An original investigation into the reading strategies and uses of books by Jews in the Soviet era. In The Soviet Jewish Bookshelf, Marat Grinberg argues that in an environment where Judaism had been all but destroyed, and a public Jewish presence routinely delegitimized, reading uniquely provided many Soviet Jews with an entry to communal memory and identity. The bookshelf was both a depository of selective Jewish knowledge and often the only conspicuously Jewish presence in their homes. The typical Soviet Jewish bookshelf consisted of a few translated works from Hebrew and numerous translations from Yiddish and German as well as Russian books with both noticeable and subterranean Jewish content. Such volumes, officially published, and not intended solely for a Jewish audience, afforded an opportunity for Soviet Jews to indulge insubordinate feelings in a largely safe manner. Grinberg is interested in pinpointing and decoding the complex reading strategies and the specifically Jewish uses to which the books on the Soviet Jewish bookshelf were put. He reveals that not only Jews read them, but Jews read them in a specific way.

Boris Slutsky (1919-1986) is a major original fi gure of Russian poetry of the second half of the twentieth century whose oeuvre has remained unexplored and unstudied. The first scholarly study of the poet, Marat Grinberg's book substantially fills this critical lacuna in the current comprehension of Russian and Soviet literatures. Grinberg argues that Slutsky's body of work amounts to a Holy Writ of his times, daringly fusing biblical prooftexts and stylistics with the language of late Russian Modernism and Soviet newspeak.

Boris Slutsky (1919-1986) is a major original figure of Russian poetry of the second half of the twentieth century, whose oeuvre has remained unexplored and unstudied. The first scholarly study of the poet, Marat Grinberg's book substantially fills this critical lacuna in the current comprehension of Russian and Soviet literatures. Grinberg argues that Slutsky's body of work amounts to a Holy Writ of his times, which daringly fuses biblical prooftexts and stylistics with the language of late Russian Modernism and Soviet newspeak. The book is directed toward readers of Russian poetry and pan-Jewish poetic traditions, scholars of Soviet culture and history and the burgeoning field of Russian Jewish studies. Finally, it contributes to the general field of poetics and Modernism.

Although Woody Allen's films have received extensive attention from scholars and critics, no book has focused exclusively on Jewishness in his work, particularly that of the late 1990s and beyond. In this anthology, a distinguished group of contributors--whose work is richly contextualized in the fields of literature, philosophy, film, theater, and comedy--examine the schlemiel, Allen and women, the Jewish take on the "morality of murder," Allen's take on Hebrew scripture and Greek tragedy, his stage work, his cinematic treatment of food and dining, and what happens to "Jew York" when Woody takes his films out of New York City. Considered together, these essays delineate the intellectual, artistic, and moral development of one of cinema's most durable and controversial directors.

Jewish Fantasy Worldwide: Trends in Speculative Stories from Australia to Chile reaches beyond American fiction to reveal a spectrum of Jewish fantasy. The essays in this collection cover speculative works by Jewish artists and about Jewish characters from a broad range of national contexts, including post-Holocaust Europe, the Soviet Union, Chile, French Canada, and the Middle East. The authors consider various media including fiction, film, Youtube videos, and fan sites. For scholars and fans alike, this collection of essays will provide new perspectives on Jewish presences in speculative fiction around the world.