About

שי אפסאי

I live in Providence. In addition to fiction and poetry, my writing has focused on the works of Thomas Paine, Zionist historiography, “the bride is beautiful but she is married to another man” stories, Jews and Freemasonry, Benjamin Franklin’s influence on Jewish thought and practice, religious traditions of the Beta Yisrael community from Ethiopia, Jewish observance and identity in Nigeria, aliyah to Israel from Rhode Island, Jewish pilgrimage to Ukraine, Jews and Irish literature, Dublin author Gerry Mc Donnell, Judaism in Northern Ireland, Jewish-Polish relations, and Micronesian perspectives toward Israel.

Several of these and other writing projects, and the talks, exhibits and programs that flowed from them, have been made possible through a generous annual grant given to Providence’s Congregation Beth Sholom, as well as support from the Rhode Island Council for the Humanities and from the National Endowment for the Humanities summer programs for educators.

My articles, interviews, book reviews, short stories, poems, and photographs have been featured in a variety of publications and venues, including Ami Magazine, Anthropology Today, Arutz Sheva/Israel National News, CCAR Journal: The Reform Jewish Quarterly, Dear You—Poems Through The Heart, Defenestration, Failed Haiku — A Journal of English Senryu, Fathom Journal, 50-Word Stories, The Forward, Haaretz, Haiku Journal, haikuniverse, Happy Accidents and other humorous short stories, Heredom: The Transactions of the Scottish Rite Research Society, Here in the Now—An Anthology for the Soul, Ibbetson Street, The Jerusalem Post, The Jerusalem Report, Jewish Fiction .net, Jewish Literary Journal, The Jewish Writing Project, Journal of the American Revolution, the leaves fall, The Living Senryû Anthology, The Mainichi, New English Review, Online Review of Rhode Island History, Philalethes: The Journal of Masonic Research & Letters, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, The Poetry Pea Journal of haiku and senryu, Poetry Super Highway, The Providence Journal, The Public’s Radio, PVDFest, Reading Religion, Religion Matters, Review of Rabbinic Judaism, Rhode Island History Journal, Rhode Island Jewish Historical Notes, Rhode Island Public Radio, Scarlet Leaf Review, Segula: The Jewish History Magazine/סגולה: מגזין ישראלי להיסטוריה, The Shepherdstown Chronicle, Shofar: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Jewish Studies, The Stray Branch, Studies: An Irish Quarterly Review, Tablet Magazine, The Times of Israel, Until Dawn—A Supernatural Anthology, Whale Road Review: A Journal of Poetry & Short Prose, The Wisdom Daily, Writing.ie, and The Zen Space.