Re: [ha-Safran] speech on Jewish kidlit by Sydney Taylor honoree

[Amalia Warshenbrot]

Erika, 
I saw the article. It reports on books for adults, I think that  recent Israeli 
children books are universal and charming, but, I really have not read many. I 
hope to hear Chavah  Punchuk opinion.
Amalia 

Sent from my iPad

> On Apr 17, 2018, at 5:58 PM, Erika Dreifus  wrote:
> 
> I'm so glad that so many people have appreciated Katherine Locke's essay! 
> 
> Regarding a follow-up comment (I think it was from Amelia?) about literature 
> in translation--I trust that many list members have already seen this recent 
> Haaretz piece? (According to the article, the picture isn't necessarily so 
> rosy for authors of books for grown-ups, either!)
> 
> https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/MAGAZINE-why-israeli-novels-flourish-in-some-countries-and-flop-in-others-1.5995118
> 
> All best,
> Erika
> 
> 
>> On Mon, Apr 16, 2018 at 7:42 AM, Erika Dreifus  wrote:
>> Shalom, chaverim:
>> 
>> Just wanted to bring this text, a version of a recent speech by Sydney 
>> Taylor honoree Katherine Locke, to the list's attention:
>> 
>> https://medium.com/@Bibliogato/thinking-jewish-childrens-literature-in-a-time-of-antisemitism-c77e4b00392c
>> 
>> All best,
>> Erika
>> 
>> -- 
>> Erika Dreifus | Writer. Poet. Publicist. Resource Maven.
>> (w) http://www.erikadreifus.com
>> (t) http://twitter.com/erikadreifus
>> (f) http://facebook.com/erikadreifusauthor 
>> 
> 
> 
> 
> -- 
> Erika Dreifus | Writer. Poet. Publicist. Resource Maven.
> (w) http://www.erikadreifus.com
> (t) http://twitter.com/erikadreifus
> (f) http://facebook.com/erikadreifusauthor 
> 
> __
> Messages and opinions expressed on Hasafran are those of the individual author
> and are not necessarily endorsed by the Association of Jewish Libraries (AJL)
> ==
> Submissions for Ha-Safran, send to:
> hasaf...@lists.service.ohio-state.edu
> To join Ha-Safran, update or change your subscription, etc. - click here: 
> https://lists.service.ohio-state.edu/mailman/listinfo/hasafran
> Questions, problems, complaints, compliments send to: galro...@osu.edu
> Ha-Safran Archives:
> Current:
> http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.service.ohio-state.edu/maillist.html
> Earlier Listserver:
> http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.acs.ohio-state.edu/maillist.html
> AJL HomePage http://www.JewishLibraries.org
> --
> Hasafran mailing list
> Hasafran@lists.osu.edu
> https://lists.osu.edu/mailman/listinfo/hasafran
__
Messages and opinions expressed on Hasafran are those of the individual author
and are not necessarily endorsed by the Association of Jewish Libraries (AJL)
==
Submissions for Ha-Safran, send to:
hasaf...@lists.service.ohio-state.edu
To join Ha-Safran, update or change your subscription, etc. - click here: 
https://lists.service.ohio-state.edu/mailman/listinfo/hasafran
Questions, problems, complaints, compliments send to: galro...@osu.edu
Ha-Safran Archives:
Current:
http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.service.ohio-state.edu/maillist.html
Earlier Listserver:
http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.acs.ohio-state.edu/maillist.html
AJL HomePage http://www.JewishLibraries.org
--
Hasafran mailing list
Hasafran@lists.osu.edu
https://lists.osu.edu/mailman/listinfo/hasafran

Re: [ha-Safran] speech on Jewish kidlit by Sydney Taylor honoree

[Erika Dreifus]

I'm so glad that so many people have appreciated Katherine Locke's essay!

Regarding a follow-up comment (I think it was from Amelia?) about
literature in translation--I trust that many list members have already seen
this recent Haaretz piece? (According to the article, the picture isn't
necessarily so rosy for authors of books for grown-ups, either!)

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/MAGAZINE-why-israeli-novels-flourish-in-some-countries-and-flop-in-others-1.5995118

All best,
Erika


On Mon, Apr 16, 2018 at 7:42 AM, Erika Dreifus  wrote:

> Shalom, chaverim:
>
> Just wanted to bring this text, a version of a recent speech by Sydney
> Taylor honoree Katherine Locke, to the list's attention:
>
> https://medium.com/@Bibliogato/thinking-jewish-childrens-literature-in-a-
> time-of-antisemitism-c77e4b00392c
>
> All best,
> Erika
>
> --
> *Erika Dreifus* | Writer. Poet. Publicist. Resource Maven.
> (w) http://www.erikadreifus.com
> (t) http://twitter.com/erikadreifus
> (f) http://facebook.com/erikadreifusauthor
> 
>
>


-- 
*Erika Dreifus* | Writer. Poet. Publicist. Resource Maven.
(w) http://www.erikadreifus.com
(t) http://twitter.com/erikadreifus
(f) http://facebook.com/erikadreifusauthor

__
Messages and opinions expressed on Hasafran are those of the individual author
and are not necessarily endorsed by the Association of Jewish Libraries (AJL)
==
Submissions for Ha-Safran, send to:
hasaf...@lists.service.ohio-state.edu
To join Ha-Safran, update or change your subscription, etc. - click here: 
https://lists.service.ohio-state.edu/mailman/listinfo/hasafran
Questions, problems, complaints, compliments send to: galro...@osu.edu
Ha-Safran Archives:
Current:
http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.service.ohio-state.edu/maillist.html
Earlier Listserver:
http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.acs.ohio-state.edu/maillist.html
AJL HomePage http://www.JewishLibraries.org
--
Hasafran mailing list
Hasafran@lists.osu.edu
https://lists.osu.edu/mailman/listinfo/hasafran

Re: [ha-Safran] speech on Jewish kidlit by Sydney Taylor honoree

[Dina Tanners]

Yes, that was it—Two Truths in My Pocket!  Thank you!  

Dina. 
Sent from my iPhone

> On Apr 17, 2018, at 2:34 PM, Lois Ruby  wrote:
> 
> Could the book Dina's talking about be mine? TWO TRUTHS IN MY POCKET came out 
> about 35 years ago, edited by the incomparable Deborah Brodie, who is no 
> longer with us.
> 
>> On April 17, 2018 at 7:50 AM Dina Tanners  wrote:
>> 
>> Erika,
>> Thanks so much for bringing this very important speech/article by Kathrine 
>> Locke to our attention.  I almost skipped over it until I read Amalia's 
>> email in which she said that ithis article was important for all of us to 
>> read.  There is a strong need for many diverse books for Jewish teens to 
>> read.  It was also shocking to read about  books by non-Jews about Jews that 
>> border on anti-Semitism and show an ignorance of Judaism in their content.
>> 
>> About 30 years ago there was a thin volume of stories for Jewish young 
>> adults dealing with issues that diverse teens face.  Unfortunately, I cannot 
>> remember its name.  But since then, I have not seen anything similar.  There 
>> were also books about Jews with diverse backgrounds, but few authors have 
>> continued in that vein.  I'm heartened by the book with a collection of 
>> diverse short stories that Kathrine will help publish.  
>> 
>> My somewhat secular grandchildren have gotten a number of PJ Library books 
>> that focus on holidays and have too many on Hanukkah, for example.  PJ 
>> Library in Hebrew has a lot of books on values that I hope will be 
>> translated into English.. 
>> 
>> A while ago, I started a Hasafran discussion on the lack of good biographies 
>> on Israelis, especially very little on women and non-Ashkenazis.  The 
>> discussion continued for a while.  I did contact a publisher of a number of 
>> Jewish books to see if they were interested in an idea that an Israeli 
>> friend and I brainstormed.  I hope to hear back.  
>> 
>> It also was disheartening to see in print something I had figured out:  that 
>> the topic "Holocaust" most interests publishers.
>> 
>> It would be wonderful if a group of us could work together to come up with 
>> ideasof look at Israeli children's books and see if there is value in 
>> publishing them in English and seeing if a publisher might be interested.  
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> Dina Tanners
>> Seattle
>> 
>> 
>> 
>>> On Mon, Apr 16, 2018 at 4:42 AM, Erika Dreifus  wrote:
>>> Shalom, chaverim:
>>> 
>>> Just wanted to bring this text, a version of a recent speech by Sydney 
>>> Taylor honoree Katherine Locke, to the list's attention:
>>> 
>>> https://medium.com/@Bibliogato/thinking-jewish-childrens-literature-in-a-time-of-antisemitism-c77e4b00392c
>>> 
>>> All best,
>>> Erika
>>> 
>>> -- 
>>> Erika Dreifus | Writer. Poet. Publicist. Resource Maven.
>>> (w) http://www.erikadreifus.com
>>> (t) http://twitter.com/erikadreifus
>>> (f) http://facebook.com/erikadreifusauthor 
>>> 
>>> 
>>> __
>>> Messages and opinions expressed on Hasafran are those of the individual 
>>> author
>>> and are not necessarily endorsed by the Association of Jewish Libraries 
>>> (AJL)
>>> ==
>>> Submissions for Ha-Safran, send to:
>>> hasaf...@lists.service.ohio-state.edu
>>> To join Ha-Safran, update or change your subscription, etc. - click here: 
>>> https://lists.service.ohio-state.edu/mailman/listinfo/hasafran
>>> Questions, problems, complaints, compliments send to: galro...@osu.edu
>>> Ha-Safran Archives:
>>> Current:
>>> http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.service.ohio-state.edu/maillist.html
>>> Earlier Listserver:
>>> http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.acs.ohio-state.edu/maillist.html
>>> AJL HomePage http://www.JewishLibraries.org
>>> --
>>> Hasafran mailing list
>>> Hasafran@lists.osu.edu
>>> https://lists.osu.edu/mailman/listinfo/hasafran
>>> 
>> 
>> __
>> Messages and opinions expressed on Hasafran are those of the individual 
>> author
>> and are not necessarily endorsed by the Association of Jewish Libraries (AJL)
>> ==
>> Submissions for Ha-Safran, send to:
>> hasaf...@lists.service.ohio-state.edu
>> To join Ha-Safran, update or change your subscription, etc. - click here: 
>> https://lists.service.ohio-state.edu/mailman/listinfo/hasafran
>> Questions, problems, complaints, compliments send to: galro...@osu.edu
>> Ha-Safran Archives:
>> Current:
>> http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.service.ohio-state.edu/maillist.html
>> Earlier Listserver:
>> http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.acs.ohio-state.edu/maillist.html
>> AJL HomePage http://www.JewishLibraries.org
>> --
>> Hasafran mailing list
>> Hasafran@lists.osu.edu
>> https://lists.osu.edu/mailman/listinfo/hasafran
> 
>  
__
Messages and opinions expressed on Hasafran are those of the individual author
and are not necessarily endorsed by the Association of Jewish Libraries (AJL)

Re: [ha-Safran] speech on Jewish kidlit by Sydney Taylor honoree

[aidonna]

As chair of the Sydney Taylor Manuscript AwardCompetition(STMA), I'd like to 
echo the positive response to Katherine Locke's remarks.


One of the criteria we look for in manuscripts that the committee reviews is 
originality. For too long the "holy trinity" of Holidays, Heroes, and Holocaust 
has overwhelmed Jewish children's literature for readers of almost every age 
except the very young.


The manuscripts we receive to judge for the STMA are still heavy on those three 
topics or variations of them but we have seen more diversity in recent years 
or, at least, more original treatments of those themes.


I would encourage anyone out there who thinks he or she has a good book 
yearning to breathe free and that fits our criteria, including being 
unpunlished (see the AJL website)
 to enter our competition. The competition for 2019 is open now; the deadline 
for entries is September 30, 2018.


Winning or getting good comments from our judges really helps when a manuscript 
is shopped around.


Aileen Grossberg
Chair
Sydney Taylor Manuscript Award Competition


-Original Message-
From: Rose Shoshanah Seidman 
To: Debra Winegarten ; hasafran 
Sent: Tue, Apr 17, 2018 4:01 pm
Subject: Re: [ha-Safran] speech on Jewish kidlit by Sydney Taylor honoree



Debra, Thank you!!
 
Your message is a very important one.  We did invite some of the editors of PJ 
Library at our conference in Charleston SC to find out exactly what their 
criteria were and to ask for better quality books – not the ones that cater to 
the lowest common denominator.  I hope they heard us and are working on that. 
About death – how many religions have Yizkor 4 times a year to remember and 
celebrate the memory of the dead?  Children who go to synagogue with their 
parents, see it all the time.  
 
Thanks for an important conversation.  We need good, strong, JEWISH literature 
to keep the children who are drifting away with their families.
 
Shoshanah
 
Shoshanah Seidman
Faculty Liaison, Program for Jewish and Israeli Studies,
Northwestern University Library
847-467-2914
 
 
 
From: Hasafran On 
Behalf Of Debra Winegarten
Sent: Tuesday, April 17, 2018 1:57 PM
To: hasafran@lists.osu.edu
Subject: Re: [ha-Safran] speech on Jewish kidlit by Sydney Taylor honoree
 
At the risk of sounding self-promoting, I'm wading into this discussion.

 

For context, I'm the publisher of "Almost a Minyan," the coming-of-age story of 
a young Jewish girl who takes her grandfather's place in their small town's 
minyan after his death.

 

I would like to see some discussion about how the Sydney Taylor Awards and PJ 
Library shape the types of children's books that are being published.

 

"Almost a Minyan's" protagonist is a girl of color. We didn't say "which" color 
she is, and we purposely made her so that she could be considered Sephardic, 
African, or Hispanic, with a wonderful curly black Jewfro. Her mother and 
little sister are also some variation of color, in that they don't look white, 
Eastern European, Ashkenazi. 

 

So, that's the first rule we broke.

 

The second rule we broke is that we had her grandfather die, and showed a 
gorgeous shiva minyan. But PJ Library specifically says children's books they 
choose to publish cannot talk about death. And excuse me for being blunt, but 
that's ridiculous. As Jews, you should pardon the expression, we do death 
"well." We understand the ridiculousness of three days bereavement, back to 
work, done. No, we understand the importance of saying Kaddish daily, for an 
entire eleven months, the rituals of shiva and shloshim, precisely because 
grieving takes time. 

 

But by NOT publishing books that talk about death, PJ Library "skews" the types 
of Jewish children's books published.

 

That's the second rule we broke.

 

Finally, we showed a young girl counting as part of a minyan, and wearing 
tallit and tefillin. We knew by doing so, we would limit our market and 
audience to Jews for whom that was not an issue. And my press has a strong 
feminist and sociological bent.

 

That was rule number three we broke.

 

Lo and behold, this book won NO Jewish children's book awards. But, it has now 
won two non-Jewish mainstream book awards, including a Seal of Approval from 
Literary Classics, and a silver medal from the Independent Publishers 
Association.

 

I'm a little micro-publisher, living in the God-forsaken land of Texas, of all 
places. And I had the courage to publish a book which I'm proud to have out in 
our world. 

 

There were other Jewish books published this year showing Jews of color which 
also did not win Jewish children's book awards, but were certainly worthy of so 
doing. 

 

IF we are really committed to diversity in Jewish children's books, we have to 
reward those of us who are doing the hard work and putting them out into the 
world. 

 

Of 

Re: [ha-Safran] speech on Jewish kidlit by Sydney Taylor honoree

[Rose Shoshanah Seidman]

Debra, Thank you!!

Your message is a very important one.  We did invite some of the editors of PJ 
Library at our conference in Charleston SC to find out exactly what their 
criteria were and to ask for better quality books – not the ones that cater to 
the lowest common denominator.  I hope they heard us and are working on that.
About death – how many religions have Yizkor 4 times a year to remember and 
celebrate the memory of the dead?  Children who go to synagogue with their 
parents, see it all the time.

Thanks for an important conversation.  We need good, strong, JEWISH literature 
to keep the children who are drifting away with their families.

Shoshanah

Shoshanah Seidman
Faculty Liaison, Program for Jewish and Israeli Studies,
Northwestern University Library
847-467-2914



From: Hasafran  On 
Behalf Of Debra Winegarten
Sent: Tuesday, April 17, 2018 1:57 PM
To: hasafran@lists.osu.edu
Subject: Re: [ha-Safran] speech on Jewish kidlit by Sydney Taylor honoree

At the risk of sounding self-promoting, I'm wading into this discussion.

For context, I'm the publisher of "Almost a Minyan," the coming-of-age story of 
a young Jewish girl who takes her grandfather's place in their small town's 
minyan after his death.

I would like to see some discussion about how the Sydney Taylor Awards and PJ 
Library shape the types of children's books that are being published.

"Almost a Minyan's" protagonist is a girl of color. We didn't say "which" color 
she is, and we purposely made her so that she could be considered Sephardic, 
African, or Hispanic, with a wonderful curly black Jewfro. Her mother and 
little sister are also some variation of color, in that they don't look white, 
Eastern European, Ashkenazi.

So, that's the first rule we broke.

The second rule we broke is that we had her grandfather die, and showed a 
gorgeous shiva minyan. But PJ Library specifically says children's books they 
choose to publish cannot talk about death. And excuse me for being blunt, but 
that's ridiculous. As Jews, you should pardon the expression, we do death 
"well." We understand the ridiculousness of three days bereavement, back to 
work, done. No, we understand the importance of saying Kaddish daily, for an 
entire eleven months, the rituals of shiva and shloshim, precisely because 
grieving takes time.

But by NOT publishing books that talk about death, PJ Library "skews" the types 
of Jewish children's books published.

That's the second rule we broke.

Finally, we showed a young girl counting as part of a minyan, and wearing 
tallit and tefillin. We knew by doing so, we would limit our market and 
audience to Jews for whom that was not an issue. And my press has a strong 
feminist and sociological bent.

That was rule number three we broke.

Lo and behold, this book won NO Jewish children's book awards. But, it has now 
won two non-Jewish mainstream book awards, including a Seal of Approval from 
Literary Classics, and a silver medal from the Independent Publishers 
Association.

I'm a little micro-publisher, living in the God-forsaken land of Texas, of all 
places. And I had the courage to publish a book which I'm proud to have out in 
our world.

There were other Jewish books published this year showing Jews of color which 
also did not win Jewish children's book awards, but were certainly worthy of so 
doing.

IF we are really committed to diversity in Jewish children's books, we have to 
reward those of us who are doing the hard work and putting them out into the 
world.

Of course, I'm extremely biased and I recognize that. However, if we only focus 
on the "big name" Jewish children's book publishers and don't give us little 
folks a chance at recognition, I think we lose something precious and vital.

If nothing else, make an award for independent publishers--call it the "Risk 
Takers" award or something. I'm on the front line in publishing, I've invested 
thousands of dollars and hours because I believe our children deserve these 
kinds of books and parents and grandparents will benefit from reading them, 
over and over.

Warmly,
Debra


Debra Winegarten,
Austin, Texas
512-789-5491
www.sociosights.com
www.winegarten.com


-Original Message-
From: Sharon Elswit >
To: Erika Dreifus >
Cc: Hasafran >
Sent: Tue, Apr 17, 2018 1:01 pm
Subject: Re: [ha-Safran] speech on Jewish kidlit by Sydney Taylor honoree
What a passionate talk from Katherine Locke.  Thank you, Erika, for passing it 
along.
I am remembering a non-too-distant AJL session with Jewish publishers where 
many librarians requested more books which portrayed Jewish protagonists 
without being solely holiday-centric.  Yes, as Katherine says, we need to 
define ourselves.  I am 

Re: [ha-Safran] speech on Jewish kidlit by Sydney Taylor honoree

[Debra Winegarten]

At the risk of sounding self-promoting, I'm wading into this discussion.


For context, I'm the publisher of "Almost a Minyan," the coming-of-age story of 
a young Jewish girl who takes her grandfather's place in their small town's 
minyan after his death.


I would like to see some discussion about how the Sydney Taylor Awards and PJ 
Library shape the types of children's books that are being published.


"Almost a Minyan's" protagonist is a girl of color. We didn't say "which" color 
she is, and we purposely made her so that she could be considered Sephardic, 
African, or Hispanic, with a wonderful curly black Jewfro. Her mother and 
little sister are also some variation of color, in that they don't look white, 
Eastern European, Ashkenazi. 


So, that's the first rule we broke.


The second rule we broke is that we had her grandfather die, and showed a 
gorgeous shiva minyan. But PJ Library specifically says children's books they 
choose to publish cannot talk about death. And excuse me for being blunt, but 
that's ridiculous. As Jews, you should pardon the expression, we do death 
"well." We understand the ridiculousness of three days bereavement, back to 
work, done. No, we understand the importance of saying Kaddish daily, for an 
entire eleven months, the rituals of shiva and shloshim, precisely because 
grieving takes time. 


But by NOT publishing books that talk about death, PJ Library "skews" the types 
of Jewish children's books published.


That's the second rule we broke.


Finally, we showed a young girl counting as part of a minyan, and wearing 
tallit and tefillin. We knew by doing so, we would limit our market and 
audience to Jews for whom that was not an issue. And my press has a strong 
feminist and sociological bent.


That was rule number three we broke.


Lo and behold, this book won NO Jewish children's book awards. But, it has now 
won two non-Jewish mainstream book awards, including a Seal of Approval from 
Literary Classics, and a silver medal from the Independent Publishers 
Association.


I'm a little micro-publisher, living in the God-forsaken land of Texas, of all 
places. And I had the courage to publish a book which I'm proud to have out in 
our world. 


There were other Jewish books published this year showing Jews of color which 
also did not win Jewish children's book awards, but were certainly worthy of so 
doing. 


IF we are really committed to diversity in Jewish children's books, we have to 
reward those of us who are doing the hard work and putting them out into the 
world. 


Of course, I'm extremely biased and I recognize that. However, if we only focus 
on the "big name" Jewish children's book publishers and don't give us little 
folks a chance at recognition, I think we lose something precious and vital.


If nothing else, make an award for independent publishers--call it the "Risk 
Takers" award or something. I'm on the front line in publishing, I've invested 
thousands of dollars and hours because I believe our children deserve these 
kinds of books and parents and grandparents will benefit from reading them, 
over and over.


Warmly,
Debra





Debra Winegarten, 

Austin, Texas
512-789-5491
www.sociosights.com 
www.winegarten.com





-Original Message-
From: Sharon Elswit 
To: Erika Dreifus 
Cc: Hasafran 
Sent: Tue, Apr 17, 2018 1:01 pm
Subject: Re: [ha-Safran] speech on Jewish kidlit by Sydney Taylor honoree



What a passionate talk from Katherine Locke.  Thank you, Erika, for passing it 
along.  

I am remembering a non-too-distant AJL session with Jewish publishers where 
many librarians requested more books which portrayed Jewish protagonists 
without being solely holiday-centric.  Yes, as Katherine says, we need to 
define ourselves.  I am thinking she would like Carol Matas's "Wrestling with 
Angels," which appears in Sandy Asher's collection With All My Heart, With All 
My Mind. That story appeared in 2000 and concerns a teenager's grappling with 
whether or not to get a piercing.  It seemed so unusual and strong at the time 
because it dealt with real-life issues and feelings.  And it sounds like the 
need is still there.


As for the inclusion of Jewish culture in multicultural discussions from 
outside the Jewish community, that was a wish I had when creating The Jewish 
Story Finder for folktales, and I think we're still waiting.  However, 
Katherine is right, the characters and stories need to be there.

Warm regards,

Sharon

 




On Mon, Apr 16, 2018 at 7:42 AM, Erika Dreifus  wrote:

Shalom, chaverim:


Just wanted to bring this text, a version of a recent speech by Sydney Taylor 
honoree Katherine Locke, to the list's attention:


https://medium.com/@Bibliogato/thinking-jewish-childrens-literature-in-a-time-of-antisemitism-c77e4b00392c


All best,
Erika



-- 



Erika Dreifus | Writer. Poet. Publicist. Resource Maven.
(w) 

Re: [ha-Safran] speech on Jewish kidlit by Sydney Taylor honoree

[Lois Ruby]

Could the book Dina's talking about be mine? TWO TRUTHS IN MY POCKET came out 
about 35 years ago, edited by the incomparable Deborah Brodie, who is no longer 
with us.


> On April 17, 2018 at 7:50 AM Dina Tanners  wrote:
> 
> Erika,
> Thanks so much for bringing this very important speech/article by 
> Kathrine Locke to our attention.  I almost skipped over it until I read 
> Amalia's email in which she said that ithis article was important for all of 
> us to read.  There is a strong need for many diverse books for Jewish teens 
> to read.  It was also shocking to read about  books by non-Jews about Jews 
> that border on anti-Semitism and show an ignorance of Judaism in their 
> content.
> 
> About 30 years ago there was a thin volume of stories for Jewish young 
> adults dealing with issues that diverse teens face.  Unfortunately, I cannot 
> remember its name.  But since then, I have not seen anything similar.  There 
> were also books about Jews with diverse backgrounds, but few authors have 
> continued in that vein.  I'm heartened by the book with a collection of 
> diverse short stories that Kathrine will help publish.  
> 
> My somewhat secular grandchildren have gotten a number of PJ Library 
> books that focus on holidays and have too many on Hanukkah, for example.  PJ 
> Library in Hebrew has a lot of books on values that I hope will be translated 
> into English.. 
> 
> A while ago, I started a Hasafran discussion on the lack of good 
> biographies on Israelis, especially very little on women and non-Ashkenazis.  
> The discussion continued for a while.  I did contact a publisher of a number 
> of Jewish books to see if they were interested in an idea that an Israeli 
> friend and I brainstormed.  I hope to hear back.  
> 
> It also was disheartening to see in print something I had figured out:  
> that the topic "Holocaust" most interests publishers.
> 
> It would be wonderful if a group of us could work together to come up 
> with ideasof look at Israeli children's books and see if there is value 
> in publishing them in English and seeing if a publisher might be interested.  
> 
> 
> 
> Dina Tanners
> Seattle
> 
> 
> 
> On Mon, Apr 16, 2018 at 4:42 AM, Erika Dreifus  mailto:edrei...@gmail.com > wrote:
> 
> > > Shalom, chaverim:
> > 
> > Just wanted to bring this text, a version of a recent speech by 
> > Sydney Taylor honoree Katherine Locke, to the list's attention:
> > 
> > 
> > https://medium.com/@Bibliogato/thinking-jewish-childrens-literature-in-a-time-of-antisemitism-c77e4b00392c
> >  
> > https://medium.com/@Bibliogato/thinking-jewish-childrens-literature-in-a-time-of-antisemitism-c77e4b00392c
> > 
> > All best,
> > Erika
> > 
> > --
> > Erika Dreifus | Writer. Poet. Publicist. Resource Maven.
> > (w) http://www.erikadreifus.com
> > (t) http://twitter.com/erikadreifus http://twitter.com/erikadreifus
> > (f) http://facebook.com/erikadreifusauthor  
> > http://facebook.com/erikadreifusauthor
> > 
> > 
> > __
> > Messages and opinions expressed on Hasafran are those of the 
> > individual author
> > and are not necessarily endorsed by the Association of Jewish 
> > Libraries (AJL)
> > ==
> > Submissions for Ha-Safran, send to:
> > hasaf...@lists.service.ohio-state.edu 
> > mailto:hasaf...@lists.service.ohio-state.edu
> > To join Ha-Safran, update or change your subscription, etc. - click 
> > here: https://lists.service.ohio-state.edu/mailman/listinfo/hasafran 
> > https://lists.service.ohio-state.edu/mailman/listinfo/hasafran
> > Questions, problems, complaints, compliments send to: 
> > galro...@osu.edu mailto:galro...@osu.edu
> > Ha-Safran Archives:
> > Current:
> > 
> > http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.service.ohio-state.edu/maillist.html
> >  
> > http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.service.ohio-state.edu/maillist.html
> > Earlier Listserver:
> > 
> > http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.acs.ohio-state.edu/maillist.html
> >  
> > http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.acs.ohio-state.edu/maillist.html
> > AJL HomePage http://www.JewishLibraries.org
> > --
> > Hasafran mailing list
> > Hasafran@lists.osu.edu mailto:Hasafran@lists.osu.edu
> > https://lists.osu.edu/mailman/listinfo/hasafran 
> > https://lists.osu.edu/mailman/listinfo/hasafran
> > 
> > 
> > > 
> __
> Messages and opinions expressed on Hasafran are those of the individual 
> author
> and are not necessarily endorsed by the Association of Jewish Libraries 
> (AJL)
> ==
> Submissions for Ha-Safran, send to:
> hasaf...@lists.service.ohio-state.edu
> To join Ha-Safran, update or 

Re: [ha-Safran] speech on Jewish kidlit by Sydney Taylor honoree

[Rachel Kamin]

Thank you so much for sharing this important and insightful perspective, Erika.
Note that the book Locke criticizes, The Girl Who Wouldn’t Die, was reviewed by 
Barbara Krasner in the February/March issue of AJL Reviews. See below.
Also, the new teen book that Locke recommends, You’ll Miss Me When I’m Gone by 
Rachel Lynn Solomon, will be reviewed in the September/October issue.

Rachel Kamin, Editor
Book Reviews for Children & Teens
The Association of Jewish Libraries Newsletter
847/926-7902 or rka...@nssbethel.org

Office Hours: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday & Friday 9am-2pm and Wednesday 4-6 pm & 
Sunday 9am-12pm (when school is in session)


Platt, Randall. The Girl Who Wouldn’t Die. New York: Sky Pony Press, 2017. 349 
pp. $16.99.
(9781510708099). Gr. 9 and up.

In August 1939, sixteen-year-old Abra Goldstein, a.k.a. the androgynous street 
thief Arab, returns
to Warsaw after her father banished her to a girls’ school in Vienna. Her 
father considers her dead,
with a gravestone to prove it. When the Nazis invade Poland, Arab finds ways to 
keep herself alive
by selling cigarettes at Three Crosses Square, banding together with her former 
comrade, Lizard, but
staying away from Sniper, who betrayed her during a botched robbery. Equipped 
with street savvy,
Arab stays alive, but when the ghetto walls go up, she pleads with her father 
to let her help him. He
refuses. She then decides to save her club-footed younger sister, Ruthie. With 
the help of a couple of
kind Nazis, she and Lizard move Jewish children out of the ghetto to safety.
Arab is a self-hating Jew, hardly the basis for a book to demonstrate the 
Holocaust. But the real set of
problems with this poorly planned, researched, and executed novel comes from 
the lack of authenticity
and accuracy and from rampant anti-Semitism. Any Jewish sensibilities here, or 
Polish or German for
that matter, are researched and peppered in. The author acknowledges help from 
experts and first-
person accounts. Arab (and why that name?) calls one of the Nazis the Messiah 
but her understanding
of the Messiah is Christian, not Jewish. The author strives to make Nazis 
sensitive to the Jewish situation
and makes Jews appear stupid, fearful, and vengeful. Further, the logistics 
inside and outside the
ghetto are confusing. This is not a book that demonstrates positive Jewish 
values. The book offends
these values within the first few pages. Further reading does not improve the 
experience.

Barbara Krasner, former member of Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee, Somerset, 
NJ

From: Hasafran [mailto:hasafran-boun...@lists.osu.edu] On Behalf Of Erika 
Dreifus
Sent: Monday, April 16, 2018 6:43 AM
To: Hasafran 
Subject: [ha-Safran] speech on Jewish kidlit by Sydney Taylor honoree

Shalom, chaverim:

Just wanted to bring this text, a version of a recent speech by Sydney Taylor 
honoree Katherine Locke, to the list's attention:

https://medium.com/@Bibliogato/thinking-jewish-childrens-literature-in-a-time-of-antisemitism-c77e4b00392c

All best,
Erika

--
Erika Dreifus | Writer. Poet. Publicist. Resource Maven.
(w) http://www.erikadreifus.com
(t) http://twitter.com/erikadreifus
(f) http://facebook.com/erikadreifusauthor 


__
Messages and opinions expressed on Hasafran are those of the individual author
and are not necessarily endorsed by the Association of Jewish Libraries (AJL)
==
Submissions for Ha-Safran, send to:
hasaf...@lists.service.ohio-state.edu
To join Ha-Safran, update or change your subscription, etc. - click here: 
https://lists.service.ohio-state.edu/mailman/listinfo/hasafran
Questions, problems, complaints, compliments send to: galro...@osu.edu
Ha-Safran Archives:
Current:
http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.service.ohio-state.edu/maillist.html
Earlier Listserver:
http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.acs.ohio-state.edu/maillist.html
AJL HomePage http://www.JewishLibraries.org
--
Hasafran mailing list
Hasafran@lists.osu.edu
https://lists.osu.edu/mailman/listinfo/hasafran

Re: [ha-Safran] speech on Jewish kidlit by Sydney Taylor honoree

[Sharon Elswit]

What a passionate talk from Katherine Locke.  Thank you, Erika, for passing
it along.
I am remembering a non-too-distant AJL session with Jewish publishers where
many librarians requested more books which portrayed Jewish protagonists
without being solely holiday-centric.  Yes, as Katherine says, we need to
define ourselves.  I am thinking she would like Carol Matas's "Wrestling
with Angels," which appears in Sandy Asher's collection *With All My Heart,
With All My Mind*. That story appeared in 2000 and concerns a teenager's
grappling with whether or not to get a piercing.  It seemed so unusual and
strong at the time because it dealt with real-life issues and feelings.
And it sounds like the need is still there.

As for the inclusion of Jewish culture in multicultural discussions from
outside the Jewish community, that was a wish I had when creating *The
Jewish Story Finder f*or folktales, and I think we're still waiting.
However, Katherine is right, the characters and stories need to be there.
Warm regards,
Sharon


On Mon, Apr 16, 2018 at 7:42 AM, Erika Dreifus  wrote:

> Shalom, chaverim:
>
> Just wanted to bring this text, a version of a recent speech by Sydney
> Taylor honoree Katherine Locke, to the list's attention:
>
> https://medium.com/@Bibliogato/thinking-jewish-childrens-literature-in-a-
> time-of-antisemitism-c77e4b00392c
>
> All best,
> Erika
>
> --
> *Erika Dreifus* | Writer. Poet. Publicist. Resource Maven.
> (w) http://www.erikadreifus.com
> (t) http://twitter.com/erikadreifus
> (f) http://facebook.com/erikadreifusauthor
> 
>
>
> __
> Messages and opinions expressed on Hasafran are those of the individual
> author
> and are not necessarily endorsed by the Association of Jewish Libraries
> (AJL)
> ==
> Submissions for Ha-Safran, send to:
> hasaf...@lists.service.ohio-state.edu
> To join Ha-Safran, update or change your subscription, etc. - click here:
> https://lists.service.ohio-state.edu/mailman/listinfo/hasafran
> Questions, problems, complaints, compliments send to: galro...@osu.edu
> Ha-Safran Archives:
> Current:
> http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.service.ohio-
> state.edu/maillist.html
> Earlier Listserver:
> http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.acs.ohio-
> state.edu/maillist.html
> AJL HomePage http://www.JewishLibraries.org
> --
> Hasafran mailing list
> Hasafran@lists.osu.edu
> https://lists.osu.edu/mailman/listinfo/hasafran
>
>
__
Messages and opinions expressed on Hasafran are those of the individual author
and are not necessarily endorsed by the Association of Jewish Libraries (AJL)
==
Submissions for Ha-Safran, send to:
hasaf...@lists.service.ohio-state.edu
To join Ha-Safran, update or change your subscription, etc. - click here: 
https://lists.service.ohio-state.edu/mailman/listinfo/hasafran
Questions, problems, complaints, compliments send to: galro...@osu.edu
Ha-Safran Archives:
Current:
http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.service.ohio-state.edu/maillist.html
Earlier Listserver:
http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.acs.ohio-state.edu/maillist.html
AJL HomePage http://www.JewishLibraries.org
--
Hasafran mailing list
Hasafran@lists.osu.edu
https://lists.osu.edu/mailman/listinfo/hasafran

Re: [ha-Safran] speech on Jewish kidlit by Sydney Taylor honoree

[Dina Tanners]

Erika,
Thanks so much for bringing this very important speech/article by Kathrine
Locke to our attention.  I almost skipped over it until I read Amalia's
email in which she said that ithis article was important for all of us to
read.  There is a strong need for many diverse books for Jewish teens to
read.  It was also shocking to read about  books by non-Jews about Jews
that border on anti-Semitism and show an ignorance of Judaism in their
content.

About 30 years ago there was a thin volume of stories for Jewish young
adults dealing with issues that diverse teens face.  Unfortunately, I
cannot remember its name.  But since then, I have not seen anything
similar.  There were also books about Jews with diverse backgrounds, but
few authors have continued in that vein.  I'm heartened by the book with a
collection of diverse short stories that Kathrine will help publish.

My somewhat secular grandchildren have gotten a number of PJ Library books
that focus on holidays and have too many on Hanukkah, for example.  PJ
Library in Hebrew has a lot of books on values that I hope will be
translated into English..

A while ago, I started a Hasafran discussion on the lack of good
biographies on Israelis, especially very little on women and
non-Ashkenazis.  The discussion continued for a while.  I did contact a
publisher of a number of Jewish books to see if they were interested in an
idea that an Israeli friend and I brainstormed.  I hope to hear back.

It also was disheartening to see in print something I had figured out:
that the topic "Holocaust" most interests publishers.

It would be wonderful if a group of us could work together to come up with
ideasof look at Israeli children's books and see if there is value in
publishing them in English and seeing if a publisher might be interested.



Dina Tanners
Seattle



On Mon, Apr 16, 2018 at 4:42 AM, Erika Dreifus  wrote:

> Shalom, chaverim:
>
> Just wanted to bring this text, a version of a recent speech by Sydney
> Taylor honoree Katherine Locke, to the list's attention:
>
> https://medium.com/@Bibliogato/thinking-jewish-childrens-literature-in-a-
> time-of-antisemitism-c77e4b00392c
>
> All best,
> Erika
>
> --
> *Erika Dreifus* | Writer. Poet. Publicist. Resource Maven.
> (w) http://www.erikadreifus.com
> (t) http://twitter.com/erikadreifus
> (f) http://facebook.com/erikadreifusauthor
> 
>
>
> __
> Messages and opinions expressed on Hasafran are those of the individual
> author
> and are not necessarily endorsed by the Association of Jewish Libraries
> (AJL)
> ==
> Submissions for Ha-Safran, send to:
> hasaf...@lists.service.ohio-state.edu
> To join Ha-Safran, update or change your subscription, etc. - click here:
> https://lists.service.ohio-state.edu/mailman/listinfo/hasafran
> Questions, problems, complaints, compliments send to: galro...@osu.edu
> Ha-Safran Archives:
> Current:
> http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.service.ohio-
> state.edu/maillist.html
> Earlier Listserver:
> http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.acs.ohio-
> state.edu/maillist.html
> AJL HomePage http://www.JewishLibraries.org
> --
> Hasafran mailing list
> Hasafran@lists.osu.edu
> https://lists.osu.edu/mailman/listinfo/hasafran
>
>
__
Messages and opinions expressed on Hasafran are those of the individual author
and are not necessarily endorsed by the Association of Jewish Libraries (AJL)
==
Submissions for Ha-Safran, send to:
hasaf...@lists.service.ohio-state.edu
To join Ha-Safran, update or change your subscription, etc. - click here: 
https://lists.service.ohio-state.edu/mailman/listinfo/hasafran
Questions, problems, complaints, compliments send to: galro...@osu.edu
Ha-Safran Archives:
Current:
http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.service.ohio-state.edu/maillist.html
Earlier Listserver:
http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.acs.ohio-state.edu/maillist.html
AJL HomePage http://www.JewishLibraries.org
--
Hasafran mailing list
Hasafran@lists.osu.edu
https://lists.osu.edu/mailman/listinfo/hasafran