Make Your Limit the Sky!: A Conversation for Adults About Yiddish Children's Literature

"Make Your Limit the Sky!" brings Dr. Miriam Udel, author of the newly released Modern Jewish Worldmaking Through Yiddish Children's Literature, into lively conversation with novelist Rachel Barenbaum. They will discuss the history and priorities of the Yiddish children's canon and consider what the stories and poems of fifty to a hundred years ago can offer contemporary Jewish communities.

Miriam Udel is associate professor of German Studies and Judith London Evans Director of the Tam Institute for Jewish Studies at Emory University. She holds an AB in Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations and a PhD in Comparative Literature, both from Harvard University and was ordained in 2019 at Yeshivat Maharat.

Udel is the author of "Never Better!: The Modern Jewish Picaresque" (University of Michigan Press), winner of the 2017 National Jewish Book Award in Modern Jewish Thought and Experience. She is the editor and translator of "Honey on the Page: A Treasury of Yiddish Children’s Literature" (NYU Press, 2020), winner of the Judaica Reference Award from the Association of Jewish Libraries. Udel’s translation of Chaver Paver’s 1935 story collection "Labzik: Tales of a Clever Pup" will appear in 2026 with SUNY Press. This October, Princeton published her critical study Modern Jewish Worldmaking Through Yiddish Children’s Literature.

Her research looks to children’s literature and culture as a powerful force for political formation and a resource for the intergenerational transmission of culture, values, and ideology.

Who are these classes for?

Our classes are for everyone—whether you’re brand new to the topic or have been engaging with it for years, we encourage participation from people of all backgrounds, identities, and experience levels. Unless otherwise noted, no prior knowledge or experience is needed. Not sure if a class is for you? Email us at Learning@Lehr.haus!

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