With Rake in Hand: Memoirs of a Yiddish Poet (Judaic Traditions in Literature, Music, and Art) - Softcover

Rolnik, Joseph

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0815634781 ISBN 13: 9780815634782

Publisher: Syracuse University Press, 2016

Synopsis

Joseph Rolnik is widely considered one of the most prominent of the New York Yiddish poets associated with Di Yunge, an avant-garde literary group that formed in the early twentieth century. In his moving and evocative memoir, Rolnik recalls his childhood growing up in a small town in Belarus and his exhilarating yet arduous experiences as an impoverished Yiddish poet living in New York. Working in garment factories by day and writing poetry by night, he became one of the most published and influential writers of the Yiddish literary scene. Unfolding in a series of brief sketches, poems, and vignettes rather than consistent narrative, Rolnik’s memoir is imbued with the poet’s rich, sensuous language, which vividly describes the sounds and images of his life. Marcus’s elegant translation, along with his introduction situating Rolnik’s poetry in its literary historical context, gives readers a fascinating account of this under-appreciated literary treasure.

About this title

Book Description:

Yiddish poet Joseph Rolnik’s vivid memoir, recalling his childhood in a small village in Belarus and his experience as a Jewish immigrant in New York.

About the Author:

Joseph Rolnik’s (1879–1955) poetry was published in newspapers, journals, and several poetry collections.

Gerald Marcus is a painter and printmaker who grew up surrounded by Yiddish-speaking relatives and friends. He is the translator of From Our Springtime: Literary Memoirs and Portraits of Yiddish New York by Reuben Iceland.

About this edition

• Publisher: Syracuse University Press
• Publication date: 2016
• ISBN 10: 0815634781
• ISBN 13: 9780815634782
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 312