Anouk Markovits: JCC BookFest Author

I Am Forbidden: The closing event in the New Mexico Jewish community’s 2012 celebration of the written word.

Anouk Markovitz

Rare Look at a Closed Hasidic Community
through the Eyes of a Former Insider
Sunday October 28 @ 10:30 am @ Albuquerque JCC
Book Lover's Bagel Breakfast$10 Prepaid  /  $15 Door

The Satmar community is reclusive, insulated by design and fiercely loyal to their Rebbe. They shun interaction with any outsiders, but the secrets and sins of those within become an onerous burden that can't be contained within self-imposed walls. Anouk Markovits is a masterful story teller who brings the reader into the heart of this religious community, shedding light on their motivations, their fears, and their profound trust in the wisdom of one man.

You can learn more about Anouk Markovitz at her website. Susannah Meadows' review of "I Am Forbidden," Sisters Joined by Tumult, Grown Apart in Time, in The New York Times, begins:

Anouk Markovits was raised a Hasidic Jew in France, but at 19 she fled her community to avoid an arranged marriage. She went on to get a master's degree in architecture and a Ph.D. in romance studies. "I Am Forbidden," her first novel in English, centers on two Hasidic sisters: one who leaves, and one who stays, shunning modernity. Given the author's background, you might assume that this is a story about how one of them is wrecked by her choice.

But the wonder of this elegant, enthralling novel is the beauty Ms. Markovits unearths in the Hasidic community she takes us into. She remains largely nonjudgmental about the most difficult-to-grasp practices of the Satmar sect, while showing how even the most fervent believers struggle with the letter-of-the-law faith.

Click here to continue reading Sisters Joined by Tumult, Grown Apart in Time.And here is a recent Shalom TV video of authors Joshua Henkin ("The World Without You") and Anouk Markovitz discussing their novels: