Carolyn Gaines

The Modest Memoir of a Yankee Yenta Carolyn Gaines

In this volume, Carolyn Gaines' definition of the Yiddish word Yenta differs somewhat from Leo Rosten's in his book, Hooray for Yiddish. It is more like the marriage broker in Fiddler on the Roof (whose name was Yenta). To qualify for Yenta status, she believes one needs to be interested in people - connecting them for positive reasons like helping expand their lives. Does that make her the pebble in the water that makes ever-widening circles? (The ultimate Jewish remark is always a question). This book, then, is the random reflections of a lifetime of writing and joining.