I didn’t post last week because I’ve been chained to my computer doing the final [or at least semifinal] revision of Book III. My new editor at Plume went over every line of the 650-page manuscript, making numerous changes and comments. The vast majority of these were improvements or suggestions on how the story could be strengthened, and I was quite impressed by her insight and effort. On Book I and II, I relied on my own free-lance editor, Beth Lieberman, and some friends, so it was impressive to see how two professionals could work in synergy, as opposed to ‘too many chefs spoil the broth.’
Just an aside, all 3 editors at Plume who worked on Book II ended up pregnant during the project, including two who never returned from maternity leaves [which is possibly why they didn’t put in so much energy]. I don’t know if this is coincidental or not, but my current editor, who is single, assures me that a baby is not in her immediate future.
Last, but not least, after one rejected endeavor, I’ve approved the cover for Book III. The first attempt was more biblical looking than medieval, but more important, the portrait already appeared on another book geared to my audience, “Before the Apple.” Since I actually know the author, Naomi Harris Rosenblatt, I didn’t want her thinking I ‘stole’ her cover. I can’t share RACHEL’s cover image yet, but I can tell you that the artist is Titian, another Italian Renaissance great, and his subject is actually a Jewish princess [that may give you enough info to find the original]. If you do, I warn you that, like the previous covers, the original image’s hair and eye color was changed. Here’s the description I gave Plume’s art department was: Rachel is drop-dead beautiful; with dark curly hair, creamy skin and [important] emerald green eyes. Imagine Elizabeth Taylor, only with curls and green eyes. She is not shy and not innocent.
Baruch Dayan Emet. I am reeling from the shock of learning that one of my mentors, a leading authority on Jewish-Christian relations in the 11th and 12th centuries, an expert on Rashi’s anti-Christian polemics, died last weekend of pancreatic cancer at the age of 63 [one year older than my husband]. As if that weren’t bad enough, his funeral was yesterday in Los Angeles, but I only learned about it today. I studied with Michael at several URJ Summer Kallah's in Santa Cruz, and he was an incredible teacher who first showed me that Jewish medieval history didn't have to be boring.
Here’s a short obituary from The Medievalist blog:
Rabbi Michael A. Signer, Abrams Professor of Jewish Thought and Culture at the University of Notre Dame, died Saturday (Jan. 10). He was 63 years old. "We are saddened at the loss of our dear colleague Michael Signer," said John Cavadini, chair of theology at Notre Dame. "His leading work in Christian-Jewish dialogue and his scholarship in medieval biblical exegesis made him a beloved teacher and scholar whose loss will be keenly felt not only by his colleagues and students in our theology department, but by the theological community worldwide."
A member of Notre Dame's faculty since 1992, Rabbi Signer was a professor of Jewish history at Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion in Los Angeles from 1974 to 1991.
What an untimely death. And for me personally, a great sadness that Michael will never get to read the final book of my “Rashi’s Daughters” trilogy, the one that actually utilized his vast research.
Hurray! Plume has announced the official pub date for Book III – RACHEL as August 25.
Here’s what their fall catalogue will say about the book. First the headline:
The dramatic final book in the epic historical trilogy about the lives and loves of the three daughters of the great medieval Talmud scholar Rashi.
Then comes the description:
Rachel is the youngest and by far the most beautiful daughter of medieval Jewish scholar, Salomon ben Isaac, or “Rashi.” Her father’s favorite and adored by her new husband, Eliezer, Rachel’s life looks to be one filled with peaceful scholarship, laughter, and love. But events beyond her control will soon threaten everything she holds dear as the marauders of the First Crusade massacre nearly the entire Jewish population of Germany, and her beloved father suffers a stroke. Eliezer wants their family to move to the safety of Spain, but Rachel is determined to stay in France and help her family save the Troyes yeshiva, the only remnant of the great centers of Jewish learning in Europe. As she did so effectively in Joheved and Miriam, Maggie Anton vividly brings to life the world of eleventh-century France and a remarkable Jewish woman of dignity, passion, beauty, and strength.
It’s amazing how Google Alerts work, or not. For those who haven't heard of this service, subscribers receive an email from Google whenever the words they've chosen show up somewhere on the web. I have alerts out for both "Maggie Anton" and "Rashi's Daughters," and I usually get several 'hits' a week. Some are fairly mundane, like an update on Amazon, but occasionally I discover folks blogging about me and my books.
Two years ago, my husband and I spent New Year’s Eve in Israel as part of a 3-week book tour. In advance of my speaking at Pardes Institute for Jewish Studies , Orit Arfa, a reporter from the Jerusalem Post, interviewed me for almost an hour. I checked the paper every day until we left Israel on Jan 9, but never saw Orit’s article, so I assumed it didn’t get published. By the time I discovered that the issue with my interview came out a week after we got home [two weeks after I spoke at Pardes], it was impossible to obtain a copy.
You can imagine my surprise when that Jan 2007 interview prompted a Google Alert last week! Why it took so long is one of those mysteries of cyberspace, but here’s the link [scroll down to find the entry for Jan 19]