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p«0« 11-THE NEWS-February. 1983 Jewish Books in Review is a service of the IWB Jewish Book Council, 15 East 26th St., New York, N.Y. 10010 flabbis and Wives. By :^haim Grade. Translated :rom the Yiddish by Harold dabinowitz and Inna Hecker jrade. Alfred A. Knopf, 201 E. 50th Street, New York, ^Y 10022. 1982. 307 pages. 515.95. Reviewed Kabakoff by Jacob The late Chaim Grade was 1 distinguished Yiddish poet, but he also received ac claim as a superb novelist and short story writer. A survivor of the Young Vilna ^oup of writers, he was the author of several volumes of poetry in which he im mortalized the life and tradi tion of European Jewry. The three novellas includ ed in Grade’s newest volume represent his fifth prose work in English translation. When asked in an interview why he had turned to the writing of fiction. Grade replied that his was a two fold purpose. First, he felt an historical obligation to describe the human tragedy (and comedy) of European Jewish life before it was systematically uprooted. And he wanted to show, through the medium of art, that the problems and strug- gles of the Jews of yesteryear were relevant to our own times because these problems and struggles never really change. What Shmuel Yosef Agnon, the Nobel Prize laureate, succeeded in doing for Galician Jewry, Grade accomplished for the rich world of Lithuanian Jewry. He has peopled his novellas not only with rabbinic figures, with ascetic recluses and with contentious Mizrachi and Agudah sup porters, but also with a host of strong women, with shopkeepers, and other mun dane types. He depicts the rhythm of their daily lives without nostalgic embellish ment and dwells on the shadows as well as the lights 2nd Annual PASSOVER FAMILY AFIKOMEN HUNT Is Coming Sunday, April 3 Solve The Clues..Enter The Contest..You Mey Win Prizes — Prizes — Prizes Special This Year - A Full Field Day of Fun For Everyone Sponsored by the JOG in conjunction with The Foundation of their existence. Because of his absorbing psychological treatment of his characters, Grade makes their concerns and conflicts real and meaningful for us. In the novella “The Rebbet- zin” we follow the machina tions of a scheming woman who is motivated by disap pointment and envy. The se cond novella, “Laybe- Layzar’s Courtyard,” which is set in Vilna, is filled with closely packed action, in cluding a dramatic clash bet ween an inflexible, fanatic father and a gentle reclusive rabbi who cannot escape in volvement in community af fairs. The last novella, “The Oath,” relates how, by a clever turn of events, a dying Vilna wheat merchant is able to provide for his wife’s marital future but is unsuc- cessful in keeping worldliness from engulfing the lives of his son and daughter. Grade’s novellas, like his previous large-scale novel “The Yeshiva,” are an chored in reality and chroni cle day-by-day happenings, but at the same time they touch on transcendent universal issues which speak to the mind and the heart. Dr. Jacob Kabakoff is Pro fessor of Hebrew Literature at the City University of New York and editor of the Jewish Book Annual. Your Jewish Lexicon Adult Jewish Studies — Union of American Hebrew Congregation* Fathers And Mothers The foundations of the Jewish family are the av, ‘‘father,’’ and the em, “mother.” More in timately, within the family, they are the abba, “Dad,” and imah, “Mama.” The fathers of the Jewish people, the three Patriarchs — Abraham, Isaac and Jacob — are the avot; and the four Matriarchs — Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel and Leah — are the imot, the “mothers.” Abraham’s Hebrew name, of course, is Av-raham, “father of a multitude of nations.” (See Genesis 17:4-5.) Eve, or Chavah in Hebrew, was the em kol chai, the “mother of all living.” The prophetess Deborah was called em b’yisrael, “a mother in Israel.” We hear more Hebrew expressions using av than em, a fact that has distressed Jewish feminists. For instance, our ancestors conceived of God as the great av, Father. A deeply moving prayer recited during the High Holy Days is the supplication, Avinu Malkenu, **our Father, our King.” Another prayer of supplication is ad- dressed to Avha- Rachamim, “Father of Mercy” or “Merciful God.” The small tractate of the Talmud known as Pirke Avot, “Chapters of the Fathers,” a collection of ethical sayings and teachings, is one of the most popular and beloved of all Jewish books. Despite the emphasis on av in Jewish tradition, a number of passages in Scrip tures place av and em on an equal level regarding their relationships with their off spring. The Fifth Command ment, for example, enjoins us to “honor your father (avicha) and your mother (imecha)" equally. In the same vein, the Book of Pro verbs contains similar references to fathers and mothers. Look up Proverbs 1:8, as one instance, and see if you can discover the Hebrew words for “your father” and “your mother.” The advice to children there is still valid. Pictured ia JCC board member Lynne Sbeffer who is work- ing with new areas of adult programming for the CLai group and people 60 and over. The committee will begin working in March. Upjohn UPJOHN HEALTHCARE SERVICES 525-2375 24-HOUR CARE AVAILABLE • Private Duty Nursing •HomeCara •Companions CALL DAY OR NIGHT •Noma Maicara •Nousa Kaapara •Llva-lna More than a furniture store: 52() Pi 'ovidcua' Motul People you trust caring for people you love.
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