For the last several years, MTA has offered “Meet the Israeli Author,” a Hebrew-language program wherein students study the works of Chana Bat Shahar, a prize-winning Israeli author, and then conduct regular Skype sessions with the author herself, ultimately writing their own stories in Hebrew.

On Wednesday October 22, the juniors of this year’s “Meet the Author” program had their first discussion and Q&A with Mrs. Bat Shahar. The session began with a speech from Rabbi Michael Taubes, MTA’s Rosh Yeshiva, thanking the author and congratulating her on her recent literary award: the Goldberg Prize for Outstanding Hebrew Literature.

Afterward, Mrs. Tova Rosenberg, chair of the MTA Hebrew Department, spoke about how the journals that are completed by the end of the year will be put in the research department of the National Library of Israel. She then presented last year’s journals to the seniors of last year’s “Meet the Author” class.

Before beginning their literary discussion, the juniors were permitted to ask Mrs. Bat Shahar a few questions ranging from, “Do you follow basketball or soccer?” to “Has living in Israel affected the way you write?” The boys then addressed their literary queries to the author, asking about how to best craft the introduction of a story and gain the reader’s interest. It was truly an informative experience, and–who knows?–I just might use my newfound writing skills in a newspaper!

By David Schmidt (YUHSB ’16)