In this episode, we discuss the life and legacy of Isaac Bashevis Singer. An immigrant to the United States, Singer was an esteemed essayist, short story writer, novelist, translator, and children’s book author.
As a young man in Poland, Singer initially pursued rabbinical studies, but the pull of literature was too strong. He worked as a journalist while honing his storytelling skills. After immigrating to the U.S. in 1935, Singer contributed to the Jewish Daily Forward, a Yiddish-language newspaper which published much of his fiction.
The events of World War II heightened the poignancy of Singer’s work. He wrote in Yiddish and celebrated Polish-Jewish resourcefulness and imagination—a language and culture nearly wiped out by the Holocaust. In 1978, he won the Nobel Prize in Literature for “his impassioned narrative art which, with roots in a Polish-Jewish cultural tradition, bring universal human conditions to life.”
For this episode, we are joined by writer and scholar Ilan Stavans, editor of the Library of America’s three-volume collection of Singer’s work. Stavans is also the editor of the forthcoming anthology, A Nation Wrestles with God: American Prophets, Philosophers, and Firebrands, in which Singer is included. Stavans will be at our 2026 American Writers Festival on June 7—along with author Reza Aslan and scholar Emily D. Crews—to discuss the anthology and its impact. Learn more about the American Writers Festival here!
This book and this episode are presented in conjunction with our current special exhibit American Prophets: Writers, Religion, and Culture. Stavans also served as an advisor on this exhibit, which is on display now at the American Writers Museum.
Stavans is interviewed by Nate King, Content & Exhibits Manager at the American Writers Museum. This conversation originally took place May 18, 2026 and was recorded over Zoom.