Orland, Hershl
ORLAND, HERSHL
ORLAND, HERSHL (1896–1946), Soviet Yiddish writer. Born near Kiev, Orland moved to the city at the age of 22, and began his literary career with the publication of his first short stories, on the life of workers, in the Kiev newspaper, Komunistishe Fon. He was a dedicated Communist writer, whose narrative talent was fully appreciated. He wholeheartedly immersed himself in the reconstruction of the socio-economic framework of Jewish life, the main theme of his work. Orland also co-edited Yiddish periodicals, notably the Kiev journal, Sovetishe Literatur. When the Jewish *Anti-Fascist Committee was founded, Orland was one of its writers. His books include the novels Hreblies ("Dikes," 1929), and Aglomerat ("Agglomerate," 1935), both dealing with Sovietization of the shtetl population. While Dikes portrays the melioration of Polesie, Ukraine, Agglomerate is set in the Crimean industrial center of Kerch.
bibliography:
lnyl, 1 (1958), 174–5.
[Israel M. Biderman /
Gennady Estraikh (2nd ed.)]