by Alison Bass | Mar 10, 2025 | Uncategorized
I stumbled across Rachel of Esra, the Jewish mistress to King Alfonso VIII and Spain’s Esther for a brief shining moment, when I was doing research about Toledo in the 12th century for my novel, Rebecca of Ivanhoe. She was known as Rahel La Fermosa, Rachel the...
by Alison Bass | Feb 25, 2025 | Uncategorized
Good news: I’ve received a scholarship for my novel, Rebecca of Ivanhoe, from the Jewish Book Council, which helps coordinate book talks for Jewish authors throughout North America. Hopefully, this will mean more events where I can spread the word about my...
by Alison Bass | Dec 30, 2024 | Uncategorized
Like many Jews, I had heard of Maimonides, the 12th century Jewish philosopher and physician who was one of the most prolific scholars of the Torah (the first five books of the Hebrew Bible). But it wasn’t until I visited Spain in 2010 and found a small statute...
by Alison Bass | Dec 18, 2024 | Uncategorized
I promised I would add more historical fiction titles to my list of great reads this year, so here they are, in no particular order: Shanghai by Joseph Kanon. This page-turning novel focuses on a little-told story: Jews who escaped Nazi Germany and ended up in...
by Alison Bass | Dec 15, 2024 | Uncategorized
The parents of comedian Conan O’Brien’s parents died last week within three days of each other, and there was some comment on Facebook about the fact they had been married for 66 years and that Conan’s Dad, a physician, was a jester himself. But...
