Marianna D. Birnbaum's work delves into Hungarian and Central European literature and culture, drawing from her extensive tenure at the University of California, Los Angeles. As a professor emeritus, she continues to share her profound insights as a visiting professor in the Medieval Department at the Central European University. Her scholarship highlights the rich tapestry and intricate connections within the region's literary heritage. Readers will find her ability to illuminate both historical and contemporary voices of Central Europe particularly compelling.
The narrative captures a poignant moment between a parent and child as they navigate a silent communication. With the daughter eager to leave, she boldly displays a heartfelt message, seeking a connection through a simple gesture. The parent's reluctance to respond highlights a complex emotional landscape, suggesting themes of love, misunderstanding, and the struggle to connect. This brief encounter encapsulates the tension between desire for communication and the barriers that can exist within relationships.
The recognized cultural historian and researcher of the Middle Ages relates
about the gruesome year of 1944 in Hungary, as she has seen the events with
the eyes of a small Jewish girl.
The historical biography of a true Jewish heroine in her day, Gracia Mendes. Born in 1510 in Portugal, the book details this woman's extraordinary personality until her death in 1569 in Constantinople (today's Istanbul). Her life exemplified a perseverance by the Jewish culture to survive and triumph even in the worst of conditions. As a young girl, Gracia secretly married successful Jewish spice trader, Francisco Mendes. But at age 27 she became a widow, yet she went on to raise her children and run the family business all on her own. Her travels led her through Antwerp, Venice, Ferrara, Ragusa, and finally to Constantinople, from where the Ottoman Empire dominated former Byzantium territories and offered shelter for battered Conversos (converted Jews). The text recounting the last fifteen years of Gracia's life at the center of the Empire is particularly revealing. Birnbaum's biography has the unique distinction of being the first among many studies to pay tribute to a woman during this period. It is also one of the first titles to pay equal attention to the lives of the Conversos in Christian West Europe and in the Muslim East.
