Willy - by I J Singer (Paperback)

About the Book

Willy presents an intergenerational combative relationship which has been lifted wholesale from Europe to America, with the same contentious features in play. The dual narrative of father and son, deriving from literalist observance and heterodox dissent respectively, obtains ...

Book Synopsis

Willy presents an intergenerational combative relationship which has been lifted wholesale from Europe to America, with the same contentious features in play. The dual narrative of father and son, deriving from literalist observance and heterodox dissent respectively, obtains with equal force on both sides of the Atlantic.

Review Quotes

Willy is a small gem of a novel by a master story-teller, lovingly and compellingly translated into English by Joshua Fogel and Linda Lipsky, with an informative introduction by Linda Lipsky. Largely overlooked among Singer's work, Willy is an engrossing and ironic parable of Jewish immigration to America in the early 20th century, its costs and advantages, as filtered through the consciousness of a Jewish farmer, who, no matter how hard he tries to escape his Jewishness, nor how far he travels, cannot shake the tug of the Old Country and the demands of his family. A valuable addition to those of Singer's works already translated into English.

This capacious novella depicts a world in transition seen through the lens of family, social and religious traditions: the reader follows Willy and his constellation from Jewish Shtetl to farm and city in America, all drawn in vivid strokes. The novella's wide-ranging, masterful introduction as well as the faithful and fluent translation--an echo of the original Yiddish--further add to its assured place in the canon of Jewish literature.

About the Author

Joshua A. Fogel is Canada research chair and professor of history at York University. His work encompasses the cultural dimension of Sino-Japanese relations. His scholarly interests also include translation as a practice and Yiddish biography.

Linda/Leye Lipsky teaches literature in the Department of Humanities at York University. She has written critical appreciations of Avrom Liessin, Beyle Schaechter-Gottesman, others. She has a specific interest in the interrelations of literature and philosophy, the crosscurrents of poetry and the visual arts.