Last week, Booknik was sorry that God had not made him a woman; he peeked in other people’s windows, made borsht, persistently tasted wine, and he could not distinguish Mordecai from Haman; apart from that, he traveled to Paris and Persia, read books, and watched movies. Meanwhile, Booknik Jr. learned why he did not have a tail, and he celebrated the loss of another tooth.
Osip Dymov and His Circle
From Isadora Duncan to Fyodor Shalyapin. As Remembered, It Asked to Be Told, by Osip Dymov
By starting the “presentation” of the author Osip Dymov’s (1878–1959) creative output with the book of his memoir, the literature scholar Vladimir Khazan was absolutely right, Booknik’s contributing reviewer Mikhail Edelstein believes. Fiction works by Dymov are not bad at all, yet the context emerging from the pages of his reminiscences is still much more zany and valuable. It is only understandable, for he was the one to reminisce—he went everywhere, he was friends with everyone, he was welcome in theaters, editors’ offices, publishing houses, literary circles, symbolist salons, and religious philosophical gatherings.
Freedom, by Jonathan Franzen
Franzen uses the American material to rehabilitate the method of classic realism that seems to have been outshined by modernism and post-modernism. In conjunction with this, his plots, feelings, and actions of his characters are by all means socially determined, and Franzen’s protagonist, as the Booknik literary critic Yevgenia Ritz proposes, is the American society itself. This society is controversial, it often finds itself in a dead-end, it is confused by terrorist acts of September 11, the war in Iraq, and the economic crisis, yet it continues to develop.
Chumash for Women
Tze'nah u-Re'nah, by Jacob ben Isaac Ashkenazi of Janów
In 2012, the Knizhniki and Gesharim | Bridges of Culture publishers have attempted to publish the Russian translation of Tseno Ureno also known as Women’s Bible. These days, only the Eastern European Jewry historians know this title. Nevertheless, through the ages, this book had been the favorite reading material for Ashkenazi women. Booknik reviewer Yevgeny Levin believes men will benefit from reading it, too.
The Windows of Perception
Windows, by Dina Rubina
Windows is the conceptual collection in a rather strict sense of the word. Nine stories by the famous Russian Israeli author about windows, looking to or from life, are accompanied by paintings by Boris Karafyolov also depicting windows, people in windows, people looking through windows, or turning from them. The book is stunningly beautiful as an art object or a living being. In it, there are marvels, as usual. Look into those Windows with Booknik’s literary critic Nastik Gryzunova.
…and many other wandering wonders in the Books & Reviews section.
A Crowd of One Woman
Three years ago, in Paris, there died Dina Vierny. She was almost ninety. She was a model for Aristide Maillol, Henri-Émile-Benoît Matisse, Raoul Dufy, Pierre Bonnard, and countless others. She introduced the soviet non-conformist painters to the West. She was an icon of French culture, the Commander of the National Order of the Legion of Honour, the founder of the Fondation Dina Vierny-Musée Maillol, and the subject of arts herself. Legends and myths surrounding her name could become the basis for an adventure TV series. Nevertheless, only documentaries depict her, so far, including the film Frantic Dina Vierny made in Moscow by the Miriam Media studios. Booknik’s frantic film critic Kira Sapgir shares her impressions of this documentary.
Last week, Booknik, together with all righteous, and not very righteous Jews, celebrated Purim. On this day, as it is well known, one can drink himself to the state when one cannot distinguish evil Haman from Mordecai, the hero of the Jewish people, and get away with it. Booknik studied the wine list very carefully, and decided to follow the recommendations of our experienced sommelier Miriam Gurova.
…and many other feisty feasts in the Articles & Interviews section.
Borsht for a Nudnik
The borsht made according to the recipe by Booknik’s contributing chef Irina Golovinskaya is invariably popular with everyone, including gourmets, bores, and their husbands. This borsht is excellent in any weather for it cools you down in the heat, and heats you up in the cold. In some sense, it is kosher, for it does not carry any traces of meat or meat broth, so you could eat it with sour cream with no remorse.
Five Stories about Mental Workload
…from our brilliant contributor Linor Goralik. “Take the mustard,” a seller at the Danilovsky Market shouts after an elderly couple in identical berets and long black coats. “It’s just as strong as they had it before the Revolution!” In a second or to, he shouts to a large man in a woolen cap and a thick grey coat, “Take the mustard, just as tough as they had it under Stalin!”
Ahashverosh Did Not Dream of It
Booknik’s special Israeli reporter Elisha Zinde had an editorial assignment to get drunk on Purim and report on how they celebrate it in a kibbutz.
…and many other assiduous assignments in the Columns & Columns section.
Just the other day, the Eksmo publishers have unveiled the new book by the distinguished Russian Israeli author Dina Rubina, Windows. Boris Karafyolov illustrates the book. The author and the painter open different windows for the readers, the ones into their own childhoods, into the lives of passers-by, friends, and relatives. Some of those windows are made of stained glass, and they are installed in temples. Some of those windows are in Venice, and some are in Jerusalem. Booknik suggests you peek into the window to Venice.
…and many other windy windows in the Stories & Essays section.
Persia, Persia, the Land of Wonders
The Purim events took place in the Persian Empire. This year, the celebration coincided with the International Women’s Day, March 8, however our new quiz took a systematically historical approach, and it covers the things that happened earlier. Welcome to our Persian quiz, then.
…and many other quizzical queries in the Contests & Quizzes section.
The Polytechnic Museum’s Lecture Center for Children. New Dimensions
In the Polytechnic Museum, they launched the Lecture Center for Children, ages seven to twelve. The children participate in setting the courses themselves. There are long paper scrolls in corridors, with questions written on them by visitors. Why was I born? Why I did not die? Why do animals have tails? How does a TV work? Why is it difficult to breathe on a mountain? What is Fascism? You can check the question you like, and the ones that get more checks will be covered in the next lecture, a month later.
Evening Strollers
Every one of us selects his or her own point on the axis from “children are our everything” to “children mess with our lives.” We argue with the experience of our own parents, or we try to repeat it, and to recreate the model of children-parents relations accepted in our midst. We may challenge it, or we may act on intuition, without clearly realizing our own situation and condition. At the same time, when we look at our friends and relatives, we more often than not understand if they are “concerned” or “aloof” parents.
On March 1, the traditional exhibition of children’s art opened in the Tretyakov Gallery, under the aegis of the Gift of Life charity foundation. If you do not know anything about little artists exhibited there, it is impossible to think that it is hard for them even to live, not to mention drawing or painting. Booknik Jr. attended the show, and now he tells us what happened there, showing the art by children who still love life, despite the terrible trials of despair and sickness.
The School of Tooth Fairies. A Children’s Festival Scenario
Tooth fairies should be experts in different foods, healthy for your teeth or not. Guests should collect messages from the floor that have dishes names on them, and arrange them in two piles, healthy and unhealthy. In order to make it more interesting, you could invent foods your guests never heard about, like fried flies, smoked ants, marinated mosquitoes, or spider soup. Our certified tooth fairy Olya Yashina recommends.
…and many other toothy tomorrows at Booknik Jr., also known as Family Booknik, our own web site for kids and their parents.
And then it hit me. I’m a patriot! Booknik and Family Booknik are supported by the AVI CHAI Foundation.
