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Revolutionary Yiddishland: A History of Jewish Radicalism by Sylvie Klingberg, Alain Brossat
outcolder's review against another edition
4.0
A very moving tapestry of Marxian movements in the Pale of Settlement from the revolutionary interwar years through to the death of Stalin. Any book covering Jewish history in this period, you know it's not going to have a happy end but the twist here is that these people, betrayed by the parties that claimed to represent their ideals, wind up in Israel where they are forced to accept the existence of a state whose formation they had always opposed. This thread runs throughout the book, that the majority of politically active Yiddish speakers were actually anti-Zionist and the book also makes the point that the majority of Zionists were anti-Yiddish culture. It's not all black-and-white of course.
Others have taken this book to task for its unfortunate subtitle. This is in no way a comprehensive history of Jewish Radicalism. Anarchism is briefly mentioned in the chapter on the Spanish Civil War, and even less in the section about the Russian Revolution or the Russian Civil War. Especially grievous is the complete absence of the Makhno movement. Surely there were Yiddish speakers there.
However, this book is mainly about putting into context the interviews the authors made of radicals who were living in Israel in the 1980s. For Yiddish-speaking anarchists, one would have to interview radicals in New York City and London. It is also easy to imagine that many people who learned about this project did not want to be interviewed. They would not want their activist past to draw attention from Israeli authorities. After surviving Nazis and Stalinist purges, their paranoia might be well-founded. Who knows what creepy spooks might be lurking in Tel Aviv?
This book is a good sampler, I think, of subjects that are probably better addressed in more in-depth works. Jews in the Spanish Civil War is the subject of the excellent [b:Schalom Libertad! : Juden im spanischen Bürgerkrieg|1534475|Schalom Libertad! Juden im spanischen Bürgerkrieg|Arno Lustiger|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1184852126l/1534475._SY75_.jpg|1526580] and there are many works out there about Jewish history in Russia and the Soviet Union. Conflicts and cooperation between Jewish and Arab workers in British Palestine has also seen a few studies.
From the introduction, I got the impression that the authors returned to their French publisher with reams of interview transcriptions and then were told to junk most of that and give a lot of context instead. I would like to see a new edition with the full text of the interviews, surely in the intervening 40 years since the first edition there is no one living who would be endangered by any more detail. It's the snippets of the interviews that really give this book its life. There are quite a few anecdotes here that are just incredible, and often bring a whole situation to small point where everything seems clear.
The authors are sympathetic to Marxism but view Stalin and his era with clear vision. Trotsky and Lenin however could have stood some more criticism here. For me, the most egregious moment is when they off-handedly state that Romania and Israel have a good relationship which is quite a way to gloss over 'communist' Romania's ploy of charging thousands for Jewish exit visas to Israel that Zionist organizations were happy to pay, making Jews Romania's number one export in the 1980s. "A good relationship" between two criminal enterprises.
There was so much injustice during that wicked time and the people the authors interviewed were just caught up trying to make things better. This book turned the flame up on the angry coals in me. I would recommend it, just with the caveats I explained in this review.
Others have taken this book to task for its unfortunate subtitle. This is in no way a comprehensive history of Jewish Radicalism. Anarchism is briefly mentioned in the chapter on the Spanish Civil War, and even less in the section about the Russian Revolution or the Russian Civil War. Especially grievous is the complete absence of the Makhno movement. Surely there were Yiddish speakers there.
However, this book is mainly about putting into context the interviews the authors made of radicals who were living in Israel in the 1980s. For Yiddish-speaking anarchists, one would have to interview radicals in New York City and London. It is also easy to imagine that many people who learned about this project did not want to be interviewed. They would not want their activist past to draw attention from Israeli authorities. After surviving Nazis and Stalinist purges, their paranoia might be well-founded. Who knows what creepy spooks might be lurking in Tel Aviv?
This book is a good sampler, I think, of subjects that are probably better addressed in more in-depth works. Jews in the Spanish Civil War is the subject of the excellent [b:Schalom Libertad! : Juden im spanischen Bürgerkrieg|1534475|Schalom Libertad! Juden im spanischen Bürgerkrieg|Arno Lustiger|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1184852126l/1534475._SY75_.jpg|1526580] and there are many works out there about Jewish history in Russia and the Soviet Union. Conflicts and cooperation between Jewish and Arab workers in British Palestine has also seen a few studies.
From the introduction, I got the impression that the authors returned to their French publisher with reams of interview transcriptions and then were told to junk most of that and give a lot of context instead. I would like to see a new edition with the full text of the interviews, surely in the intervening 40 years since the first edition there is no one living who would be endangered by any more detail. It's the snippets of the interviews that really give this book its life. There are quite a few anecdotes here that are just incredible, and often bring a whole situation to small point where everything seems clear.
The authors are sympathetic to Marxism but view Stalin and his era with clear vision. Trotsky and Lenin however could have stood some more criticism here. For me, the most egregious moment is when they off-handedly state that Romania and Israel have a good relationship which is quite a way to gloss over 'communist' Romania's ploy of charging thousands for Jewish exit visas to Israel that Zionist organizations were happy to pay, making Jews Romania's number one export in the 1980s. "A good relationship" between two criminal enterprises.
There was so much injustice during that wicked time and the people the authors interviewed were just caught up trying to make things better. This book turned the flame up on the angry coals in me. I would recommend it, just with the caveats I explained in this review.
kw1312's review against another edition
5.0
Phenomenal book, absolutely riveting testimonials! Must read for people interested in labor history!
razzberry_pi's review
slow-paced
3.25
Goes through various periods and places of Jewish leftist history from 1910s - 1950s, with specific empasis on interwar Poland, Spanish Civil War, Jewish Resistance fighters, and both pre/post Nakba Palestine.
Definitely a product of its time/authors to an extent (1980s) and the writing style can be somewhat heavy handed and awkward at times, potentially because of the translation. Overall, gave some interesting insights into pieces if Jewish history I didn't know about before. Definitely recommend reading in a group/book club as some parts can be hard to parse on your own.
Definitely a product of its time/authors to an extent (1980s) and the writing style can be somewhat heavy handed and awkward at times, potentially because of the translation. Overall, gave some interesting insights into pieces if Jewish history I didn't know about before. Definitely recommend reading in a group/book club as some parts can be hard to parse on your own.
Content Warnings
Moderate: War, Genocide, Antisemitism, and Violence
finalgirlfall's review
4.0
heartbreaking. wish there was more of the oral histories and less of the authors. trotskyist bent.
mdaalder's review against another edition
5.0
Knowing the context of this book is important to understanding its frame of reference: it was written by a pair of socialists in France in the 1980s. The new Verso edition is the first time the book has been translated into English, and it makes a fascinating read for me, a leftist Jew. The book is largely segmented by chapter, and although by paying careful attention you can trace the stories of specific individuals from the 1910s to the 1960s, it still reads best as a set of case studies.
These include the stories of three groups of leftist Jews before the Second World War, Poale Zion (the socialist Zionist group), the Bund (the anti-Zionist Jewish worker's organization), and the communists and socialists, mostly Mensheviks and Bolsheviks. They also include the Russian Revolution, and the changes that wracked both the Jews in the Soviet Union over the subsequent three decades and the Jews of eastern Europe. Of course, Revolutionary Yiddishland also makes sure to include the essential tales of the Jews who helped fight the Spanish Civil War, and participated in the anti-Nazi resistances in France, Poland, and elsewhere.
Accompanying all of these stories are true gems, amazing anecdotes about, for example, the Yiddish athletes who attended the anti-fascist Olympics in Barcelona in 1936, and then immediately joined the Spanish athletes on the barricades when Franco threw his putsch.
The book also makes an important point of recentering the focus of Jewish studies on the Jewish working class of eastern Europe, which far outnumbered the bourgeois Jews throughout Europe. The true story of the Jews of Europe, from the streets of St. Petersburg to the barricades of Barcelona to the mountains of the Alsace to the concentration camps of Poland, is the story of revolutionary Jewish workers, and Revolutionary Yiddishland tells that story.
These include the stories of three groups of leftist Jews before the Second World War, Poale Zion (the socialist Zionist group), the Bund (the anti-Zionist Jewish worker's organization), and the communists and socialists, mostly Mensheviks and Bolsheviks. They also include the Russian Revolution, and the changes that wracked both the Jews in the Soviet Union over the subsequent three decades and the Jews of eastern Europe. Of course, Revolutionary Yiddishland also makes sure to include the essential tales of the Jews who helped fight the Spanish Civil War, and participated in the anti-Nazi resistances in France, Poland, and elsewhere.
Accompanying all of these stories are true gems, amazing anecdotes about, for example, the Yiddish athletes who attended the anti-fascist Olympics in Barcelona in 1936, and then immediately joined the Spanish athletes on the barricades when Franco threw his putsch.
The book also makes an important point of recentering the focus of Jewish studies on the Jewish working class of eastern Europe, which far outnumbered the bourgeois Jews throughout Europe. The true story of the Jews of Europe, from the streets of St. Petersburg to the barricades of Barcelona to the mountains of the Alsace to the concentration camps of Poland, is the story of revolutionary Jewish workers, and Revolutionary Yiddishland tells that story.
ajkhn's review against another edition
3.0
This book definitely shows its age at this point, but it was a really educational look at European Jewish 20th C. history. It was very rewarding to not just see Zionist tales of Jewishness, but how several streams of Jewish identity wove together in this time and space.
The actual reading wasn't very great — it's a bunch of memoirs pieced together, essentially. And the writer is a little quick to defend Stalinism and some of the more reactionary elements of the communist project. I am incredibly glad this book exists and that I read it, even if I didn't enjoy reading every bit of it.
The actual reading wasn't very great — it's a bunch of memoirs pieced together, essentially. And the writer is a little quick to defend Stalinism and some of the more reactionary elements of the communist project. I am incredibly glad this book exists and that I read it, even if I didn't enjoy reading every bit of it.
yaarya's review against another edition
3.0
v mixed, wish it was more of the people speaking rather than the authors, it was interesting to see their perspectives, it's such a shame that the jewish nation in eastern europe no longer exists, it seemed so culturally interesting, plus yiddish is a beautiful language.
poale zion members shouldnt have been in this at all i think.
authors are hilariously anti-stalin at points lol, they really grasp at straws because of their bias. the last 2 chapters (esp the last one) are baaad
poale zion members shouldnt have been in this at all i think.
authors are hilariously anti-stalin at points lol, they really grasp at straws because of their bias. the last 2 chapters (esp the last one) are baaad
0hn0myt0rah's review against another edition
4.0
A very useful overview of the revolutionary currents of Yiddishland from 1910s-1940s and a reflection of Zionism and the reality of the modern Israeli state