Emanuela Barasch Rubinstein, at The Blogs

Emanuela Barasch Rubinstein

Author of literary fiction and academic nonfiction

Jun 3, 2026, 9:09 PM

Years ago, I ran into a classmate whom I hadn’t seen for years. I asked her how she was, and she replied, “You won’t believe it—I gave birth a week ago.” I complimented her for her slim figure. She...

Dec 14, 2025, 5:13 PM

Germany and the Germans — Thomas Mann

On May 29th 1945, three weeks after the surrender of Nazi Germany but before the nuclear bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the world-famous German author Thomas Mann (1875-1955), Nobel Prize laureate in Literature, gave a lecture at the Library...

Nov 7, 2025, 1:31 PM

Earrings: Three Generations of Israeli Women

Grandma squinted to see better. She examined the earrings in the box meticulously, turning each one from side to side to see it from a different angle. Several times she picked up one of them and placed it against...

Oct 31, 2025, 5:32 PM

Demonstrations

On the struggle for democracy and the fear it might fail. A short story We demonstrated in the square. Sweating, excited, screaming, we gathered together, and cried out loud. A tremendous scream was emerging from the street. A blend of whispers,...

Sep 25, 2025, 10:21 PM

Yearning: A Short Story

Demonstration of Ethiopian residents in Tel-Aviv. Harvey Sapir via the PikiWiki.

Every Friday morning, an inner struggle materializes, as if it were taking place for the first time: Should Pnina leave Tel Aviv for two days, or call and offer excuses, which are always met with deep sighs? Travel to...

Sep 4, 2025, 7:36 AM

The Fabelmans: Jewish Self-Image

Unlike most of Steven Spielberg’s films, The Fabelmans has a marked autobiographical tone. The film closely mirrors Spielberg’s own childhood from the ages of 5 to 18. Key scenes in the movie are grounded in the life of his family,...

Aug 26, 2025, 7:52 AM

The Changing Israeli Self-Image

Each year on May 7th, my father would remind the entire family that it was the anniversary of Nazi Germany’s surrender. A slight smile would spread across his face, as if at that very moment the Nazi army had...

Nov 16, 2017, 11:25 PM

Second Generation — A Horse Walks into a Bar

The term “second generation,” for children of Holocaust survivors, has become inherent to Jewish identity, referring to those who did not themselves experience the Holocaust but whose lives have been shaped by the unbearable traumas suffered by their parents,...

Oct 22, 2017, 5:41 AM

On Zionism and gender – Sarah Thon

Many interesting and impressive women took part in the Zionist struggle, but only a small fraction of them found their way to history books. These are full not only with leaders and brave soldiers but also with some wheeler-dealers....

Sep 16, 2017, 4:09 PM

The Partisans Song – Misery and Hope

The dramatic historical events of World War II are extremely difficult to contain. The plentitude of films, documentaries, photos, and books on the subject often obstructs the desired transformation from pure academic knowledge to empathy with the victims of...

About Me

Emanuela Barasch Rubinstein is an author of fiction and academic nonfiction. Her work reflects a broad, interdisciplinary perspective. She is the author of Five Selves, Delivery, and Intimate Solitude, as well as studies on the cultural interpretation of the Holocaust. Her most recent book, Women Managers in American Popular Culture, was published by Routledge in July 2025.

Contact Me