Memoir Writing Then and Now
Start Date: Tuesday, October 6, 2026
End Date: Tuesday, October 27, 2026
Memoir Writing Then and Now: Reading and Writing with Rokhl Feygenberg's The Winding Road
Tuesdays, 7-8:30 p.m. ET, October 6, 13, 20, and 27
Memoirs, autobiographical fiction, and other life-writing by Jewish women has a long tradition going back to the remarkable work of Glikl of Hameln, who wrote her memoirs in Yiddish 300 years ago. In this course participants will have the opportunity to develop their own practice of memoir writing in conversation with another remarkable Yiddish memoir written by a young woman at the turn of the 20th century. Rokhl Feygenberg wrote her memoir of her childhood in a Belarusian shtetl when she was still a teenager. This work is now available in English for the first time, translated by Tamara Helfer as The Winding Road. Two events in particular mark Feygenberg out for a life that will transcend her small town: her mother’s prolonged illness and her passion for reading. She would go on to become a journalist, translator, and successful woman of Hebrew and Yiddish letters.
Each week, we will read a section of the book and explore its themes in depth. We will then use those themes as prompts for our own memoir writing with weekly prompts on such topics as: the transformative power of genre fiction; how illness changes family dynamics; and the loneliness of being caught between tradition and freedom. Through the act of both reading and writing, we will discover not just the extraordinary life of Rokhl Feygenberg, but how much we share in common.
Upon registration, participants in the course will receive a 20% discount to purchase The Winding Road from the Yiddish Book Center Museum Store.
All sessions are held live via Zoom. Recordings will be available to all registrants.
ABOUT THE INSTRUCTOR
Rokhl Kafrissen is a journalist, teacher, and playwright and the winner of the prestigious 2022 Adrienne Cooper Dreaming in Yiddish prize.
COST
$100 for members; $125 for nonmembers. Join or renew your membership now to take advantage of the member discount. Then return here to continue the registration process. Registration closes September 29. This course is non-refundable.
CARD TO CULTURE:
The Yiddish Book Center is pleased to participate in the Card to Culture program, a collaboration between Mass Cultural Council and the Department of Transitional Assistance, the Women, Infants & Children (WIC) Nutrition Program, and the Massachusetts Health Connector, by extending discounts to EBT, WIC, and ConnectorCare health plan insurance cardholders. Cardholders may register at a reduced price of $50. Discount applies to cardholders only. For questions, please email [email protected].
The Yiddish Book Center is dedicated to making our educational programs as accessible as possible for all students. For questions about accessibility accommodations for this course, email Margaret at [email protected]
TICKET INFORMATION
