Jewish Book Festival 2007-2008
As Hanukkah has now slipped away for another year and as we near my Christmas season break I want to draw attention to the personal Jewish Book Festival I have been holding during this continuingly festive time of year. I announced the event in my blog review of The World To Come by Dara Horn, which was posted on Nov. 13, 2007. I am doing this as an antidote to all the holiday spirit I will have (joyfully) endured through the end of the year, but also to focus my reading on a set of books I have been overlooking on my bookshelves.
Already as of this time I have succeeded in reading five books including writing their reviews (Update Jan.22- 7 books read and reviewed) :
The World To Come by Dara Horn
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay by Michael Chabon
101 Myths of the Bible by Gary Greenberg
The Wandering Jew (Danish translation from the Norwegian, Den evige jøde) by Bergljot Hobæk Haff
Everything Is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer
I have still many more to go. The set of book waiting for my attention are:
The Yiddish Policeman’s Union by Michael Chabon (reviewed Jan. 14, 2008)
Conspirators by Michael Andre Bernstein (dropped from the series April 13, 2008)
Shadows On The Hudson by Isaac Bashevis Singer (reviewed Jan. 17, 2008)
Gentlemen of the Road by Michael Chabon (reviewed Feb. 6, 2008)
The Swiss, the Gold and the Dead: How Swiss Bankers Helped Finance the Nazi War Machine by Jean Ziegler (added to list Jan. 23, 2008, in progress Feb. 6, 2008)
And seven novels by Daniel Silva in the Gabriel Allon series-The Kill Artist, The English Assassin (reviewed Jan. 22, 2008), The Confessor, A Death In Vienna (reviewed Feb. 15, 2008), Prince of Fire, The Messenger, and The Secret Servant. Those books not reviewed individually were reviewed en masse.
List update as of July 22, 2008
It is not my intention to expand the list, although that could happen. I have a number of books on my “to buy” list that fit into the theme as well as these do. I might break down and get some of them
There is no time limit to this festival.
Criteria for what is a Jewish book is also a bit vague-but in the end, what I say goes.
It is my attention to read these books before turning my attention to any others on my shelf.
Oy veh! I love a good challenge.