GOLDA gang, I can’t stop thinking about Jewish books.
This week I moderated a conversation with authors Dahlia Adler and Lily Meyer at The Jewish Museum, the last event in our Unpacking the Book series with the Jewish Book Council. We were talking about their new novels, Soon By You and The End of Romance, and the broader landscape of Jewish stories about love and romance. It was such a fun and unexpected conversation, and a reminder of how rich and varied the world of Jewish literature is.
This week we also aired my interview with Fran Fabriczki, whose debut novel Porcupines is the latest selection from Nu Reads, the Jewish book subscription series. We’re obsessed with Nu Reads here at GOLDA, and are lucky enough to have them as our presenting podcast sponsor. Porcupines tells the story of Sonia, a Jewish immigrant from Budapest, and her 5-year-old daughter Mila, a Los Angeles native looking to piece together her mom’s mysterious past. Fran told me about her own journey from Budapest to LA, and what it was like to become a mother while working on this novel. She also shared how meaningful it is as a debut author to have Nu Reads get behind her book—not only giving it a major audience but bringing it into the Jewish conversation. You can listen to my interview with Fran here—and get 15% off your Nu Reads subscription with code NuGolda here.
I asked Fran what writers and books inspired her as she was writing Porcupines, and she said Gary Shtenygart’s memoir Little Failure and Melissa Bank’s Jewish-inflected novels.
For a live conversation about the power of Jewish storytelling, look no further than the May 27 kickoff event in our GOLDA residency at The Harmonie Club in New York City. I’ll be joined by three of my favorite contemporary Jewish authors, all of whom have written brilliant books that lodged themselves permanently in my brain: Rachel Kadish (The Weight of Ink), Menachem Kaiser (Plunder), and Esther Chehebar (Sisters of Fortune). There will be a book signing afterwards, plus a fun reception with wine and light bites. Get your ticket here.
Esther Chehebar is also one of the GOLDA Girls—aka my podcast co-hosts. A new episode of GOLDA Girls dropped in your feed today, and one of the threads we discuss is what Jewish leadership looks like today, in a fractured and challenging moment. We each suggested someone who has become a role model to us in their own way. Perhaps not surprisingly, that list includes a lot of writers. Here’s who we’re inspired by:
Sarah Hurwitz, speechwriter and author of As a Jew and Here All Along. (Gabby Deutch’s pick)
Mijal Bitton, spiritual leader and writer of the Committed Substack. (Esther Chehebar’s pick)
Rachel Goldberg Polin, mother of Hersh Goldberg-Polin and the author of When We See You Again. (Diana Fersko’s pick)
Avital Chizik-Goldschmidt, writer and cofounder/rebbetzin of The Altneu. (my pick)
You can listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
It feels beshert that this week’s episode of GOLDA Girls is also sponsored by The Mindich Fellowship for Jewish Fiction, part of Miami Book Fair’s Emerging Writer Fellowship. For all the writers out there: If your novel or fiction project centers Jewish life, culture, or themes, this is an unbeatable opportunity to develop that work in community. And in Miami! Fellows get a generous stipend, mentorship, and a year-long period of uninterrupted writing time. The application deadline is May 31; you can find out more information and apply here.
GOLDA Events
I can’t believe I’ve gone on this long without telling you about the next GOLDA Mahjong Night! Join us Tuesday, May 26 at 6:30 p.m. on the Upper East Side for a night of fun and games for mahj mavens, newcomers, and everyone in between. Get your ticket here.
Shabbat Shalom and stay GOLDA,
Stephanie