rabbinical Academy) in Poland when he emigrated to London. … Continue reading Pesach, Lag BeOmer, Shavuos, by Rabbi Shiya Szpetman, Yiddish, London 1955.
Moishe Rabbeinu – Moses, by Morris Myer, (Yiddish), London 1943.
Following his previous book in 1942 on the Baal Shem Tov, Morris Myer wrote and published this book - Moses, Liberator, Leader, Law-giver and his fight for life, in 1943. Perhaps, in his title he also had the wartime leader, Winston Churchill in mind, and he included Winston Churchill writing about Moses, scanned below. More … Continue reading Moishe Rabbeinu – Moses, by Morris Myer, (Yiddish), London 1943.
Jewish Miscellanies 