Arts & Culture

The Novel That Scared Hamas Paul Berman, New Republic. In a bold move, an outspoken critic of Islamism, Boualem Sansal was awarded France’s 2012 Arab Novel Prize.  Then its Arab sponsors cancelled the awards ceremony.

Angels in the Architecture Elin Schoen Brockman, Tablet. Rabbis have tried to enforce the biblical prohibition on graven images.  But, as a new exhibit at the Israel Museum shows, that hasn’t kept Jewish artists from being fascinated by angels.

Scene of the Crime Morgan Meis, Smart Set. Rotterdam’s Kunsthal Museum was recently robbed of six major paintings—and a minor work by Jewish artist Meyer de Haan.  Was the de Haan theft a mistake?  Or the key to the crime?

Strindberg’s Inferno Brooke Allen, New Criterion. Yes, August Strindberg took some racist, sexist, and anti-Semitic positions.  But at significant moments of his life he vigorously championed both Jews and women.

Hollywood for Haredim Debra Kamin, New York Times. A recent spate of movies by female Haredi directors has exposed secular film-goers to the ultra-Orthodox world—but has also exposed Haredi women to the cinema.

O Pioneers! Hillel Halkin, Jewish Review of Books. They graduated from American colleges, read American literature, and traveled in America.  So, why did these immigrant poets insist on writing in the little-read language of Hebrew?

Kafka’s Trial Matthew Kalman, Independent. The author wanted them burnt and for almost 90 years they have been kept under lock and key; but thanks to an Israeli court ruling, Franz Kafka's papers will soon be open to the public.

Samson the Suicide Bomber? Neil Forsyth, Times Literary Supplement. Milton's Samson Agonistes turns the strongman’s revenge against the Philistines into a holy crusade.  Does that make it an act of terror?

Beer with a Back Story Editors, Jewish Ideas Daily. What happens when Israel’s emerging boutique beer culture intersects with the American trend toward getting to know the food one eats? Lost Tribes Brew happens. The New York-based microbrewery produces beers based on recipes gathered from various remote communities claiming Israelite origins, like India’s Bene Menashe and Ethiopia’s Beta Israel.No doubt, part of this is a gimmick: in order to successfully market an odd-tasting beer brewed by a bunch of Jewish twenty-somethings in upstate New York, you need to have a good story, like one that connects your customer to real or imagined ancient Israelite foodways (note that...

Handel’s Scandal? Marion Lignana Rosenberg, Forward. With his Jewish patrons and Old Testament subject matter, critics long supposed Handel to be a great philo-Semite; but recent research has shown his relationship with London's Jews to be much more complicated.