Just Say Nu

Just Say Nu
Author: Michael Wex
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Total Pages: 332
Release: 2007-10-16
Genre: Reference
ISBN: 1429919728

A cross between Henry Beard's Latin for All Occasions and Ben Schott's Schott's Original Miscellany, JUST SAY NU is a practical guide to using Yiddish words and expressions in day-to-day situations. Along with enough grammar to enable readers to put together a comprehensible sentence and avoid embarrassing mistakes, Wex also explains the five most useful Yiddish words–shoyn, nu, epes, takeh,and nebakh–what they mean, how and when to use them, and how they can be used to conduct an entire conversation without anybody ever suspecting that the reader doesn't have the vaguest idea of what anyone is actually saying. Readers will learn how to shmooze their way through such activities as meeting and greeting; eating and drinking; praising and finding fault; maintaining personal hygiene; going to the doctor; driving; parenting; getting horoscopes; committing crimes; going to singles bars; having sex; talking politics and talking trash. Now that Stephen Colbert, a Catholic from South Carolina and host of the "Colbert Report," is using Yiddish to wish viewers a bright and happy Chanukah, people have finally started to realize that there's nothing in the world that can't be improved by translating it into Yiddish. Wex's JUST SAY NU is the book that's going to show them how.

Born to Kvetch LP

Born to Kvetch LP
Author: Michael Wex
Publisher: Harper Collins
Total Pages: 450
Release: 2007-11-20
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 0061340847

A delightful excursion through the Yiddish language, the culture it defines and serves, and the fine art of complaint Throughout history, Jews around the world have had plenty of reasons to lament. And for a thousand years, they've had the perfect language for it. Rich in color, expressiveness, and complexity, Yiddish has proven incredibly useful and durable. Its wonderful phrases and idioms impeccably reflect the mind-set that has enabled the Jews of Europe to survive a millennium of unrelenting persecution . . . and enables them to kvetch about it! Michael Wex—professor, scholar, translator, novelist, and performer—takes a serious yet unceasingly fun and funny look at this remarkable kvetch-full tongue that has both shaped and has been shaped by those who speak it. Featuring chapters on curse words, food, sex, and even death, he allows his lively wit and scholarship to roam freely from Sholem Aleichem to Chaucer to Elvis. Perhaps only a khokhem be-layle (a fool, literally a "sage at night," when there's no one around to see) would care to pass up this endearing and enriching treasure trove of linguistics, sociology, history, and folklore—an intriguing appreciation of a unique and enduring language and an equally fascinating culture.

How to Be a Mentsh (And Not a Shmuck)

How to Be a Mentsh (And Not a Shmuck)
Author: Michael Wex
Publisher: Knopf Canada
Total Pages: 226
Release: 2009-09-08
Genre: Self-Help
ISBN: 0307373185

Wise and hilarious, this is a book about happiness, your own and that of others. The principles outlined here will work for anyone, Jewish or not, who makes the effort to put them into practice. Drawing on the “wisdom of the ages,” bestselling author Michael Wex shows readers how to figure out the right thing to do in any situation. First he describes the two words “mentsh” and “shmuck.” The former refers most often to an adult who has learned to think of others first; the latter refers to someone who thinks he or she is someone special. In this book, you will learn how to keep yourself from believing you are someone special. You will learn how not to be a shmuck.

Drek!

Drek!
Author: Yetta Emmes
Publisher: Penguin
Total Pages: 116
Release: 1998-12-01
Genre: Humor
ISBN: 9780452278998

One doesn't have to be Jewish to recognize the words that have made their way into every fold of popular language: Chutzpah, Mensch, Tokhes, Mishmash, Nudge, Shtick, Schmaltzy, Schlep, Icky, and so on. Then there are phrases whose meaning and syntax are borrowed from Yiddish: "bite your tongue", "drop dead", "enough already", and "excuse the expression". This hilarious, concise guide includes chapters on the Basic Descriptions of People (the good, the bad, the ugly, and the goofy), the Fine Art of Cursing, Juicy Words and Phrases, Exclamations and Exasperations, and the Fine Art of Blessing.

The Dictionary of Popular Yiddish Words, Phrases, and Proverbs

The Dictionary of Popular Yiddish Words, Phrases, and Proverbs
Author: Fred Kogos
Publisher: Citadel Press
Total Pages: 396
Release: 1997
Genre: Foreign Language Study
ISBN: 9780806518855

This fascinating, useful, and funny collection of proverbs, curses, maxims, and ribald expressions will teach readers all they ever wanted to know about this remarkable language.

Molly's Pilgrim

Molly's Pilgrim
Author: Barbara Cohen
Publisher: HarperCollins
Total Pages: 48
Release: 2021-03-02
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
ISBN: 0063138077

A modern Thanksgiving classic about an immigrant girl who comes to identify with the story of the Pilgrims, as she seeks religious freedom and a home in a new land. As Molly nears her first Thanksgiving in the New World, she doesn't find much to be thankful for. Her classmates giggle at her Yiddish accent and make fun of her unfamiliarity with American ways. Molly's embarassed when her mother helps with a class Thanksgiving project by making a little doll that looks more like a Russian refugee than a New England Pilgrim. But the tiny modern-day pilgrim just might help Molly to find a place for herself in America. The touching story tells how recent immigrant Molly leads her third-grade class to discover that it takes all kinds of pilgrims to make a Thanksgiving. Originally published in 1983, Molly's Pilgrim inspired the 1986 Academy Award-winning live-action short film.

Shlepping the Exile

Shlepping the Exile
Author: Michael Wex
Publisher: Macmillan
Total Pages: 224
Release: 2014-02-18
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 0312364636

"A different version of this book was published in Canada in 2010 by Mosaic Press"--Title page verso.

Set Phasers to Teach!

Set Phasers to Teach!
Author: Stefan Rabitsch
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 242
Release: 2018-07-10
Genre: Education
ISBN: 3319737767

For 50 years, Star Trek has been an inspiration to its fans around the world, helping them to dream of a better future. This inspiration has entered our culture and helped to shape much of the technology of the early 21st Century. The contributors to this volume are researchers and teachers in a wide variety of disciplines; from Astrophysics to Ethnology, from English and History to Medicine and Video Games, and from American Studies to the study of Collective Computing Systems. What the authors have in common is that some version of Star Trek has inspired them, not only in their dreams of what may be, but in the ways in which they work - and teach others to work - here in the real world. Introduced with references to Star Trek films and television shows, and illustrated with original cartoons, each of the 15 chapters included in this volume provides insights into research and teaching in this range of academic fields.

What We Talk About When We Talk About Anne Frank

What We Talk About When We Talk About Anne Frank
Author: Nathan Englander
Publisher: Vintage
Total Pages: 226
Release: 2012-02-07
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 0307958736

From the Pulitzer-nominated, bestselling author of For the Relief of Unbearable Urges, eight powerful stories, dazzling in their display of language and imagination. “Showcases Mr. Englander’s extraordinary gifts as a writer.” —Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times From the title story, a provocative portrait of two marriages inspired by Raymond Carver’s masterpiece, to “Peep Show” and “How We Avenged the Blums,” two stories that return to the author’s classic themes of sexual longing and ingenuity in the face of adversity, these stories affirm Nathan Englander’s place at the very forefront of contemporary American fiction.