Book Talk: I, Wandering Jew

Join the Leo Baeck Institute for an evening with National Jewish Book Award–winning historian Yair Mintzker as he discusses his latest book, I, Wandering Jew.

Originating from a mysterious 1602 pamphlet, the legend of the "Wandering Jew" has fascinated and fraught European history for over four centuries. Part historical detective story and part deeply personal memoir, Mintzker’s work traces the metamorphoses of this infamous antisemitic trope across five centuries. Moving backward in time from 1950s Israel to the myth's 17th-century origins, the author uncovers surprising affinities between his own life and this legendary figure.

Yair Mintzker is a specialist in the history of early modern and modern Germany, and the author or editor of five books and many articles in the field. His latest monograph, I, Wandering Jew (Princeton University Press, 2026), combines history, detective story, and memoir to create a surprising and revealing account of the antisemitic myth of “the Wandering Jew.” His previous book, The Many Deaths of Jew Süss (Princeton University Press, 2017), is a retelling of the trial and execution of Joseph Süss Oppenheimer, the notorious “Jew Süss.” The book won the National Jewish Book Award in History and was chosen by the Financial Times as one of the best books of 2017. Born and raised in Jerusalem, Mintzker received his M.A. in history from Tel-Aviv University (2003) and his Ph.D. from Stanford (2009). He is the recipient of many prizes, including the Fritz Stern Dissertation Prize (2010) and the Urban History Association best book prize (2014), as well as fellowships from the DAAD, the Whiting Foundation, the Stanford Humanities Center, the Institute of Advanced Study in Princeton, and the Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin. He welcomes applications from prospective graduate students interested in working on topics related to central European history from 1648 to the mid-twentieth century.