I read a lot of Israeli blogs in Hebrew and in English. I think I’ve mentioned that the two blogospheres are basically parallel worlds: they are concerned with different issues; and, with only a few exceptions, they are not aware of one another. For a long time, internet activist Hanan Cohen was the only Hebrew-language blogger who made an effort to bridge the gap. He created the aggregator, wrote an article about the Anglo-sphere for Maariv’s website, and performed various other unsung and under-appreciated acts of online community building. Despite all this, the Hebrew and Anglo spheres have mostly – with a few notable exceptions – continued to ignore one another.
For a long time, I particularly lamented the lack of blogs in English by native Hebrew speakers who had grown up in Israel. Recently, however, a few Sabras have started really interesting blogs. Below are three that I’ve been following and enjoying.
I mentioned Promised Land, by journalist Noam Sheizaf, in my previous post. His excellent three-part analysis of Maariv’s feature interview with Ben Zion Netanyahu, Bibi’s 99 year-old father, garnered a mention on Jeffrey Goldberg’s blog at the Atlantic website. Posts that I particularly liked include Prove that you’re alive – about his grandfather, a French Jew who survived the Holocaust, and Yad Vashem’s refusal to amend the entry that incorrectly lists him as having perished during the war; and How Israel is drifting away from the world.
Ami Kaufman, who once worked for Haaretz, is the Israeli-born son of American immigrants. He calls his fantastic blog Half & Half, because he is not quite sure where he belongs – in the West or the Levant. I recommend starting from the first post and reading forward; it’s a new blog, so it won’t take you long. And I promise you’ll enjoy every single entry.
Shachar Golan blogs about Israeli society, art and pop culture at FRGDR.com. He’s an art student with a great eye for idiosyncrasies – like the time he was offered kosher for Passover fried calamari at a restaurant in Rishon LeZion. (calamari is not kosher).
While we’re on the subject of bloggers with a rare perspective, may I commend to you The Goy’s Guide to Israel. Our goy is a Nigerian/Brit married to an Israeli woman. He calls their child “the small noisy one.” The goy is a marvelous writer; his posts are characterized by intelligence, humour and a rare combination of authentic caring and honest detachment about Israeli society. For an example of what I mean, check out Rhyming Life & Death, his observations on Memorial Day to Fallen Soldiers. Oh yeah, and he’s also really well read.
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