From the moment the doors opened, the atmosphere was electric, brimming with expectation and bonhomie. What a festival this fifth Jewish Literary Festival turned out to be!
From the kickoff virtual event on Thursday 24 April with Jonathan Freedland, UK Guardian columnist, podcaster and author of Sunday Times bestseller The Escape Artist speaking to our own Gus Silber to the opening sessions on the day, attendees were engaged and inspired.
Freedland revealed the story behind his book about Rudolf Vrba: the man who had escaped from Auschwitz in 1942, aged 19, to warn the world about what was happening a Auschwitz – a story at first denied. Amazingly Freedland was himself 19 when he saw the nine-hour documentary Shoah where Rudolf had recounted his journey. This experience stayed with Freedland. Some three decades later the story rose again. The book slowly emerged during Covid. As Freedland said: ‘We have to keep history alive – we read the past to understand the present’ – perhaps never more so than today.
With that as an opening the choice of 25 sessions on the day was fairly daunting. Added to which was a plenary with UK comedian David Baddiel, author of several children’s books, and the seminal Jews Don’t Count and, more recently, My Family.
Tech expert Arthur Goldstuck raised the point that, since humans are not born with intelligence, all intelligence should be thought of as artificial. And so, we should define AI as ‘Augmented Intelligence,’ rather than ‘Artificial Intelligence’. Goldstuck also painted a fascinating picture of the potential developments we’ll see in the future that will enhance our lives and improve the quality of so many things.
Moving into the forensic pathologist’s world is one that perhaps holds a macabre fascination for some. Ryan Blumenthal gave an entertaining and revealing talk around his book Risking Life for Death: lessons for the living from the autopsy table. As one of few forensic pathologists in the country, he related that 12 000 to 15 000 ‘gourmet’ autopsies out of the many unnatural deaths are often where small, unexpected things can lead to large discoveries. His incisive and irreverent telling of what he sees, the lessons learnt, the information gathered and the risks faced daily by him and his colleagues was an eye-opener.
Historical fiction, particularly revolving around the fate of the Jews in European countries is a fascinating subject and Richard Zimler’s series around the Portuguese Zarco family of Sephardic Jews has gained worldwide recognition. His virtual interview with Philip Todres about the latest novel in the series, Incandescent Threads was an opportunity to get to know the back story. In it Zimler deals with the silence of trauma – Holocaust survivors who cannot speak of the horror, the psychological effect on family and survivor guilt. An illuminating session with a very passionate author.
Another virtual session involved renowned ENT specialist Peter Friedland, former head of ENT at the Donald Gordon Medical Centre in Johannesburg, recounting his memories of Madiba, as described in his book What I learned from Madiba. Friedland served as Mandela’s doctor, specifically treating his hearing problems. His book, in which he recounts many of the fascinating conversations he had with Mandela, is unique in that it is one of the few books written about Mandela’s life after he had been President.
In the early 1900s Johannesburg was the centre of the movie industry, vying with Hollywood – it was Hollywood on the Veld. Author Ted Botha spoke about the life of movie mogul IW Schlesinger. A man of mystery, little had been written about him but Botha’s exposure to his early movies encouraged him to go on an epic search. What emerged was an entrepreneurial man who moved from the USA to South Africa. As a movie mogul, he rescued struggling theatres from certain ruin, created African Theatres, produced epic movies with sometimes 4 000 extras. Sadly, little of that legacy remains.
Publishing your own book is a brave business and, in ‘The Story I had to write’ Beryl Eichenberger hosted four female authors who had self-published. It’s an arduous journey but it was obvious why Angela Rothbart-Miller (The Space Between the Stars), Irene Berman (Call me Ms Sugar), Joelle Searle (Odette) and Debbi Rozowsky (Having to Step Up) went that route. Their passion in relating the triggers to their stories, the journey to seeing their books on the shelves, showed the tenacity of these women and the value of their stories.
All in all, this year’s JLF was again a tour de force: a day that for many ended with them feeling enlightened, uplifted and mentally stimulated. ●
Jewish Literary Festival http://www.jewishliteraryfestival.co.za
- JUNE 2025: Read the June 2025 Digital Edition in your browser as a Flipbook or a PDF.
- SUBSCRIBE: Subscribe to the Cape Jewish Chronicle for just R450/year (or R37.50/month debit order) and you will remain connected. Simply email us at subscriptions@ctjc.co.za and click here for payment info.
- ADVERTISE in the Cape Jewish Chronicle and on this website. Contact Lynette on 021 464 6736 or email advertising@ctjc.co.za.
