Bel Kaufman facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Bel Kaufman
|
|
|---|---|
.jpg)
Kaufman speaks at Making Trouble/Making History Jewish Women's Archive luncheon in 2013
|
|
| Born | May 10, 1911 Berlin, Germany
|
| Died | July 25, 2014 (aged 103) Manhattan, New York, U.S.
|
| Education | Columbia University (MA) |
| Alma mater | Hunter College (1934) |
| Occupation | Writer, instructor |
| Known for | Up the Down Staircase (novel) |
| Spouse(s) | Sydney Goldstine (1936-1961; divorced), Sidney Gluck (? - 2014; her death) |
| Children | 2 |
Bel Kaufman (born May 10, 1911 – died July 25, 2014) was an American teacher and writer. She is famous for her bestselling novel, Up the Down Staircase, which came out in 1964. This book was very popular and was even made into a movie.
Contents
Bel Kaufman's Early Life
Bel Kaufman was born in Berlin, Germany, in 1911. Her parents, Michael and Lala Kaufman, were from Russia. Her father was studying medicine in Berlin at the time. After he finished his studies, the family moved back to Russia.
Bel's father became a doctor. Her mother, Lala, was also a writer. She was the daughter of the famous Yiddish writer Sholem Aleichem. Lala Kaufman wrote under her own name and translated some of her father's works.
Growing Up in Russia
Bel was the older of two children. Her brother, Sherwin, was born nine years later and became a doctor in New York City. Bel's first language was Russian. She grew up in cities like Odesa and Kyiv in what is now Ukraine.
When she was a child, Bel published her first poem, called "Spring," in a magazine in Odesa. Life in Russia was often hard for her family.
Moving to the United States
In 1922, when Bel was 12 years old, she moved to the United States with her parents. They settled in Newark, New Jersey. Her father worked as a doctor there until he passed away in 1938.
Her mother, Lala, started writing in Russian. Later, she wrote stories in Yiddish for the Jewish Daily Forward newspaper. She also translated her father Sholem Aleichem's books from Yiddish into Russian.
Learning English and College Years
Learning English was a big challenge for Bel when she first arrived in the U.S. At age 12, she was placed in classes with much younger children because of the language barrier. However, a special teacher helped her learn English. This teacher also helped Bel fall in love with English literature.
Bel went to Hunter College in New York. She graduated with high honors in 1934. In 1936, she earned a Master's degree in literature from Columbia University.
Bel Kaufman's Career as a Writer and Teacher
Bel Kaufman started her career as a teacher in different high schools in New York City. At the same time, she also worked part-time as a writer. She wrote articles for magazines like Esquire. She used the name Bel Kaufman because Esquire only accepted articles from male writers back then.
Up the Down Staircase Success
In 1964, Bel published her most famous novel, Up the Down Staircase. The book is about a young, hopeful college graduate who becomes an English teacher in a New York City high school. It shows the real challenges she faces with her co-workers and students.
The story was based on Bel Kaufman's own experiences as a teacher. It actually started as a short story, only three and a half pages long. This short story was published in The Saturday Review in 1962.
Up the Down Staircase became a huge hit! It stayed on The New York Times Best Seller list for 64 weeks. In 1967, it was made into a movie starring Sandy Dennis. The book was also turned into a play, performed over 100 times on and off Broadway.
Later Works and Teaching
In 1979, Kaufman published another novel called Love, etc. This book was not as successful as her first one. She also wrote several short stories and continued to teach and give lectures in New York City.
Bel once said about writing, "I do not like writing; in truth, I hate writing, and would rather do anything else. But the joy comes when, almost in spite of myself, I come close to what I want to say."
Even at 99 years old, Bel Kaufman was still teaching! In 2011, her old college, Hunter College, hired her to teach a class on Jewish humor. She turned 100 years old during her first semester. Bel often said, "I'm too busy to get old." She spent her days writing in her study in Manhattan.
Bel Kaufman's Family Life
Bel Kaufman married Sydney Goldstine in 1936, right after she graduated from Columbia University. They had two children: Jonathan, who became a computer science professor, and Thea, who became a psychologist. Bel and Sydney later divorced. Sydney Goldstine passed away in 2000. Bel had one granddaughter, Susan Goldstine, who is a mathematics professor.
In the 1970s, Bel married Sidney J. Gluck. He was a photographer and a public speaker. They stayed married until her death. In 2010, Bel celebrated her 99th birthday at a special event honoring her famous grandfather, Sholem Aleichem. She was still writing when she was 101 years old in 2012.
Bel Kaufman's Death
Bel Kaufman passed away at her home in New York City on July 25, 2014. She was 103 years old. She was survived by her husband, Sidney Gluck, her brother Sherwin Kaufman, her daughter Thea Goldstine, her son Jonathan Goldstine, and her granddaughter, Susan Goldstine.
Awards and Honors
Bel Kaufman received many awards and honors throughout her life, including:
- Honorary chairman of the Yiddish Studies faculty at Columbia University
- Board of Directors for the Sholem Aleichem Memorial Foundation
- Anti-Defamation League award
- United Jewish Appeal award
- Member of the Hall of Fame at Hunter College
Images for kids
-
Gennadiy Prashkevich (left) and Bel Kaufman (second from right)
See also
In Spanish: Bel Kaufman para niños
