Kaddish
Before the Holocaust and After
Though her name evokes fabulism and dream-weaving, Jane Yolen is a literary renaissance woman. In this intimate, history-based poetry collection, she tackles the complicated subject of antisemitic persecution across the ages, and does so in a searing, haunting way. Notably, the collection also touches on the Israel-Palestine conflict, as well as the roles of women in Judaism, beginning with the first woman to be too easily cast aside: indomitable Lilith.
Slouching Towards Bethlehem
“Israel Convicts a Palestinian Poet:
for a poem they say incites violence and supports terror.“
-Unknown Headline
Yeats is crouched in his grave,
preparing to turn over like meat on a spit.
One more round and he is done.
Jerusalem, where King David wrote poems
about politics and self-doubt has been cancelled.
The Garden is closed for the millennium.
Lions no longer lie down with lambs,
for all the psalmists are in prisons
on one side of the Golan Heights or another.
I am waiting for the summons on my door,
that invitation to prison, that long slouch
to the old city, Bethlehem or D.C.
Reviewed by
Michelle Anne Schingler
Disclosure: This article is not an endorsement, but a review. The publisher of this book provided free copies of the book to have their book reviewed by a professional reviewer. No fee was paid by the publisher for this review. Foreword Reviews only recommends books that we love. Foreword Magazine, Inc. is disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
