Maggie Anton

Maggie Anton is an award-winning author of historical fiction, as well as a Talmud scholar with expertise in Jewish women's history. She was born Margaret Antonofsky in Los Angeles, California, where she still resides. In 1992 she joined a women's Talmud class taught by Rachel Adler. There, to her surprise, she fell in love with Talmud, a passion that has continued unabated for thirty years. Intrigued that the great Jewish scholar Rashi had no sons, only daughters, she started researching the family and their community. Thus the award-winning trilogy, Rashi's Daughters, was born, to be followed by National Jewish Book Award finalist, Rav Hisda's Daughter: Apprentice and its sequel, Enchantress. Then she switched to nonfiction, winning the Gold Ben Franklin Award in the religion category for Fifty Shades of Talmud: What the First Rabbis Had to Say about You-Know What, a lighthearted in-depth tour of sexuality within the Talmud.

 Twitter: @MagiAnton

Is there a genre of music that influences your writing/thinking? Do you listen to music while you write?

While I was writing the three Rashi’s Daughters volumes, I used to listen to a playlist of my favorite symphonies and concertos on my computer. Usually the music was merely a neutral background that masked other household noises. Occasionally I was blessed when the emotions engendered by the music enhanced the emotions of the scene I was writing, but sometimes the opposite occurred. Eventually I got a new computer whose operating system didn’t support my old music program, and I became proficient enough at my craft that I didn’t need the right music to create the emotional response I was looking for.

Is there a work of art that you love? Why? Have you ever visited it in person?

One of the highlights at Tzipori National Park in Israel is a villa featuring the breathtakingly beautiful mosaic dubbed the Mona Lisa of the Galilee. While it may not look much like da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, it has that same ethereal quality and eyes that seem to follow you around. I’ve visited Tzipori twice, ten years apart, and the amount of ruins uncovered in that decade is a wonder to behold. Nothing even comes close to that mosaic. When writing Rav Hisda’s Daughter, I couldn’t resist visiting it, especially once I learned that the elderly Rav Hisda had traveled to the location to bury a colleague. He was accompanied by his daughter, who became the artist’s model. Thus the mosaic gets a new audience as it appears on the novel’s cover.

Vacation druthers—city or rural destination? Why?

I prefer rural destinations. I love to hike through forests (rain and redwood), mountain meadows bursting with wildflowers, and deserts filled with cacti; ramble along streambeds, rivers, and oceans; and snorkel in crystal-clear waters filled with colorful fish and corals. I live in a big city, and I’ve done book tours in many other big cities. After I’ve seen one, I’m not inclined to see it again.

Do you have another artistic outlet in addition to your writing? Do you sew? Paint? Draw? Knit? Dance?

My husband and I have been swing dancing for decades, even participating in conventions and competitions. We used to attend local dances and take lessons, but now we dance alone in our living room to avoid getting COVID-19.

What brings you great joy?

I feel such joy when a fan tells me, either in person or via email, that reading my novels has made her want to study Talmud and she asks where to begin.