by Dara Horn
First published 2021
Dara Horn examines a troubling pattern in her writing career. Publications repeatedly ask her to cover topics about Jewish deaths and historical tragedies, never about contemporary Jewish life. Horn investigates this phenomenon through a series of essays that span from Anne Frank's global appeal to the Auschwitz traveling exhibition. She explores the myth about name changes at Ellis Island, the commercialization of Jewish history in Harbin, China, and the overlooked story of Varian Fry. Horn connects her research to personal moments, like explaining Shylock to her child or confronting swastikas at her children's school. She argues that society's obsession with Jewish suffering actually enables modern antisemitism. The book contends that public reverence for past Jewish tragedies masks a deeper discomfort with living Jewish communities and their ongoing experiences.
Genres: history, essays, biography-memoir, antisemitism, academic, cultural-studies
Vibes: dark, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: investigative-journalism
Setting: Auschwitz, China, Ellis Island, Harbin
Period: 20th-century, 21st-century
237 pages · Hardcover · W. W. Norton & Company