A.E. Smith

2 months ago | jewishreviewofbooks.com | Matti Friedman |Akiva Schick |A.E. Smith

In JRB’s Winter 2024 issue, I published an essay looking at the great Hebrew memoir of the Yom Kippur War, Adjusting Sights, through the lens of the new war in which we Israelis now find ourselves.

Jan 14, 2025 | jewishreviewofbooks.com | Mark Glanville |Akiva Schick |Arun Viswanath |A.E. Smith

“Going to Bristol City next week, Mark?” Spunky asked casually. I told him I couldn’t. “Why’s that? Going on holiday?”“Won’t be around for a while.”“Ah. Going inside?”He’d given me my out. I nodded. “What for?”“Manslaughter.”“Oh. Sorry to hear that mate.

Sep 30, 2024 | jewishreviewofbooks.com | Gary Saul Morson |Akiva Schick |A.E. Smith

Yale University Press 264 pp., $28 The Russian terrorist Vera Figner, a leader of the group that assassinated Tsar Alexander II in 1881, recalled how she lost respect for her father when he replied to a serious question: “I do not know.” This answer filled the child with “burning shame.” All important questions, Figner knew, have clear answers, and all reasonable people accept them. Figner didn’t weigh pros and cons.