WHEN: Sunday, February 22nd, 2026

             2:00 PM - 3:30 PM CST

WHERE: Illini Union room 210

               1410 W Green St, Champaign 

About Crumbs of Wisdom: Yiddish Storytelling for our Time

Yiddish storytelling and culture have found their way into our day-to-day in ways that we don't often expect or recognize. From the short stories we tell, simple phrases we use, and recipes that are passed down through the generations, Yiddish culture remains a vibrant undertone to Jewish life. 

Join us for interactive and intergenerational storytelling focusing on themes of Yiddish culture and the Jewish holiday of Purim (taking place on March 2-3, 2026). Attendees will hear tales from Honey on the Page, a treasury of Yiddish children's literature translated by Miriam Udel, with a Challah braiding craft and other activities following. 

This event is Free and open to individuals of all ages. Please RSVP using the form below so we can make sure to have enough supplies for all attendees.

About Miriam Udel

Miriam Udel is associate professor of Yiddish language, literature, and culture at Emory University, where she studies the Jewish encounter with modernity. She holds an AB in Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations and a PhD in Comparative Literature, both from Harvard University.

Udel was ordained in 2019 as part of the first cohort of the Executive Ordination Track at Yeshivat Maharat, a program designed to bring qualified mid-career women into the Orthodox rabbinate. In the Jewish community, she enjoys teaching about narrative midrash and medieval biblical interpretation as well as Yiddish culture.

In addition to translating Honey on the Page, Udel is also the author of Never Better!: The Modern Jewish Picaresque (University of Michigan Press, 2016), winner of the 2017 National Jewish Book Award in Modern Jewish Thought and Experience. Her recent work focuses on children’s literature as a site of cultural transmission and ideological formation. Modern Jewish Worldmaking Through Yiddish Children’s Literature (Princeton University Press, October 2025) mobilizes the rich but neglected literary corpus of secularist Yiddish children’s literature as a novel archive for understanding the geographic and ideological movements that made Ashkenazi Jewry modern. 

Click Here to read more about Miriam Udel

Parking Information

There is no event parking at the Illini Union, except for individuals with handi-capped plackards. There are parking garages that do not ticket on weekends off of John street, and other parking available off of Goodwin or Mathews Ave. If you anticipate any issues getting to the Union, please reach out to Azer at [email protected] or call 217-367-9872.

Register Here

This event is Free and open to individuals of all ages. Please RSVP using the form below so we can make sure to have enough supplies for all attendees.

Get An Autographed Book

We will have copies of Honey on the Page at the event available to be autographed by Miriam. Please make sure to indicate whether you would like to reserve a copy on the RSVP form.