The teddy bear, Holocaust survivor Fred Lessing's loyal friend and hero of Iris Argaman's award-winning picture book "Bear and Fred", has been showcased at Yad Vashem Holocaust History Museum since 1996. For an interview with Lessing, in which he reveals why he agreed to let someone else tell his story, click here. [Photo courtesy of Yad Vashem Artifacts Collection. Loaned by Fred Lessing, Michigan, USA]

Aryeh Sivan’s wonderful mystery novel was awarded the Tidhar Prize for Outstanding Hebrew Crime Fiction at Israel’s first crime literature conference. The Prize committee praised Sivan’s work for its “power, sophistication and historical realism based on thorough research”. The novel has been published in German, Estonian and Chinese. For further information on this title click here.

The two prominent Israeli authors were awarded the prestigious EMET Prize, given annually for excellence in academic and professional achievements that have far reaching influence and significant contribution to society. The Prizes, awarded in five different categories, including Art and Culture, amount in total to one million dollars.

Ayelet Gundar-Goshen's latest novel will be the basis of the new drama series, following a buy from the American network NBS. The project will be overlooked by Gideon Raff, Israeli film and television director and screenwriter, co-creator of "Tyrant" and "Homeland". NBC Entertainment president Jennifer Salke referenced the project as an example of the network’s ability to attract top projects and talent in a time of intense competition from cable and digital platforms.

Ayelet Gundar-Goshen's "One Night, Markovitch", Etgar Keret's "The Seven Good Days" and Eli Amir's "Scapegoat" have been nominated for 2016 Adelina Della Pergola Prize for Jewish literature in Italy, awarded by the Association of Jewish Women of Italy. The winner will be proclaimed on November, 14th in Florence.

This year's award goes to Etgar Keret, for "inspiring and challenging the next generation through storytelling". The annual Charles Bronfman Prize recognizes young humanitarians "whose work, combined with their Jewish values, has significantly improved the world". The award committee praised Keret's achievements, literary as well as in other artistic forms, saying that "using storytelling to convey Jewish values across cultures, [they] have universal appeal and impart a humanitarian vision". The Prize is accompanied by a $100,000 award. Click here to read more.

NEW YORK, June 5, 2016 - The Jewish Book Council has launched its Israel Bookshelf project, aimed at spreading the literary word on different perspectives about Israel. Sarit Yishai-Levi's novel was chosen as one of the eight books that best illustrate Israel’s multifaceted culture and society. Copies of "The Beauty Queen of Jerusalem", along with novels by Meir Shalev and Amos Oz, were given away for free at the recent Celebrate Israel festival which took place in the streets of New York. To read more about the project and sign up for free copies click here.

Orly Castel-Bloom has been awarded the prestigious Sapir Award for her latest book, An Egyptian Novel. Among previous award winners are authors David Grossman, Yoram Kaniuk and Amir Gutfreund. Castel-Bloom has been a leading voice in Hebrew literature since her first book in 1987, constantly expanding the boundaries of the Hebrew language and of narrative style. An Egyptian Novel, her 14th book, was published a year ago to critical acclaim and amazing sales. It will be published in English by Dalkey Archives and in French by Actes Sud. The Sapir Award is the highest literary prize in Israel. In addition to NIS150,000 in prize money (ca $37,500), it covers the cost of the novel's translation into Arabic plus one other language. To date, Castel-Bloom's books have been translated into 14 languages.

PRESS RELEASE 3.11.2014 The Institute for the Translation of Hebrew Literature is proud to announce that Zeruya Shalev was awarded this afternoon the prestigious PRIX FEMINA 2014 for foreign fiction. Click here to read more!