Jean Baumgarten
Patricia Farazzi
In 1593, 'The book of customs' appeared in Venice, written by a publisher-printer named Simone Guenzberg, a text that contributed to the survival of Judaism in exile and persecution.
But we know almost nothing about this historical figure.
The authors then imagined his human and social profile and present him to us through a highly original epistolary novel that involves a young Venetian woman curious about the world and her time. Through this fascinating and erudite book, poised between true history and fictional episodes, Patricia Farazzi and Jean Baumgarten give us a great fresco of the historical and social events of the Jews and the Ghetto of Venice at the end of the 16th century.
Afterword by Donatella Calabi.
Translation by Francesca Bononi.
Jean Baumgarten is research director at the CNRS and professor emeritus at the Center de Recherches Historiques (EHESS). His work focuses on Yiddish literature and the cultural history of the Ashkenazi world. Among his numerous works are Mille ans de culture ashkénazes (Paris 1994, Clio prize) and Le petit monde. Le corps humain dans les textses de la tradition juive, de la Bible aux Lumières (2017).
His books are translated into numerous languages including Italian.
Patricia Farazzi scrive e lavora per la casa editrice francese Editions de l'éclat, di cui è cofondatrice e dove dirige la collana dedicata alla poesia e alla filosofia.
Il suo ultimo libro, Fragmentation, è stato pubblicato nel 2023.