British Council: no support for boycott aims of Palestinian festival

The British Council has distanced itself from the pro-boycott aims of a Palestinian literature festival due to take place in Gaza from this Saturday.

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Israeli's Holocaust novel shortlisted for foreign fiction award

An Israeli author is in the running to win a fiction prize worth £10,000.

Aharon Appelfeld’s novel, Blooms of Darkness, is one of six titles shortlisted for the 2012 Independent Foreign Fiction Award.

The book, translated by Jeffrey M Green, tells the story of the relationship between a Jewish boy and a prostitute at a brothel where he hides from the Nazis.

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Gunter Grass banned from Israel after attack poem

The German poet and Nobel Laureate Gunter Grass has been banned from visiting Israel.

It comes after Mr Grass, who as a teenager was a member of the Waffen SS, published a poem attacking Israel and accusing it of damaging global stability with its stance on Iran.

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German writer Gunter Grass launches poetry attack on Israel

Nobel Prize-winning writer Gunter Grass has criticised Israel for "endangering the already fragile world peace".

Mr Grass, 84, is known for his left-wing political views. In a poem published in the German newspaper Sueddeutsche Zeitung, he expressed concern that Israel "could wipe out the Iranian people" if it took action against Tehran's nuclear ambitions.

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Amos Oz in running for literary award

A book by a prolific Israeli writer has been shortlisted for an award honouring translations of books.

Amos Oz, one of the most influential writers and intellectuals in Israeli history, is the author of dozens of books, short stories and essays.

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Stefan Zweig's suicide note posted online

The suicide note of an influential Jewish writer has been published online in Israel 70 years after his death.

Stefan Zweig, author of dozens of books, plays and short stories including The Post Office Girl and Beware of Pity, was a well-known literary figure in his day.

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Author publishes new book on Facebook first

An Israeli writer has decided to bypass traditional methods of publishing and print his work on Facebook.

Russian-born Alex Epstein, who moved to Israel as a child, is an award winning author and has enjoyed literary success with two collections of short stories.

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Montefiore bigoraphy wins prestigious prize

An Oxford University academic has won £16,000 for her biography of Jewish philanthropist Sir Moses Montefiore.

Abigail Green's book on the "Jewish Liberator, Imperial Hero" was named as the runner-up in the annual Sami Rohr Prize for Jewish Literature.

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