YIVO and Bloomsbury Announce the Release of Hasidic Warsaw: Reb Zalmen and the Aleksander Shtibl
(New York, NY) – The YIVO Institute for Jewish Research, in partnership with Bloomsbury Academic, is delighted to announce the publication of Hasidic Warsaw: Reb Zalmen and the Aleksander Shtibl, the fifth volume in the acclaimed Yiddish Voices series. Available August 20, 2026, this volume presents the first English translation of Yechiel Hofer's beloved work, Reb Zalmen. It offers an intimate portrait of Jewish life in prewar Poland and is translated and introduced by anthropologist Jonathan Boyarin.
Centering on the character Reb Zalmen, a resident of the Aleksander Hasidim's shtibl (prayer house), Hasidic Warsaw offers a portrait of the lives of those who gathered there to pray, eat, study, and debate in early twentieth-century Warsaw. While it remains uncertain whether Reb Zalmen was based on a real person, the work vividly captures everyday life in the Aleksander shtibl and the vibrant community that surrounded it.
Hasidic Warsaw provides a lively ethnographic portrait of Polish Hasidism in the early twentieth century. It reveals what it was like to experience "Gentile" Warsaw from within the Jewish quarter as individuals grappled with new waves of doubt and modernity. It observes the rivalries and alliances between Hasidic courts and their followers and illuminates the communities’ daily struggle against poverty as they strive to transcend hunger and material hardship.
Jonathan Boyarin's introduction orients the reader within the changing demographic and political landscape of Polish Hasidim in the early 20th century. It highlights the distinct facets of Hasidic life that shape the chapters of Hasidic Warsaw, while also prompting reflection on the interplay between fiction and memory.
Boyarin notes that Hofer, whose work is presented in English here for the first time, was a childhood friend of Abraham Joshua Heschel, and so the book also illuminates Heschel’s background. “This book is a funny, poignant, intimate, and precise portrait of everyday Hasidic life in pre-war Warsaw,” he adds.
“Hofer's Hasidic Warsaw is both a fascinating read and a rich historical source,” said Marcin Wodziński, the author of Hasidism: Key Questions (2018). “Jonathan Boyarin brings to us a captivating example of Yiddish literature in his masterful English translation and a rich historical source on a little-known aspect of the religious life of Eastern European Jews. Beware! Once you start reading, you might not be able to put it down!”
The book is currently available for pre-order at the YIVO Store.
The Yiddish Voices series, made possible through the generous support from the family of Harriet R. Yassky, brings the richness of Yiddish literature to contemporary readers through expertly translated Yiddish works spanning a wide range of authors, genres, and subject matters. Published in partnership with the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research and Bloomsbury Academic, each volume presents a rich and engaging English translation accompanied by a thoughtfully paired introduction by a leading historian. Superbly curated by Alyssa Quint and Elissa Bemporad, the series showcases first-time translations of enduring Yiddish texts—including memoirs, novels, and plays—whose topics and themes have powerful contemporary resonance.
For more information contact:
Shelly Freeman
Chief of Staff
YIVO
The YIVO Institute for Jewish Research is dedicated to the preservation and study of the history and culture of Eastern European Jewry worldwide. For over a century, YIVO has pioneered new forms of Jewish scholarship, research, education, and cultural expression. Our public programs and exhibitions, as well as online and on-site courses, extend our global outreach and enable us to share our vast resources. The YIVO Archives contains more than 24 million original items, and YIVO’s Library has over 400,000 volumes—the single largest resource for such study in the world. yivo.org / yivo.org/the-whole-story