In the footsteps of the Gibsonian Male, and the Shakshooka recipe

Written by Corinna Hasofferett
Published March 08, 2004

1.

Since the blogosphere rages now with this crucial question, What chapter and from which Testament —
mind you, in my humble opinion there is only one Testament, the other is plain Bible —
So the question is, from where will the Gibsonian Male pick the theme of his next grand opera?

Forgive my long introduction, but I'm kind of shy.
OK. Let me say just this:

On this twice Holly day (Purim & Woman's Day), I cannot think of a better selection than the good old Meggilatt Esther!

Megillat Esther, for the information of the uninitiated, is the true love story not yet told but re-told each Purim - of King Ahashverosh the decadently benevolent tyrant, Femme Fatal Queen Esther and her scheming pimp of an uncle Mordechay, and how one woman's body saved the Jewish people, including me and Joseph, from another anti-Christ (namely Hamman the Wicked), and how this sweet man - who only wanted all Jews to be killed and Jewdaism annihilated - how much fun it was when he was carried throughout the streets of Shooshan the Capital City with a big ad all around his belly and behind, and how he never shed a tear, not even when left hanging, except this endlessly repeated mantra: "I only followed God's Orders to the letter."

Yet why give away the secret, Why not make myself this film? Hey, who volunteers for what role? Don't worry about the money - -

Wait, wait, somebody is knocking on my door. Should I open it? Is he the bearer of the first million or another man whose love I have not returned?
Should I hide the kitchen knife under the mattress?

Sorry it was just a messenger with a bunch of flowers, I won't touch it with a fingernail - it might conceal Jesus knows what thorns.

You see, I too can be a film director. What is the film industry if not a fun way to make money via the Dolorosa of manipulating primeval instincts, tear ducts, immortal stereotypes?

2.
Yes, Purim! I never thought there could be a better day to celebrate Woman's Day.
Purim "is good enough and will suffice", as Robert Frost said on Ice.

As a proof, "let me share with you" (a North American euphemism) yesterday's miracles in Tel-Aviv:

Everywhere, but everywhere I was greeted by men in black attire wearing colorful wigs on their heads:
"Come to hear the Megillat Esther being read!"
Usually only men are invited to a minyan of prayer.
Said I in genuine astonishment. "Is it to glorify Woman's Day, or are you Reform?
Anyway I don't fancy Ahashverosh, Too fat."
He ran to search for other women.
In vain.
Of course, who comes to a mall to hear the Megillah?

page 1 | 2
Unknown Territory This is one of the more unusual books to have been published recently in Israel. It's also a book that's hard to categorize. It's not a standard novel, not really a book of memoirs, not actually a work of history - but it is a book that offers a different, surprising take on Israel's first years. A loving and painful take, to resort to a cliche. Corinna Hasofferett, embarked on this literary journey in the wake of two friends who were with her in a youth movement and were killed in Israel's cross-border reprisal raids. For years she collected testimonies of people who knew them, taping and editing. She interweaves the testimonies, almost without intervention on her part. The result is a narrative flow that revives the period without any prettification or mythologizing. She jokingly describes the book, "B'Eretz Lo Yadati" ("Unknown Territory," in English), as a Fighters Talk - referring to the famous book ("Siah Lohamim") in which soldiers described their experiences in the 1967 Six-Day War - but with no censorship. There are a few interesting revelations in the book, apart from the story of Yehuda Kan Dror. For example, confessions about the killing of captives, or a surprising confession from a member of Unit 101 - the precursor of the Paratroops, Unit 101 was established by Ariel Sharon in the early 1950s - that the unit did not have any fatalities because it operated almost exclusively against civilian targets. But concentrating on these aspects of the book could be misleading. It offers a far broader picture of a society that was still licking its wounds from the War of Independence, the picture of a country in which the signs of the previous Palestinian inhabitants were still visible, a picture of people whose memory of the Holocaust is not something they learned in school. This is Corinna's sixth book, and she has published it herself - both for economic reasons and also to avoid having an outside eye that might cut sensitive passages. So it's not easy to find the book in bookstores. But it's worth making the effort. Corinna's books, in Hebrew, are available for purchase directly from her Hebrew blog: http://www.notes.co.il/corinna/1823.asp
Keep reading for information and comments on this article, and add some feedback of your own!
In the footsteps of the Gibsonian Male, and the Shakshooka recipe
Published: March 08, 2004
Type:
Section: Video
Filed Under: Books: Horror, Video: Adventure, Video: Romantic, Video: Suspense and Mystery
Writer: Corinna Hasofferett
Corinna Hasofferett's BC Writer page
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Comments

#1 — March 8, 2004 @ 14:30PM — Jamie

oyyyyyyyy mordechai`s the good guy...cheming pimp of an uncle!!! pfffft!

WE R QPR

#2 — March 8, 2004 @ 17:20PM — Eric Olsen

Classic post Corinna! Funny, sly, edu-ma-cational, compelling. You are something.

#3 — March 9, 2004 @ 02:11AM — Corinna Hasofferett [URL]

Thanks Jamie, thanks Eric. Listen, I'm just a native. "WE R QPR"?? "edu-ma-cational"??
May I have it Hebrew, per favore?

#4 — March 10, 2004 @ 14:57PM — sheri

QPR stands for Queens Park Rangers, a British soccer team. Jamie is a friend of mine, I sent him the link to this site. He is british, now living in NY,and also happens to be Jewish :0)

#5 — March 11, 2004 @ 20:01PM — Corinna Hasofferett [URL]

and I also happen to be ignorant in such important issues as soccer, but I can use my imagination...

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