Between Two Worlds: Yiddish Book Club

This is the third meeting of Yiddish Book Club, which is meeting virtually this fall to discuss 3 Yiddish titles in translation. We will discuss The Zelmenyaners by Moyshe Kulbak, a classic of Yiddish literature and one of the great comic novels of the twentieth century. The Zelmenyaners describes the travails of a Jewish family in Minsk in the late 1920s and early 1930s as the family adapts to the new Soviet reality.  We are reading the translation by Hillel Halkin.

Four generations are depicted in riveting and often uproarious detail as they face the profound changes brought on by the demands of the Soviet regime and its collectivist, radical secularism. The resultant intergenerational showdowns—including disputes over the introduction of electricity, radio, or electric trolley—are rendered with humor, pathos, and a finely controlled satiric pen. 

You may request a copy of the book in the library catalog. Please contact info@newprovlibrary.org if you would like assistance getting a copy of the book.

A library card number is required to register online. If you do not have a library card, contact info@newprovlibrary.org and ask the library to register you for Yiddish Book Club. Space is limited.

The Yiddish Book Club also met on September 17 and October 22. You may register for as many meetings as you would like.

This book discussion is presented as part of the Yiddish Book Center's Public Libraries Program, a partnership with the American Library Association. Made possible by the Lilly Endowment, Inc.