In the City of Slaughter | Steven J. Zipperstein (USA) in Conversation with Akiva Novick

Steven J. Zipperstein is one of the most prominent scholars of Jewish history today. A senior historian at Stanford University, his book “Pogrom” (Am Oved), on the Kishinev pogrom, was described by The New York Times as “a literary masterpiece.”

Drawing on newly uncovered evidence from archives in Russia, Israel, and across Europe, Zipperstein reconstructs what truly occurred in Kishinev, and examines the decision of poet Ḥayyim Naḥman Bialik—sent to report on the pogrom—to omit accounts of Jewish self-defense. As is well known, in response to what he witnessed, Bialik wrote “On the Slaughter,” a poem that emphasized Jewish helplessness.

Pogrom offers a compelling historical account and proposes original conclusions about an event that was long misunderstood, yet profoundly shaped the 20th century. In this conversation with journalist Akiva Novick, Zipperstein will explore how collective violence shapes national narratives, and how reading the book in the aftermath of October 7th offers Israeli readers a new historical perspective.