Alan Kaufman
Encyclopedia
Alan Kaufman is an American novelist, memoirist and poet
who was instrumental in the development of the Spoken Word
movement in literature
. He is the author of the memoir Jew Boy, the novel Matches, and is listed as editor
of The Outlaw Bible of American Poetry
.
He is also listed as co-editor of The Outlaw Bible of American Literature, alongside Barney Rosset
and Neil Ortenberg.
Kaufman has taught in the graduate and undergraduate schools of the Academy of Art University
and in writing workshops in San Francisco. His work has appeared in Salon, The Los Angeles Times, Partisan Review
, Tel Aviv Review, San Francisco Examiner, and the San Francisco Chronicle.
Kaufman himself has been widely anthologized, most recently in "Nothing Makes You Free: Writings From Descendants of Holocaust Survivors (TimeBeing Books)" (WW Norton) and Blood To Remember:American Poets On The Holocaust.
Kaufman is a member of PEN American Center and is listed in the Europa Biographical Reference Series.
The Alan Kaufman Papers
From Special Collections Library, University of Delaware
http://www.udel.edu/udaily/2010/jul/kaufman072409.html
The University of Delaware Library possesses the papers of poet, memoirist, novelist, and painter Alan Kaufman, who is associated with the Spoken Word movement and the exploration of Jewish identity through contemporary alternative culture.
Kaufman, who presently resides in San Francisco, is the son of a French Holocaust survivor. He was born and raised in the Bronx in the 1950s, and now holds Israeli, French, and American citizenship.
He moved to Israel in 1977, served in the Israel Defense Forces, and traveled extensively before arriving in San Francisco in 1990. He was active in the “live poetry scene” at Café Babar in San Francisco's Mission District where the honesty of a writer's delivery and measure of the audience's response reflected the immediate success of a work and invigorated a generation of new poets.
After his involvement with the 1993 San Francisco Poets Strike, Kaufman helped raise the visibility of poetry slams and Spoken Word events by organizing national and international readings.
At the same time he was gaining recognition with a group of California writers and performers, Kaufman tapped into an emerging Jewish avant-garde cultural stream. In 1995, he joined with Hoboken-based Danny Shot to co-edit It's the Jews! A Celebration of New Jewish Visions, which was a special issue of collected underground Jewish works. Shot held an East Coast publication party and Kaufman held one in San Francisco; both drew large crowds and brought recognition to young Jewish readers seeking new forms of expression.
Kaufman joined with another group of like-minded friends and became editor-in-chief of Davka: Jewish Cultural Revolution, a short-lived but influential alternative magazine.
Continuing to explore his Jewish “otherness” and “outsiderness” and underground American literature, Kaufman edited The Outlaw Bible of American Poetry (1999), a landmark volume followed by two more “outlaw bibles” of American literature and essays.
His forays into these areas also led to a critically acclaimed memoir, Jew Boy (2000), and a novel, Matches (2005), inspired by his military experience.
Kaufman's writing has also appeared in two anthologies of writings by descendants of Holocaust survivors. Further, he edited The New Generation: Fiction for Our Time from America's Writing Programs and writes reviews for the San Francisco Chronicle and Examiner, Salon, Los Angeles Times, Partisan Review, and Tel Aviv Review.
He teaches classes about memoir writing and journalism at the Academy of Art University and other workshops in San Francisco.
Well established in his literary career, Kaufman is also gaining recognition as a painter of haunting portraits.
The Alan Kaufman papers, 1900–present (bulk dates 1985–present), comprise 14 linear feet of correspondence, artwork, books, posters, typescripts of essays and poetry, photographs, periodicals, original artwork, and books. The collection, located in Special Collections on the second floor of the Morris Library, includes comprehensive files related to Jew Boy, Matches, the Outlaw Bibles, Davka, and other writing projects, altogether providing rich documentation for study of this influential writer, the Spoken Word movement, and contemporary Jewish literary counterculture.
Holdings of the Special Collections Department of the University of Delaware Library include books, manuscripts, maps, prints, photographs, broadsides, periodicals, pamphlets, ephemera, and realia from the 15th to the 21st century. The collections complement the general collections of the Library with particular strengths in the subject areas of the arts; English, Irish, and American literature; history and Delawareana; horticulture; and history of science and technology.
in the Fall of 2005, and was published in the United Kingdom
by Constable and Robinson the following year.
His memoir — Jew Boy — was published by Fromm International/Farrar, Straus, and Giroux and Foxrock Books, imprint of Grove Press publisher and founder Barney Rosset.
His poem Who Are We? can be viewed online at alittlepoetry.com.
has called Kaufman's recently released novel Matches, about Israeli soldiers, "an extraordinary war novel," and Dave Eggers
has written that "there is more passion here than you see in twenty other books combined". Ruth Prawer has praised Kaufman's memoir, Jew Boy as "astonishing...a grand epic of a memoir", while the San Francisco Chronicle
called it a "classic coming of age story."
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
who was instrumental in the development of the Spoken Word
Spoken word
Spoken word is a form of poetry that often uses alliterated prose or verse and occasionally uses metered verse to express social commentary. Traditionally it is in the first person, is from the poet’s point of view and is themed in current events....
movement in literature
Literature
Literature is the art of written works, and is not bound to published sources...
. He is the author of the memoir Jew Boy, the novel Matches, and is listed as editor
Editing
Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, and film media used to convey information through the processes of correction, condensation, organization, and other modifications performed with an intention of producing a correct, consistent, accurate, and complete...
of The Outlaw Bible of American Poetry
The Outlaw Bible of American Poetry
The Outlaw Bible of American Poetry is a collection of poems from an assorted list of poets. First published in 1999, the collection features work from several notable poets, including Jack Micheline, Harold Norse, A.D. Winans, David Trinidad, Jim Chandler, Tuli Kupferberg, D.A. Levy, Bob Kaufman,...
.
He is also listed as co-editor of The Outlaw Bible of American Literature, alongside Barney Rosset
Barney Rosset
Barnet Lee Rosset, Jr. is the former owner of the publishing house Grove Press, and publisher and Editor-in-Chief of the magazine Evergreen Review. He led a successful legal battle to publish the uncensored version of D. H. Lawrence's novel Lady Chatterley's Lover, and later was the American...
and Neil Ortenberg.
Background
Kaufman is the editor of many anthologies, including The Outlaw Bible of American Literature, which was reviewed on the cover of the New York Times Book Review and The New Generation:Fiction For Our Time From America's Writing Programs. His anthology, The Outlaw Bible of American Poetry The final entry of the Outlaw anthologies trilogy, The Outlaw Bible of American Essays, appeared on bookshelves during the Fall of 2006. He is also the author of a volume of poetry, 'Who Are We?'Kaufman has taught in the graduate and undergraduate schools of the Academy of Art University
Academy of Art University
The Academy of Art University , a for-profit university owned by the Stephens Institute, was founded in San Francisco, California in 1929 by Richard S. Stephens...
and in writing workshops in San Francisco. His work has appeared in Salon, The Los Angeles Times, Partisan Review
Partisan Review
Partisan Review was an American political and literary quarterly published from 1934 to 2003, though it suspended publication between October 1936 and December 1937.-Overview:...
, Tel Aviv Review, San Francisco Examiner, and the San Francisco Chronicle.
Kaufman himself has been widely anthologized, most recently in "Nothing Makes You Free: Writings From Descendants of Holocaust Survivors (TimeBeing Books)" (WW Norton) and Blood To Remember:American Poets On The Holocaust.
Kaufman is a member of PEN American Center and is listed in the Europa Biographical Reference Series.
The Alan Kaufman Papers
From Special Collections Library, University of Delaware
http://www.udel.edu/udaily/2010/jul/kaufman072409.html
The University of Delaware Library possesses the papers of poet, memoirist, novelist, and painter Alan Kaufman, who is associated with the Spoken Word movement and the exploration of Jewish identity through contemporary alternative culture.
Kaufman, who presently resides in San Francisco, is the son of a French Holocaust survivor. He was born and raised in the Bronx in the 1950s, and now holds Israeli, French, and American citizenship.
He moved to Israel in 1977, served in the Israel Defense Forces, and traveled extensively before arriving in San Francisco in 1990. He was active in the “live poetry scene” at Café Babar in San Francisco's Mission District where the honesty of a writer's delivery and measure of the audience's response reflected the immediate success of a work and invigorated a generation of new poets.
After his involvement with the 1993 San Francisco Poets Strike, Kaufman helped raise the visibility of poetry slams and Spoken Word events by organizing national and international readings.
At the same time he was gaining recognition with a group of California writers and performers, Kaufman tapped into an emerging Jewish avant-garde cultural stream. In 1995, he joined with Hoboken-based Danny Shot to co-edit It's the Jews! A Celebration of New Jewish Visions, which was a special issue of collected underground Jewish works. Shot held an East Coast publication party and Kaufman held one in San Francisco; both drew large crowds and brought recognition to young Jewish readers seeking new forms of expression.
Kaufman joined with another group of like-minded friends and became editor-in-chief of Davka: Jewish Cultural Revolution, a short-lived but influential alternative magazine.
Continuing to explore his Jewish “otherness” and “outsiderness” and underground American literature, Kaufman edited The Outlaw Bible of American Poetry (1999), a landmark volume followed by two more “outlaw bibles” of American literature and essays.
His forays into these areas also led to a critically acclaimed memoir, Jew Boy (2000), and a novel, Matches (2005), inspired by his military experience.
Kaufman's writing has also appeared in two anthologies of writings by descendants of Holocaust survivors. Further, he edited The New Generation: Fiction for Our Time from America's Writing Programs and writes reviews for the San Francisco Chronicle and Examiner, Salon, Los Angeles Times, Partisan Review, and Tel Aviv Review.
He teaches classes about memoir writing and journalism at the Academy of Art University and other workshops in San Francisco.
Well established in his literary career, Kaufman is also gaining recognition as a painter of haunting portraits.
The Alan Kaufman papers, 1900–present (bulk dates 1985–present), comprise 14 linear feet of correspondence, artwork, books, posters, typescripts of essays and poetry, photographs, periodicals, original artwork, and books. The collection, located in Special Collections on the second floor of the Morris Library, includes comprehensive files related to Jew Boy, Matches, the Outlaw Bibles, Davka, and other writing projects, altogether providing rich documentation for study of this influential writer, the Spoken Word movement, and contemporary Jewish literary counterculture.
Holdings of the Special Collections Department of the University of Delaware Library include books, manuscripts, maps, prints, photographs, broadsides, periodicals, pamphlets, ephemera, and realia from the 15th to the 21st century. The collections complement the general collections of the Library with particular strengths in the subject areas of the arts; English, Irish, and American literature; history and Delawareana; horticulture; and history of science and technology.
Published works
Alan Kaufman's Matches was published by Little, Brown and CompanyLittle, Brown and Company
Little, Brown and Company is a publishing house established by Charles Coffin Little and his partner, James Brown. Since 2006 it has been a constituent unit of Hachette Book Group USA.-19th century:...
in the Fall of 2005, and was published in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
by Constable and Robinson the following year.
His memoir — Jew Boy — was published by Fromm International/Farrar, Straus, and Giroux and Foxrock Books, imprint of Grove Press publisher and founder Barney Rosset.
His poem Who Are We? can be viewed online at alittlepoetry.com.
Peer reviews
David MametDavid Mamet
David Alan Mamet is an American playwright, essayist, screenwriter and film director.Best known as a playwright, Mamet won a Pulitzer Prize and received a Tony nomination for Glengarry Glen Ross . He also received a Tony nomination for Speed-the-Plow . As a screenwriter, he received Oscar...
has called Kaufman's recently released novel Matches, about Israeli soldiers, "an extraordinary war novel," and Dave Eggers
Dave Eggers
Dave Eggers is an American writer, editor, and publisher. He is known for the best-selling memoir A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius and for his more recent work as a screenwriter. He is also the co-founder of the literacy project 826 Valencia.-Life:Eggers was born in Boston, Massachusetts,...
has written that "there is more passion here than you see in twenty other books combined". Ruth Prawer has praised Kaufman's memoir, Jew Boy as "astonishing...a grand epic of a memoir", while the San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco Chronicle
thumb|right|upright|The Chronicle Building following the [[1906 San Francisco earthquake|1906 earthquake]] and fireThe San Francisco Chronicle is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, but distributed throughout Northern and Central California,...
called it a "classic coming of age story."