The American Ashkenazi Experience – Impacts of Yiddish Children’s Literature

Join Dr. Miriam Udel, Miami native and Professor of Yiddish Language/Literature/Culture at Emory University, for an amazing discussion on the impact of 20th century Yiddish children’s literature on what it means to be a Jew today, as revealed in her book Modern Jewish Worldmaking Through Yiddish Children’s Literature.

Written in an accessible and humane way, the book considers the neglected corpus of literature written for children in Yiddish during the twentieth century as a new archive for reexamining the modern Ashkenazi experience, especially during the twentieth century. The book grapples with changes in family life and our understanding of childhood, alongside Jewish experiences of migration and the need to confront antisemitic violence. Because we all walk around now wondering which year of the 1930’s we’re currently living in, the book offers a lot of contemporary resonance.

Dr. Udel will be in conversation with Efrat Friedman, MBJCC community member, writer and creative writing instructor at Nova Southeastern University.