Sample Sources
The sources below are those contained in our three curated collections—covering themes of Passover, Gender Roles, and Holocaust Resistance. They represent a fraction of the thousands of sources that will be available when the full site launches in 2024.
Moshkele the Pig
After Moshkele found his way to the Goyim’s Street, he began to be a regular and made the acquaintance of the shkotsim [“goyish” boys]. At first they mocked the little Yid who had wandered…
Sister
As a symbol of the past—all sadness and humility—my mother’s face swims up and rises before my eyes. Her eyes two black abysses, anguish peering from them; her lips moist and rosy, a smile always…
Confession
“Meanwhile months and years disappeared. At twenty-eight I was still without a husband, still an eligible virgin . . . It was spring—free, warm. My heart ached so, I thought I’d go crazy . . . the…
Utter Chaos
These last words—spoken in all seriousness—completely confused Heinz. He thought he hadn’t heard right.
“Sorry—What do you have?”
“Patrol duty—Jacob can take care of the money now; you’ve seen that…
Yitskhok Leybush Peretz
And you’re dead. And you’ve not yet been covered by the ground;
Far through a thousand streets like horses galloping round,
Young and old newsboys spread, rushing about their business,
Hawking papers…
Three Poems
This is November
Season of mills.
Wind of the black early morning services.
Cemetery
And thousandnightliness
Of the childish little candles,
And their fear.
Trudging now
Through the…
Jacob’s Ladder
One Who Is Rebellious:To obey commandments of which merely the ear is aware,Yet remain deaf to urges that shake the whole being;To regard as good the former,Which reveal the soul so as to abandon it…
Statistical Report of One Shtetl
Statisticians customarily provide detailed counts for a typical small town, from which deductions can be made regarding other small towns of the same type. Thus the statistics of a small town acquire…
Advertisement for Shtilim, a Hebrew Children’s Journal
We have come together these days, during the awakening of our Hebrew literary sphere, to establish a special newspaper for Jewish youngsters and children.Do we really need to talk at length about how…