Jewish Life in Harbin, China: A Conversation with Jean Hoffmann Lewanda by Susan Blumberg-Kason Interviews [email protected] Tue, 01/07/2025 - 07:08 Shalama and Paul, Shanghai, 1950. Photo courtesy of Jean Hoffmann LewandaI met the author Jean Hoffmann Lewanda for lunch this past November in New Jersey, not too far from her home in suburban Philadelphia. Jean is the author of a new book, Shalama: My 96 Seasons in China (Earnshaw, 2024), the story of her mother’s childhood in Harbin, China, and young adult years in Shanghai. Jean’s first book, Witness to History: From Vienna to Shanghai: A Memoir of Escape, Survival and Resilience, is an edited edition of her father’s memoir tracing his escape from Nazi-controlled Vienna to the safe shores of Shanghai in the late 1930s. Jean and I originally met online thanks to mutual friends who are historians and the authority on everything Old Shanghai. When we met in person in November, we spoke for hours about publishing Jewish Chinese stories. We expanded this conversation over email. Susan Blumberg-Kason: Thank you, Jean, for continuing our lovely conversation back in November. I don’t remember coming across other authors who have personal connections to both the old Shanghai and Harbin Jewish communities, each of which numbered in the thousands. Your mother was the daughter of Russian Jewish refugees, and your father was an Austrian Jewish refugee. Was it unusual for people in these... Continue reading at 'World Literature Today'
[ World Literature Today | 2025-01-07 13:08:24 UTC ]
In this episode of “Writer’s Digest Presents,” journalist and author Robert Fieseler discusses writing historical fiction through a literary lens with his new book, American Scare. The post Writing Literary Nonfiction With Robert Fieseler appeared first on Writer's Digest. Continue reading at Writer's Digest
[ Writer's Digest | 2025-06-17 19:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Leigh Claire La Berge’s memoir looks back at her stint as a consultant for a Fortune 500 company at the turn of the millennium: “Is this how companies are put together?” Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2025-06-16 13:29:35 UTC ]
More news stories like this
These must-read new historical fiction books from 2025 cross genres, time periods, and settings. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2025-06-13 11:30:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Kelly Ramsey fought California's first gigafire as a member of a Hotshot crew in the state. Her new memoir chronicles her experiences on that blaze — and other major conflagrations. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2025-06-13 10:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Taylor Jenkins Reid’s Atmosphere sits atop our hardcover fiction list. Plus Molly Jong-Fast’s staggering new memoir explains How to Lose Your Mother, and our children’s fiction list welcomes several new YA releases. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2025-06-13 04:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Don’t have time to read every summer reading list? Emily Temple did it for you. Here’s our ultimate summer reading list. | Lit Hub Reading Lists Hanif Abdurraqib looks at the value of breaking down decorum (and the power of unexpected humor). | Lit Hub Memoir Lisa Pratta on exposing corruption... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2025-06-12 10:30:29 UTC ]
More news stories like this
These books show a Golden Age, the harsh realities of the Dutch colonies, and the resistance fighters of World War II Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2025-06-11 12:30:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Geoff Dyer's memoir about growing up in the U.K. during the '70s bursts with working-class pride. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2025-06-09 10:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Raynor Winn’s bestselling memoir ‘The Salt Path,’ which has now been made into a film, explores a centuries-old tradition of healing along the southwest coast. Moth Winn was diagnosed with a terminal illness at the age of 53 and in the same week he and his wife, Raynor, lost their home. As the... Continue reading at Fast Company
[ Fast Company | 2025-06-07 08:30:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
A sapphic opposites-attract romance, a memoir on grief, witches in the Orkney Islands, and more of today's best book deals Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2025-06-05 16:39:23 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Anelise Chen’s hybrid memoir starts with an ingenious typo: Clam down, Chen’s mother texts her as she copes with her divorce, and poof!, the protagonist becomes a clam, determined to learn everything about her species and kin. Though its namesake is a sedentary bottom feeder, Clam Down... Continue reading at Electric Literature
[ Electric Literature | 2025-06-05 11:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Even the First Lady wanted to party. In her memoir Becoming, Michelle Obama describes the night in June 2015 following the announcement of the opinion in Obergefell v. Hodges, the Supreme Court case legalizing same-sex marriage across the United States. Increasingly “desperate to join the... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2025-06-05 08:58:08 UTC ]
More news stories like this
The main character here learns that her ancestral home was once a part of a kingdom—where her ancestor was queen. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2025-06-04 12:30:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Jam-pack your summer reading with these great new historical fiction books coming out in June. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2025-06-04 12:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Toni Morrison's time as an editor at Random House, modern Indian recipes, a new memoir by a Palestinian poet, and more. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2025-06-04 11:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
The former prime minister, who led New Zealand through the pandemic, has published a memoir arguing for more empathy in politics. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2025-06-03 14:35:35 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Memoir Nation: Weekly Inspiration for Writers is an extension of the Memoir Nation community hosted by Brooke Warner and Grant Faulkner, two friends and colleagues who bring a community-minded sensibility to the writing journey. Originally launched as Write-minded in 2018, this is a weekly... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2025-06-02 08:00:53 UTC ]
More news stories like this
Author Christine Kalafus shares her thoughts on writing with immediacy in memoir, including the three-step blueprint she used for hers. The post Writing With Immediacy in Memoir appeared first on Writer's Digest. Continue reading at Writer's Digest
[ Writer's Digest | 2025-06-01 19:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
'Daisy Jones and the Six' author Taylor Jenkins Reid's new novel and Molly Jong-Fast's memoir about her famous mother are among the notable books hitting shelves this month. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2025-06-01 10:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this
In the memoir “How to Lose Your Mother,” Molly Jong-Fast recalls a tumultuous upbringing as the only child of the feminist writer Erica Jong. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2025-05-31 12:18:33 UTC ]
More news stories like this