The People of the Book in the World of Books is a Russian bimonthly publication for serious readers with Jewish interests. Our English website includes only the summaries of the published articles. To access the complete text of them, please visit the Russian version of this website.


71

December 2007

This issue of the magazine includes:


• Memoirs: On the History of Jewish Press in Russia


The magazine publishes the final fragment from the memoirs of the prominent Jewish historian and journalist Saul Ginsburg (1866–1940). The memoirs deal with the history of Der fraynd—the first Yiddish daily in Russia.


Problem: About the “Jewish” Origin of the Ossetian People


This ironic article analyzes some recently published books that try to create new myths about the early Jewish presence in the Caucasus. The reviewer finds many similarities between these books and publications of some Russian nationalist writers who try to prove that “the history of world culture starts with Russian history.”


Synopses: New Books from Russia’s Publishers


Brief reviews present a collection of archival documents about the pogroms during the Civil War in Russia, 1918–1922, as well as Russian translations of two novels by controversial Israeli author Gilad Atzmon, noted for his criticism of Israel and Zionism.


Publishers and Publishing Projects: Russian-American Center for Biblical and Jewish Studies (Moscow)


The Russian-American Center for Biblical and Jewish Studies was established at the Russian State University for the Humanities in 1996. The University’s American partner became Project Judaica—a joint program of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America and the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research (since 2003, YIVO does not participate in the program). The major publishing project of the Center is a series of archival guides, “Jewish Documentary Sources in the Archives of Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus.” The Center also publishes monographs, textbooks, and methodological materials on various aspects of Jewish history and culture. Brief information about the Center’s activities is followed by the complete bibliography of its publications.


Jewish Calendar of Significant Dates: January–February 2008


Bibliography: 55 New Books