Sitting on a Suitcase

Psychoanalytic Stories

Rowan Williams, Halina Brunning, Olya Khaleelee, Claudia Nagel, Susan Khan, James Krantz, Shmuel Erlich, Larry Hirschhorn, Marlene Spero, Vega Roberts, Louisa Diana Brunner, Stanley Gold, Eliat Aram, Leslie Brissett, Halina Brunning, Olya Khaleelee, Franca Fubini, Edward R. Shapiro, Alicia Kaufmann, Mira Erlich-Ginor, , Halina Brunning, Olya Khaleelee

• Publisher: Phoenix Publishing House
• Year: 2025
• Print ISBN: 9781800133105
• eBook ISBN: 9781800133440
• Edition: 0
• Topic: Psychology
• Subtopic: Psychoanalysis
• Index: Psychology

Sitting on a Suitcase: Psychoanalytic Stories contains eighteen moving tales of disparate Jewish lives from Eliat Aram, Leslie B. Brissett, Louisa Diana Brunner, Halina Brunning, Leila Djemal, Shmuel Erlich, Mira Erlich-Ginor, Franca Fubini, Stan Gold, Larry Hirschhorn, Susan Kahn, Alicia E. Kaufmann, Olya Khaleelee, James Krantz, Vega Zagier Roberts, Edward R. Shapiro, Mannie Sher, and Marlene Spero. The book begins with a thought-provoking preface from former Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams and ends with a sensitive epilogue from Rabbi Jonathan Wittenberg, both providing societal containment for what comes between them. The contents also include two non-Jewish German writers, Claudia Nagel and Dorothee von Tippelskirch-Eissing, who between them provide a bravely honest introduction and conclusions to the stories contained within. Also contained within the book are black and white photographs of the contributors' young selves that provide an additional evocative layer to the words contained within. Plus four black and white line drawings to illustrate each of the four parts of the book: Orthodox beginnings, Sitting on the boundary: Marginality and belonging, Emigration and identity, and Will history repeat itself?

This was not an easy book for its authors to write, revisiting the past unlocked painful memories and re-awoke fears of persecution. The manuscript was nearing completion when Hamas launched the October 7, 2023 attack on Israeli soil and the war inGaza followed. Incidents of anti-Semitism increased worldwide and questions were raised whether the book should be held back. However, its themes became more relevant than ever and these stories need to be read. Themes such as issues around having a voice, or finding a voice during formative years; finding a family through friends; a sense of not belonging because of constant relocation, or finding a sense of belonging through family and friends. Aspects of life that resonate with us all alongside the deeper theme of the impact of Jewish identity on every facet of life.

This is a book full of emotion and meaning that needs to be read by all with an interest in humanity and fostering connection and understanding across nations.

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Half Title
• Full Title
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents
• Acknowledgements
• About the editors and contributors
• Preface by Rowan Williams
• Prologue by Halina Brunning and Olya Khaleelee
• Introduction: I did not know by Claudia Nagel
• Part I: Orthodox beginnings
• Part II: Sitting on the boundary: Marginality and belonging
• Part III: Emigration and identity
• Part IV: Will history repeat itself?
• Conclusions by Dorothee von Tippelskirch-Eissing
• Epilogue by Rabbi Jonathan Wittenberg
• Index