Michael Wex (born September 12, 1954) is a Canadian novelist, playwright, translator, lecturer, performer, and author of books on language and literature.
His specialty is

Yiddish Yiddish (, or , ''yidish'' or ''idish'', , ; , ''Yidish-Taytsh'', ) is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated during the 9th century in Central Europe, providing the nascent Ashkenazi community with a ve ...

and his book '' Born to Kvetch'' was a surprise bestseller in 2005. Wex lives in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anc ...

with his wife Marilla and daughter Sabina.Biography notes from his book covers Michael Wex was born in

Lethbridge, Alberta Lethbridge ( ) is a city in the province of Alberta, Canada. With a population of 101,482 in its 2019 municipal census, Lethbridge became the fourth Alberta city to surpass 100,000 people. The nearby Canadian Rocky Mountains contribute to ...

, Canada to a family of descendants of

Rebbe A Rebbe ( yi, רבי, translit=rebe) or Admor ( he, אדמו״ר) is the spiritual leader in the Hasidic movement, and the personalities of its dynasties.Heilman, Samuel"The Rebbe and the Resurgence of Orthodox Judaism."''Religion and Spiritua ...

s of

Ciechanów Ciechanów is a city in north-central Poland. From 1975 to 1998, it was the capital of the Ciechanów Voivodeship. Since 1999, it has been situated in the Masovian Voivodeship. As of December 2021, it has a population of 43,495. History The s ...

and Stryków. He has taught at the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...

and the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

."Michael Wex"
an interview by Wordsmith.org, December 5, 2005

Works

*''The Frumkiss Family Business''. Toronto: Knopf Canada, 2010. *''How to Be a Mentsh (and Not a Shmuck)''. Harper, 2009. *''Just Say Nu: Yiddish for Every Occasion (When English Just Won't Do)''. New York: St. Martin's Press, 2007. *'' Born to Kvetch: Yiddish Language And Culture in All Its Moods''. Publisher: St. Martin's Press (September 1, 2005). *''Born to Kvetch'' (Audio CD). *''Shlepping the Exile'', 1993, *''The Adventures of Micah Mushmelon, Boy Talmudist''. 2007. *''Die Abenteuer des Micah Mushmelon, kindlicher Talmudist'' (dt. von Heiko Lehmann, Wagenbach 2005) *''Classic Yiddish Stories of S.Y. Abramovitsh, Sholem Aleichem, and I.L. Peretz''. (Michael Wex, translator) 2004. *''The Wishing-Ring'' by S.Y. Abramovitsh (Michael Wex, translator). 2003. *''God in Paris'' (performance) *''Sex in Yiddish'' (performance) *''Judenverwolkung, or Meshiekh's Tsaytn'' (performance) *''I Just Want to Jewify (The Yiddish Revenge on Wagner)'' (performance) *''Rhapsody in Schmaltz: Yiddish Food and Why We Can't Stop Eating It''

References

External links

Michael Wex's website
*
KlezKamp: The Yiddish Folk Arts Program
1954 births Living people Jewish Canadian writers Canadian people of Polish-Jewish descent Canadian male novelists 20th-century Canadian dramatists and playwrights 21st-century Canadian dramatists and playwrights Linguists of Yiddish University of Toronto faculty University of Michigan faculty Writers from Lethbridge University of Massachusetts Amherst faculty Canadian male dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Canadian male writers 21st-century Canadian male writers {{Canada-playwright-stub