Alla Gelfand's notes

We are all from Berdichev by origin

  "Why do our grandparents like reading books by Peretz?" I asked my granny's friend once when I saw a very familiar green book in her hands.

  "We are all from Berdichev by origin. And you too" she smiled.

  That time I was young, however, I understood she did not mean the name of the city but something more than that. Just recently I completely realized the meaning of this expression.

  The green book is waiting for the right moment in every family concerned with Yiddish culture. I am not sure whether 150th anniversary of Itskhok Leibush Peretz won back his old readers and attracted the new ones, or it was the achievement of those people who arranged the meeting dedicated to the jubilee of the famous writer and public figure. In fact it was joint meeting organized by Yiddish Club and Hesed Polina. Mikhail Iosifovich Zafran the Head of Yiddish Club told about the biography of Peretz, very well educated and remarkable person with different talents, brilliant author of short stories.

  Even those people who have been reading since their childhood discovered new things for themselves because that evening his stories were accompanied by Klezmer music. It was obvious that Peretz's prose is in harmony with the music.

  Take a book written by Peretz from the bookshelf, open your heart, open your mind and answer the question: we are you from by origin?