Israel in Translation

Host Marcela Sulak reads from Alex Epstein's story "Death in Pajamas," which appears in the Tel Aviv Noir anthology, edited by Etgar Keret and Assaf Gavron, and translated by Yardenne Greenspan. The story begins:

"Death wore a leather jacket over blue pajamas. He opened the door and came in. Without a word, he sat at the counter facing King George Street. It was 7:24 in the morning. I’d just opened up shop and made myself an espresso. To really wake up, you have to blow on a mirror. That’s exactly what I was about to do when Death came in."

Epstein was born in St. Petersburg (called Leningrad at the time) in 1971 and moved to Israel when he was eight years old. He is the author of four collections of short stories and three novels; his work has been widely translated. He’s also won the Israel Prime Minister’s Prize for Literature.

Text:Alex Epstein, “Death in Pajamas,” Tel Aviv Noir edited by Etgar Keret and Assaf Gavron, translated by Yardenne Greenspan, Akashic Books, 2014.

Music:Ziknei Tsfat - HaShachenAssaf Amdursky - 15 DakotRockfour - Khor BaLevanaAviv Geffen & Beri Sacharov - Sof HaOlam

Host Marcela Sulak reads from Alex Epstein's story "Death in Pajamas," which appears in the Tel Aviv Noir anthology, edited by Etgar Keret and Assaf Gavron, and translated by Yardenne Greenspan. The story begins:

"Death wore a leather jacket over blue pajamas. He opened the door and came in. Without a word, he sat at the counter facing King George Street. It was 7:24 in the morning. I’d just opened up shop and made myself an espresso. To really wake up, you have to blow on a mirror. That’s exactly what I was about to do when Death came in."

Epstein was born in St. Petersburg (called Leningrad at the time) in 1971 and moved to Israel when he was eight years old. He is the author of four collections of short stories and three novels; his work has been widely translated. He’s also won the Israel Prime Minister’s Prize for Literature.

Text:
Alex Epstein, “Death in Pajamas,” Tel Aviv Noir edited by Etgar Keret and Assaf Gavron, translated by Yardenne Greenspan, Akashic Books, 2014.

Music:
Ziknei Tsfat - HaShachen
Assaf Amdursky - 15 Dakot
Rockfour - Khor BaLevana
Aviv Geffen & Beri Sacharov - Sof HaOlam

Ayana Erdal was born to Polish parents who had immigrated to Israel from Paraguay and Istanbul. Today, host Marcela Sulak reads some of Erdal's poetry concerned with family life, translated by Lisa Katz and Rebecca Gillis:

"Abandoned dishes pile up in the sink,and lines of ants wake up to resume their march across the floorsand the distance between my son laying his head on the table and my handis like a slice of bread."

Winner of the 2005 Israeli President’s Prize in Literature, Erdal studied comparative literature at Hebrew University, and teaches at the Max Rayne Hand in Hand Bilingual (Arabic-Hebrew) school in Jerusalem. She has published two collections of poetry.

Text:Poetry International Rotterdam

Music:All tracks by Thomas Newman from the "Revolutionary Road" OSTSpeaking Of Production ControlSimple Clean LinesRevolutionary Road (End Title)The Bright Young Man

Ayana Erdal was born to Polish parents who had immigrated to Israel from Paraguay and Istanbul. Today, host Marcela Sulak reads some of Erdal's poetry concerned with family life, translated by Lisa Katz and Rebecca Gillis:

"Abandoned dishes pile up in the sink,
and lines of ants wake up to resume their march across the floors
and the distance between my son laying his head on the table and my hand
is like a slice of bread."

Winner of the 2005 Israeli President’s Prize in Literature, Erdal studied comparative literature at Hebrew University, and teaches at the Max Rayne Hand in Hand Bilingual (Arabic-Hebrew) school in Jerusalem. She has published two collections of poetry.

Text:
Poetry International Rotterdam

Music:
All tracks by Thomas Newman from the "Revolutionary Road" OST
Speaking Of Production Control
Simple Clean Lines
Revolutionary Road (End Title)
The Bright Young Man

In our first podcast of 2016, host Marcela Sulak reads the poetry of Israel Pincas:

"And the heat that once was in me became a liquid that froze:

A dirty block of ice,Halley’s Comet,An evil omen, they said,A rare visitor in our skies,A tourist in the Solar System,A subject of wonderOnce every few years."

Born in Sofia, Bulgaria in 1935, Pincas lost his father at the age of six and immigrated to Mandate Palestine with his mother in 1944. He began publishing poetry in 1951, and is the recipient of the Bernstein Prize, the Prime Minister's Prize and, most recently, the prestigious Israel Prize for Literature (2005). He now lives in Tel Aviv.

Text:Poetry International Rotterdam

Music:Bulgarian State Radio & Television Female Vocal Choir - Galina Durmushliiska Prochu Se Moma ManolkaBorodin Quartet - Shostakovitch Quartet No.10Philip Glass - The American Four Seasons (Violin Concerto No.2 prologue and movement 1)

In our first podcast of 2016, host Marcela Sulak reads the poetry of Israel Pincas:

"And the heat that once was in me became a liquid that froze:

A dirty block of ice,
Halley’s Comet,
An evil omen, they said,
A rare visitor in our skies,
A tourist in the Solar System,
A subject of wonder
Once every few years."

Born in Sofia, Bulgaria in 1935, Pincas lost his father at the age of six and immigrated to Mandate Palestine with his mother in 1944. He began publishing poetry in 1951, and is the recipient of the Bernstein Prize, the Prime Minister's Prize and, most recently, the prestigious Israel Prize for Literature (2005). He now lives in Tel Aviv.

Text:
Poetry International Rotterdam

Music:
Bulgarian State Radio & Television Female Vocal Choir - Galina Durmushliiska Prochu Se Moma Manolka
Borodin Quartet - Shostakovitch Quartet No.10
Philip Glass - The American Four Seasons (Violin Concerto No.2 prologue and movement 1)

In our last podcast of 2015, host Marcela Sulak reads the poetry of Hagit Grossman:

"Once I was a Palaeolithic painter, a sensual hunterplundering the earth, living from hand to mouth,drawing at one end of the cave, all my worries ordinary.I was faithful to nature, transmitting pure and honest beauty,my drawings of movement were snapshots. "

Grossman was born in Rishon LeZion in 1976, and now lives in Tel Aviv. She studied photography at Camera Obscura, theatre at Beit Zvi, painting at the Arts Academy, and literature at Tel Aviv University. Painting has clearly influenced her poetics.

Text:Time Train: Several translations by Jonathan DayanPoetry International Rotterdam

Music:Tesha - Bathe In WhiteL.B.T - Live Beat Tape Vol. 1 (Full Power)Ninet - Child

In our last podcast of 2015, host Marcela Sulak reads the poetry of Hagit Grossman:

"Once I was a Palaeolithic painter, a sensual hunter
plundering the earth, living from hand to mouth,
drawing at one end of the cave, all my worries ordinary.
I was faithful to nature, transmitting pure and honest beauty,
my drawings of movement were snapshots. "

Grossman was born in Rishon LeZion in 1976, and now lives in Tel Aviv. She studied photography at Camera Obscura, theatre at Beit Zvi, painting at the Arts Academy, and literature at Tel Aviv University. Painting has clearly influenced her poetics.

Text:
Time Train: Several translations by Jonathan Dayan
Poetry International Rotterdam

Music:
Tesha - Bathe In White
L.B.T - Live Beat Tape Vol. 1 (Full Power)
Ninet - Child

This week’s podcast is in honor of the novelist Amir Gutfreund, who died four weeks ago at the age of 52. Host Marcela Sulak reads the opening of his first novel, Our Holocaust, a colorful description of the narrator's Grandpa Lolek:

"He usually burst into our world in his 1970 Vauxhall, a moribund chassis of protestations upon which only he could impose life. Always wearing a tie, always smoking and dressed in colorful grandeur, he would emerge from the Vauxhall as if he were Kaiser Franz Joself out to wave at the masses from his balcony. Within minutes he would be sitting at the table drinking tea, eating whatever cake he was served, and smoking a cigarette."

Gutfreund was born in Haifa to Holocaust survivors. He earned an MA in applied mathematics from the Technion in Haifa, and went on to serve as an officer in the air force doing mathematical research for 20 years. He retired with the rank of Lt. Colonel.

Text:Our Holocaust. Amir Gutfreund (2001). Translated by Jessica Cohen. AmazonCrossing, 2006.

Further reading:The World A Moment Later. Amir Gutfreund (2005). Translated by Jessica Cohen. AmazonCrossing, 2011.

Music:Mieczysław Fogg - Odpukaj PanFajga Jofe - Abduł Bey

This week’s podcast is in honor of the novelist Amir Gutfreund, who died four weeks ago at the age of 52. Host Marcela Sulak reads the opening of his first novel, Our Holocaust, a colorful description of the narrator's Grandpa Lolek:

"He usually burst into our world in his 1970 Vauxhall, a moribund chassis of protestations upon which only he could impose life. Always wearing a tie, always smoking and dressed in colorful grandeur, he would emerge from the Vauxhall as if he were Kaiser Franz Joself out to wave at the masses from his balcony. Within minutes he would be sitting at the table drinking tea, eating whatever cake he was served, and smoking a cigarette."

Gutfreund was born in Haifa to Holocaust survivors. He earned an MA in applied mathematics from the Technion in Haifa, and went on to serve as an officer in the air force doing mathematical research for 20 years. He retired with the rank of Lt. Colonel.

Text:
Our Holocaust. Amir Gutfreund (2001). Translated by Jessica Cohen. AmazonCrossing, 2006.

Further reading:
The World A Moment Later. Amir Gutfreund (2005). Translated by Jessica Cohen. AmazonCrossing, 2011.

Music:
Mieczysław Fogg - Odpukaj Pan
Fajga Jofe - Abduł Bey