Apply to host reading groups on religion, assimilation, identity and immigration with the Yiddish Book Center

Join public library workers from around the country at the Yiddish Book Center in Amherst, Massachusetts, to explore how Yiddish literature can provide a springboard for powerful conversations about religion, assimilation, identity, and immigration.

Through its Public Libraries Program, the Yiddish Book Center provides grants, resources and training to public libraries across the country to host reading groups. Since 2020, 50 libraries have participated in the program.

Today, the Center opens applications for its newest Public Libraries Program theme: Between Two Worlds: Exploring Jewish Culture and Religion through Yiddish Literature.

Learn more and apply to be part of the Between Two Worlds cohort by July 14, 2025. Forty public libraries will be selected. Libraries that have participated in past themes of the Public Libraries Program are eligible to apply.

Following an in-person training onsite at the Yiddish Book Center campus in western Massachusetts, selected libraries will organize a reading group to discuss three books of Yiddish literature in translation. Each library will also choose a fourth book that relates to their community. The Yiddish titles include:

• Tevye the Dairyman by Sholem Aleichem (translated by Aliza Shevrin)
• The Zelmenyaners: A Family Saga by Moyshe Kulbak (translated by Hillel Halkin)
• A Jewish Refugee in New York by Kadya Molodowsky (translated by Anita Norich)

“Yiddish is more than just a language—it’s an entry point to a rich, vibrant culture that speaks to universal experiences,” says Susan Bronson, executive director of the Yiddish Book Center. “Even in communities without a large Jewish population, Yiddish literature and culture offer public librarians a unique way to engage patrons with relatable narratives and public programming. The Public Libraries Program also provides a national cohort of peers to exchange ideas and connect with fellow library workers.”

Selected libraries will receive:

• Travel, lodging and meal expenses paid for one reading group facilitator from each library to attend a three-day workshop at the Yiddish Book Center in Amherst, Massachusetts, from Saturday, November 2, to Tuesday, November 4, 2025.
• A curated selection of three Yiddish literature titles (17 copies each) in translation for book club discussion.
• Funding to purchase copies of a fourth book that speaks to their community (participating libraries will purchase these books themselves and can submit for reimbursement or invoice the Yiddish Book Center directly).
• Reading guides and other educational materials related to the Yiddish titles, as well as access to virtual programs (e.g., webinars; pre-recorded interviews; live book talks with authors, translators, and scholars; virtual field trips) offered by the Yiddish Book Center.
• Funding of up to $2,000 to hold events, invite speakers or enhance library programming related to the titles.
• Eligibility to host a small, specially curated traveling exhibit on the history of Yiddish and its role in Jewish life, religion and culture. The exhibit will consist of 4-6 double-sided, full-color panels that will be designed to fit a variety of differently sized and configured spaces. (More details will be shared as they are available).
• Access to an online community of fellow librarians and facilitation for discussion, connection, advice and collaboration.

Please visit the Yiddish Book Center website for more details on what selected libraries will receive.

Applications for the 2025 – 2026 cohort are now open until July 14, 2025. Successful applicants will be notified in August.

This Public Libraries Program theme is made possible thanks to a generous grant from the Lilly Endowment, Inc.

About The Yiddish Book Center

The Yiddish Book Center is a nonprofit organization working to recover, celebrate, and regenerate Yiddish and modern Jewish literature and culture. The million-plus books recovered by the Center since its founding in 1980 represent Jews’ first sustained literary and cultural encounter with the modern world.

Over the past 45 years the Yiddish Book Center has launched a wide range of bibliographic, educational, and cultural programs to share the treasures it has found with the wider world. In 2014, the organization was awarded a National Medal for Museums and Libraries in a White House ceremony. Learn more at yiddishbookcenter.org.

About the American Library Association

The American Library Association (ALA) is the only non-partisan, nonprofit organization dedicated entirely to America's libraries and library professionals. For almost 150 years, ALA has provided resources to inspire library and information professionals to transform their communities through essential programs and services. The ALA serves academic, public, school, government, and special libraries, advocating for the profession and the library's role in enhancing learning and ensuring access to information for all. For more information, visit www.ala.org.