Booknik on Feb 1—7: Spies, Prisons, Art Deco, Chess, Vienna, a Cake, and How to Talk to Girls

Last week, Booknik read about spy’s adventures, a life in prison, Rabbi Eliazar, flying Timofey, and sexual revolution, walked through a museum of Art Deco, watched The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, sat on a lecture on Jewish Vienna, and chose what kind of a Jew he would have been 200 years ago. Meanwhile, Booknik Jr. admired Mikhail Botvinnik, was scared of Shibennik, munched on a cake, and learned how to talk to girls.

A Jewish Spy in a Bedouin Abaya
A Letter from Avshalom, by Nava Macmel-Atir
This book was conceived as serious literature for grown-ups by the author who had been considered a children’s writer before, so she introduced rather strange plot lines with a graphologist and a dying soldier. She even tried to recreate language peculiarities of Turkish Palestine, and this is the reason why the Hebrew of the “Palestinian” part of the book seems stilted and contrived to the Israelites. Yet in general, a veritable book for young adults came out, Booknik reviewer Marina Karpova thinks. The one with spy conspiracies, lots of shooting, and a romance inside. However, who could say this is a bad thing?

A British Prison in Pictures
Reportage by a Yeshiva Student, by Aba Ahimeir
The 20th century, rich in tragedy, gave prison literature to many nations. It exists in Hebrew, of course, although Israeli and pre-Israeli prison conditions were very different from those of the Soviet prison camps. It so happened that two revisionist movement leaders, Menachem Begin and Aba Ahimeir, were the founders of the prison diaries genre in the contemporary Hebrew literature. In his book White Nights: The Story of a Prisoner in Russia, Mr. Begin described inhuman life in Pechora camps, and in the early 1930s it fell to Mr. Ahimeir’s lot to experience British captivity. The bulk of his Reportage by a Yeshiva Student he wrote in the central Jerusalem prison, and he calls the book “photographs written with words.” Booknik reviewer Ariel Bulstein looks at this “album” now.

…and other harrowing adventures in the Books & Reviews section.

 

1973. Individual Sexual Revolutions
It was a common enough year, no better or worse than any other was. In 1973, the Vietnam War ended, Richard Nixon met Leonid Brezhnev, Pinochet came to power in Chile, and the Yom Kippur War happened in Israel. Henry Kissinger received the Nobel Peace Prize, John Ronald Reuel Tolkien died, Pink Floyd released The Dark Side of the Moon, and Thomas Pynchon published Gravity’s Rainbow. That year, in the United States two books were published whose authors were interested only in sexual experimentation, and the search for their own identities. Booknik thought it amusing to compare them, the autobiography of metasex theoretician Marco Vassi The Stoned Apocalypse, read by Booknik’s managing editor Nastik Gryzunova, and Fear of Flying by Jewish American feminist Erica Jong, discussed by Booknik’s editor-in-chief Sergey Kuznetsov.

…and other nifty comparisons in the Articles & Interviews section.

 

Do You Like Art Deco As Much As Van Buuren Liked It?
This is the report of how refined financiers might be. This is the report of how a passion for arts can bring you immortality. This is the report of how to create a magnetically beautiful atmosphere around you so that the most interesting people are attracted to you like butterflies to a candle. This is the report of how to erect a monument to yourself while you are still alive. This is the report by  Yevgenia Gershkovich from the David and Alice van Buuren Museum.

…and other memorable news in the Events & Reports section.

 

Imagine, Imagine
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, directed by Terry Gilliam
People do not know how to dream, and so they refuse to have even a peek into an imaginarium. A thousand years ago, the theater was thriving, but now all its sets can fit into a wagon with its paint peeling. Living side by side with magic, Dr. Parnassus’ daughter pictures an ideal home that is like a magazine illustration. Booknik’s contributing editor Dina Suvorova watches The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, and people around her, and she regrets to say that the magic’s concentration dwindles as the years go by. No one wants to think anything up, as people more and more try to rely on those who think for them.

The Hero’s Bread, Wine, and Salad Days
Accompanied by wise commentator Reuven Kipervasser, Booknik returns to the life of Rabbi Eliazar, and in particular to its fundamental period, his early years. We shall see what contrasts made up the persona of the wise man who started his life as a hedonist, and a braggart yet later turned into a tragic ascetic. We shall read two short stories where the young hero is represented as a kind of Gargantua, with only glimpses of the future sage seen.

…and other thoughtful insights in the Columns & Columns section.

 

Timofey
“Mother, Mother,” the little boy asked excitedly, “why has the weather been so nasty for two weeks now? It’s raining all day long, and it’s dark, and the wind is oh so cold.” “It’s just because— because, honey,” his mother answered absent-mindedly, critically fingering a blouse on a hanger. “Why, because of such no-goodniks as this one!” she suddenly cried out, as the idea struck her, and she pointed after a greasy black raincoat that went along the aisle. “Those wizarding types walk around, and send us rains and winds.” His mother could barely gasp when her boy ran out, and pushed Timofey in the back, or his backside to be more exact for the boy could not reach higher, and cried, “Get out of here you nasty wizard! You have no business spoiling the weather in our sunny city!” Therefore, Timofey, a bore and failed angel, flew off into that grey, wet, and viscous fall muck that one cannot justifiably call “a sky,” and so the lives of many people suddenly changed dramatically. Booknik publishes the new short story by  Gila Loran.

…and other captivating reading in the Stories & Essays section.

 

The Jewish Choice of 200 Years Ago
In the 19th century, the era of freedom, equality, and other emancipation started in Europe. As a result, the Jews had the choice of what Jews they wanted to be, for the first time in ages. They used the opportunity to the hilt. In just a very short time, the Jewry was split into several trends differing in their ideologies, rituals, and looks. The Booknik test will help you to choose your colors in that interesting time.

…and other hard choices in the Contests & Quizzes section.

 

The Colonel from Big Seidemenukha, Part 10
Arkady Perman tells Booknik about the terrible time that befell the Jewish colonies in the south of Ukraine when German troops occupied it.

Don’t Grudge the Brew 36: The Fish Menu of Tzahal
Roman Gershuni remembers his army service by its holiday rations. Gefilte fish was cooked simple, military-style. It was not a stuffed pike or carp skin, but patties or balls in broth. Now the Booknik’s brilliant chef teaches you how to make it.

…and other spicy advice in the Video Blog section.

 

The Chess King
Everyone who seriously plays chess knows Mikhail Botvinnik. He was the world champion, prominent scholar, and, simply and truly, a great man. He was born in 1911, still under Tsar Nicholas the Second, lived in the Soviet Union, and died in 1995, after its break-up. When Mr. Botvinnik grew up he wrote, “My blood is Jewish, but I’m Russian in my culture, and Soviet in my upbringing.” People like him are usually referred to with the phrase “He made his mark in history.” He was the first Soviet Grand Master to win the world championship, and he had the chess crown for 13 years. Dasha Gabelko tells the story of the Chess King to our not-especially-grown-up readers.

Shibennik and the Squirrel
Booknik Jr. publishes two short stories by  Pavel Zhuravel, about terrible Shibennik, and a gooseberries bush where a dwarf and a squirrel met.

Why Do They Fly? How to Talk About Art with Your Kid
Booknik Jr’s own art critic Anna Gershovich goes on talking with kids about art. Today, we are looking at Above the City, painted by Marc Chagall who was one of the strangest artists in history. She tells why the figures on canvas fly, what a man does squatting there by a fence, why the goat is green, and what the lovers look at.

The Cake Makes a Move, and Wins
Before, Booknik Jr. always said that a charlotte is the simplest apple tart existing. Yelizaveta Guller does not subscribe to this opinion. The dried fruit cake is also very simple to make. It may even be simpler in preparation than a charlotte. And it is delicious.

For Boys Only
How to Talk to Girls, by Alec Greven
Dear parents, shut your eyes tight, take a deep breath, and press ALT-F4. Dear girls, you just pass on. Dear boys, this is for you only. Yes, Booknik Jr. has read this book. Yes, his mom let him. Tomorrow, after the math, he is planning to woo one special girl. No, he didn’t ask his mom’s permission. No, he’s not going to tell. This is too personal.

The Little Red Riding Hood Prepares for Purim
Purim is a merry occasions, and all merry occasions demand some serious preparation. Therefore, Booknik Jr. has begun his. For starters, he went to the Eshkol Project’s culinary show, and learned how to prepare Mishloach manot (he will teach you, too, but later). After that, he is going to the Purim Fest, and to see a theater show.

…and other useful hints at  Booknik Jr., also known as Family Booknik, our own web site for kids and their parents.

 

Viennese Jews, Their Thoughts, Cuisine, and Music: In Three Parts
At the dawn of the 20th century, Vienna was one of the largest centers of global culture. In the Austrian capital, the artistic and intellectual life was going in full swing, and it was so bright and rich that it could be favorable compared to the life, say, in Paris. Jewish culture was an important ingredient, for it influenced everything, from music to philosophy and literature. The public lectures cycle Jewgendstil: The Jewish Culture of Vienna was presented in January in the Moscow “Ulitsa OGI” club, organized by the Eshkolot cultural and educational project. Of course, Booknik never missed a single lecture, including “With Freud to Get Bagels. About People and Tastes of Jewish Vienna,” by psychologist Alexander Sosland, and chef Roman Gershuni, and the one by musicologist Artyom Vargaftik on Viennese composers. Zara Shakhbazyan and David Apfelbaum report.

May the Force be with you. Booknik and Family Booknik are supported by the AVI CHAI Foundation.