Response
to
Bel Kaufman Captivates Audience at Marymount Manhattan
College
To
the Editor:
I am assuming
that Bel Kaufman is still alive, and I am extremely eager
to ask her two questions about her grandfather: did he ever
write or say who his literary influences were? If he did,
whom did he mention? Were any of them writers in English?
Did Shalom Aleichem ever learn to speak and read English,
and if so, did he do so before he came to New York City?
If so, when?
Arnie
Perlstein
Weston,
FL
Dear
Arnie,
Indeed,
I am very much alive. To respond: My grandfather Shalom
Aleichem knew no English, nor was he in this country long
enough to learn it. He was influenced by Mendela Moher-Sjorim,
H. Bialick, and others of his contemporaries in Yiddish
and Hebrew, as well as by the Russian classics he had read
and admired: Tolstoy, Gogol, Chechov (whose short stories
he loved)—but it is not easy to trace his influences
because he was “sui generis,” unique. I refer
you in English to my aunt’s biography of him: My
Father, Shalom Aleichem by Marie Goldberg-Waif. Sorry I
cannot help you more.
Bel Kaufman
Response
to
Wheelchair Charities A Superstar
To
the Editor:
A
lot of us could only wish to have love like Hank has for
people and community. Growing up without a father, he was
the next best thing. And I learned how to play the game
of basketball. Those experiences have taught me a lot in
my life. The only man I know from where I’m from
who has never turned his back on the community. Always
there with a hand-up, not a hand-out. The other day an
old B-ball mate of mine sent me a list from hoopsville
and I was on it. After all the years, I made the list.
I would not have done it if I hadn’t gotten the fundamentals
from “my baby” Hank. Haven’t seen you
in a long time, but I often think of you and I hope you’re
doing well, my friend. I send big love.
Bernard
Fowler
Studio
City, CA
Response
to
Quirky Kids: Understanding & Helping Your Child Who
Doesn’t Fit In
To
the Editor:
Thank
you, thank you, thank you to the authors of this book.
I am looking forward to reading it come September. I totally
agree with the philosophy you are putting forth: My precious
kid is not a label! He is a very different, fascinating,
smart, socially inept, and difficult little boy! I cannot
stand the way some of my neighbors and some of the educators
treat him as if he were retarded because of his PDD-NOS
label. I told people about it in the beginning, and sometimes
I wish I never had done that! The general public pretty
much thinks “autism” and pictures a person rocking
back and forth in a corner. I know they are just ignorant,
and I hope this book will educate many. Yes, I agree with
you that we have to stop “over-pathologizing” these
quirky kids, and be encouraged to enjoy their uniqueness.
I think your book is a step in the right direction to help
us do that.
Alison
Brom
Leominster, MA