New edition of Zeek, two flavors
November 02, 2007
The new Zeek: A Jewish Journal of Thought and Culture is out! Actually, two new Zeeks are out: the print edition (Fall/Winter) and the online edition (November.)
The print edition is gorgeous. I can take no credit for its fabulousness (all I did was help proofread it), but I'm delighted to be holding it in my hands. The theme this time around is music, and the issue contains some really good work: a piece by Basya Schechter on "The Music of Sacred and Profane," two excellent articles on Jewish punk (Steven Beeber's "Oi to Oy: Is Hardcore Punk Suddenly Kosher?" and Sascha Gottschalk's marvelously-titled "My Life as a Jewish Hare Krishna Skinhead"), and a piece by Jay Michaelson on "The Redemptive Music of Sadness" which makes me want to listen to more Nick Drake.
You can subscribe here. (If you're already a subscriber, kindly consider giving a subscription as a gift for Chanukah, which begins in just over a month. I try not to go overboard with the whole December frenzy of consumerism, but I do like exchanging gifts at midwinter, and giving someone a subscription to Zeek is a great way to support interesting, thoughtful, occasionally edgy Jewish writing and art.)
The online edition this month is pretty terrific too. Among other things, it features my interview with Rabbi Morris Allen (one of the first and loudest voices arguing for a hechsher tzedek, a way of certifying kosher food that takes justice and ethics into account alongside ritual law; his blog is here) and Jay Michaelson's A BuJu Responds to Sam Harris which I've already forwarded to several friends. Oh, and three poems by Rodger Kamenetz. Go and read, and enjoy.