About this ebook
A "fascinating and enlightening" collection of comics and writings that explore the Yiddish language and the Jewish experience ( The Miami Herald).
We hear words like nosh, schlep, and schmutz, but how did they come to pepper American English? In Yiddishkeit, Harvey Pekar and Paul Buhle trace the far-reaching influences of Yiddish from medieval Europe to the tenements of New York's Lower East Side. This comics anthology contains original stories by such notable writers and artists as Barry Deutsch, Peter Kuper, Spain Rodriguez, and Sharon Rudahl. Through illustrations, comics art, and a full-length play, four major themes are explored: culture, performance, assimilation, and the revival of the language.
"The book is about what Neal Gabler in his introduction labels 'Jewish sensibility.'...he writes: 'You really can't define Yiddishkeit neatly in words or pictures. You sort of have to feel it by wading into it.' The book does this with gusto." — The New York Times
"As colorful, bawdy, and charming as the culture it seeks to represent." — Print magazine
"Brimming with the charm and flavor of its subject...a genuinely compelling, scholarly comics experience." — Publishers Weekly
"A book that truly informs about Jewish culture and, in the process, challenges readers to pick apart their own vocabulary." — Chicago Tribune
"A postvernacular tour de force." — The Forward
"With a loving eye Pekar and Buhle extract moments and personalities from Yiddish history." — Hadassah
"Gorgeous comix-style portraits of Yiddish writers."–– Tablet
"Yiddishkeit has managed to survive, if just barely...because [it] is an essential part of both the Jewish and the human experience." —Neal Gabler, author of An Empire of Their Own: How the Jews Invented Hollywood, from his introduction
"A scrumptious smorgasbord of comics, essays, and illustrations...concentrated tastes, with historical context, of Yiddish theater, literature, characters and culture." — Heeb magazine
We hear words like nosh, schlep, and schmutz, but how did they come to pepper American English? In Yiddishkeit, Harvey Pekar and Paul Buhle trace the far-reaching influences of Yiddish from medieval Europe to the tenements of New York's Lower East Side. This comics anthology contains original stories by such notable writers and artists as Barry Deutsch, Peter Kuper, Spain Rodriguez, and Sharon Rudahl. Through illustrations, comics art, and a full-length play, four major themes are explored: culture, performance, assimilation, and the revival of the language.
"The book is about what Neal Gabler in his introduction labels 'Jewish sensibility.'...he writes: 'You really can't define Yiddishkeit neatly in words or pictures. You sort of have to feel it by wading into it.' The book does this with gusto." — The New York Times
"As colorful, bawdy, and charming as the culture it seeks to represent." — Print magazine
"Brimming with the charm and flavor of its subject...a genuinely compelling, scholarly comics experience." — Publishers Weekly
"A book that truly informs about Jewish culture and, in the process, challenges readers to pick apart their own vocabulary." — Chicago Tribune
"A postvernacular tour de force." — The Forward
"With a loving eye Pekar and Buhle extract moments and personalities from Yiddish history." — Hadassah
"Gorgeous comix-style portraits of Yiddish writers."–– Tablet
"Yiddishkeit has managed to survive, if just barely...because [it] is an essential part of both the Jewish and the human experience." —Neal Gabler, author of An Empire of Their Own: How the Jews Invented Hollywood, from his introduction
"A scrumptious smorgasbord of comics, essays, and illustrations...concentrated tastes, with historical context, of Yiddish theater, literature, characters and culture." — Heeb magazine
A "fascinating and enlightening" collection of comics and writings that explore the Yiddish language and the Jewish experience ( The Miami Herald).
We hear words like nosh, schlep, and schmutz, but how did they come to pepper American English? In Yiddishkeit, Harvey Pekar and Paul Buhle trace th...
Discover more
Ratings and reviews
1 review
About the author
Paul Buhle, retired from Brown University, has written and edited 42 books, including the award-winning Art of Harvey Kurtzman, Jews and American Comics, and the three-volume Jews and American Popular Culture. He lives in Madison, Wisconsin. Harvey Pekar (1939–2010) is best known for his autobiographical comic book series American Splendor and Our Cancer Year, which was made into an Academy Award–nominated film starring Paul Giamatti in 2003.
Paul Buhle, retired from Brown University, has written and edited 42 books, including the award-winning Art of Harvey Kurtzman, Jews and American Comics, and the three-volume Jews and American Popular Culture. He lives in Madison, Wisconsin. Harvey Pekar (1939–2010) is best known for his autobiog...
Rate this ebook
Tell us what you think.
Reading information
Smartphones and tablets
Install the Google Play Books app for Android and iPad/iPhone. It syncs automatically with your account and allows you to read online or offline wherever you are.
Laptops and computers
You can listen to audiobooks purchased on Google Play using your computer's web browser.
eReaders and other devices
To read on e-ink devices like Kobo eReaders, you'll need to download a file and transfer it to your device. Follow the detailed Help Center instructions to transfer the files to supported eReaders.
