Winter 2020
Israel Can Do Better: A 70-Year Report Card of Environmental Underachievement
Alon TalDespite showing huge early promise, Israel's environmental record is hugely disappointing. With the added threat of global warming, substantial action is needed.
Exile: Portraits of the Jewish Diaspora
Annika Hernroth-RothsteinAn excerpt from a new book examining some of the lesser-known Jewish communities around the world.
When Home Becomes a Foreign Land: Raja Shehadeh and Palestinian Freedom of Movement
Khaled DiabRaja Shehadeh's new memoir opens up the world of Palestinian exile, both physical and metaphysical.
Our Men in Al Sham: An Interview with Seth Frantzman and Jonathan Spyer
Samuel ThropeAn interview with Seth Frantzman and Jonathan Spyer about their experiences reporting from Syria and Iraq.
Sick of Himself? Sayed Kashua's Track Changes
Elaine MargolinIn his new novel, Sayed Kashua seems trapped between the past and the future he seems strangely hesitant to describe.
Israeli Dance after Gaga
Dana MillsIsraeli dance is known mainly for the Batsheva Dance Company and Gaga, the movement language developed by its most famous offspring, Ohad Naharin. But many other performers and styles, no less intriguing, have grown in their shadow.
Three Case Studies of the War in Palestine in 1948
Yoav GelberA review of three controversial events and processes during the war in 1948: Deir Yassin, the battle for Kastel, and Jewish refugees.
Israel's Very Own 'Illiberal Democracy'
David N. MyersZionism is rightly celebrated as a democratic movement, but the liberal element in it has often been sidelined and contested. Netanyahu's authoritarian tendencies seem to echo global trends, but in fact they tell a very local story as well.
An Army of Letters
Tal Kra-OzTwo new books look into Israel's military-literary complex. The authors, literary scholars at Tel Aviv University, share an irreverent reverence for the subject matter.
My Grandfather's House
Amir Mahmoud JabarinThe fascinating story of an Ottoman-era house in Umm al-Fahm and what it tells us about the history of Palestinian architecture.
From Birthplace to Homeland
Leon Wiener DowShowcasing his exceptional talent for blurring the boundary between fact and fiction, Philip Roth's Operation Shylock and The Plot Against America offer a unique reflection on Israel and the Jewish-American situation.
Towards the East an Eye Gazes
Meron MedziniFrom its genesis, Zionism sought the favor of Western powers and was virtually uninterested in Asian nations. Three new books look at the exceptions that confirm the rule.
Golden Jackals/Skyping into Gaza/Other People's Birthdays
Marcela SulakPoetry from Marcela Sulak.
A Life in a Poem
David RosenbergDavid Rosenberg's literary memoir, a Guggenheim Fellowship project just published in the UK, includes this excerpt from the period when he lived in Israel, working as an editor for Hakibbutz Hameuchad publisher and the Institute for Translation of Hebrew Literature.
Cover image by Ben Wadler (b. 1982), an American artist based in Tel Aviv and Vienna. Having studied Sculpture at the Royal College of Art in London, he is currently producing a series of ceramic works under the name “Special Vessels.”
