The Jewish Nomad: Martha Schabas on how dancing with words led her to write a relatable novel
Regular readers of this column would probably be interested in the story of a woman approaching the age of 30, who happens to be Jewish… and Canadian… and an actor, too. No, the recently published second novel by Martha Schabas isn’t about me! But the Toronto author offers plenty that I can relate to in […]
The CJN’s book columnist Hannah Srour-Zackon reports on a tribute to the Soviet Jewish poets who were murdered 70 years ago
The lives of the Yiddish writers murdered by the Soviet state 70 years ago were honoured by Montreal’s Jewish Public Library (JPL)’s Yiddish Café this week through performances of poetry and music. “On the night of August 12, 1952, some of the most prominent Yiddish poets in the Soviet Union were executed by the state,” […]
How far should a Jewish mother go to protect her family? Samantha M. Bailey tackles themes of obsession and dark secrets in her new thriller
Samantha Bailey knows what to blame for turning her generation into incredibly nervous parents: social media. It’s a subject that’s been on the best-selling Canadian suspense novelist’s mind as she promotes her second book, Watch Out For Her. Published in April, it explores the issue of how far a Jewish mother will go to keep […]
The CJN’s book columnist Hannah Srour looks at memoirs and fiction that explore the Holocaust
The Boy in the Woods by Maxwell Smart In a memoir published May 3, 2022, this Montreal-based artist recounts his story of survival during the Holocaust. Born Oziac Fromm in 1930, Maxwell Smart grew up in the town of Buczacz (located now in western Ukraine). Following the Nazi invasion in 1941, he spent years hiding […]
Love is in the air, or at least between the covers: The CJN’s book columnist looks at two new romance novels
Sadie on a Plate by Amanda Elliot Sadie Rosen is an up-and-coming professional chef in Seattle with a passion for sharing Ashkenazi Jewish cooking as a serious cuisine with the world. Her career is derailed, however, when her boyfriend—who also happens to be her boss—simultaneously breaks up with and fires her. Left to pick up […]
A small, small library is donated to Montreal’s Jewish Public Library by a Holocaust survivor with a big heart
Montreal Holocaust survivor Lilly Toth was a very private person, who lived quietly alone until her passing in May 2021 at age 95. Few would have guessed that her modest apartment housed an extraordinary collection: 1,119 miniature books. By definition, these marvels of printing and binding are less than 3 inches in length and width. […]
The CJN’s book columnist Hannah Srour looks at three recently translated novels that examine the Holocaust and its legacy of antisemitism
I’d Like to Say Sorry, but There’s No One to Say Sorry To by Mikołaj Grynberg, translated by Sean Gasper Bye First published in Polish in 2017, this is both Mikolaj Grynberg’s first work of fiction, and his first book in English translation. (Polish-language readers may be familiar with the author’s previously published books of […]
Jonathan Milevsky on why he wrote a book about Toronto theologian David Novak
Toronto’s Jewish community has had its fair share of scholars. But one who teaches in the Department of Religion in the University of Toronto, and lectures regularly at Shaarei Shomayim, stands out as one worth writing a book about. While others have specialties in the fields of classical, medieval, early or modern philosophy, David Novak […]
Léa Roback, an ardent Montreal unionist and feminist, inspired Ariela Freedman’s new novel
Ariela Freedman feels a little sheepish that she was in her 40s before she heard of Léa Roback, the indefatigable fighter for the rights of workers and women in Quebec in the 1930s and ‘40s. She’s atoning for that oversight by making Roback the heroine of her new historical novel Léa (Linda Leith Publishing). Growing […]
The CJN’s new book columnist looks at ‘All the Shining People’ by Kathy Friedman and Jonathan Papernick’s ‘I Am My Beloveds’
In this new book review column, Hannah Srour will explore recent and upcoming publications of specific interest to readers of The CJN. All the Shining People by Kathy Friedman For her debut, Kathy Friedman puts Toronto’s South African Jewish community in the spotlight. In a dozen loosely connected short stories, she weaves a colourful and […]
