Esti Handel's new book, Aleph Is For Love, first rested on my desk. From there, it moved to the bedside table, and later spent some time in the children's room. It gradually circulated through the domestic space. Before leaving for a trip abroad, I found myself wondering whether it might make a suitable gift for my hosts. It was then that I realized there are many different ways of approaching this book. It does not address a single, clearly defined readership; rather, it lends itself to a wide range of reading situations.
Esti Handel is a professional language editor. After many years of editing text-heavy publications, she decided to focus on editing poetry and children's books. Aleph Is For Love is an exceptional personal project for her. The idea for the book began while leafing through a similar book about the Chinese language called Chinesineasi (Chinese + Easy). Although Handel had no interest in learning Chinese, she was drawn to the book because of the way it made such an unfamiliar language accessible. The complete difference between the forms of the Hebrew and Chinese writing systems is obvious; however, the way the language was presented to the foreign reader kept her turning the pages without pause.
Speaking about the book, she says: "I said to myself that Hebrew is so different from the familiar Latin alphabet—in the direction of writing, in its distinct letterforms, in its syntax... everything is different! I thought to myself that Hebrew is like Chinese for many people. It can be a source of curiosity for people who are eager to learn, for people who truly love aesthetics and language. That is why I wrote the book in English: to reach people who do not know the language or its letters, but are curious about them."
At that stage, Handel began browsing bookstores and checking the colophons of the books she found particularly compelling in order to identify their designers. This search led her to the studio of Keren and Golan Gafni. She arrived at their studio in the very early stages of writing. Apart from the book's overall structure and its main themes, she had little sense of what it would ultimately look like. The two designers were immediately drawn to the concept and collaborated closely with her in shaping both its structure and its content. It is evident that the book's design is one of its essential components—not merely presenting the material in an aesthetically pleasing way, but actively constructing its meaning.
Unlike the books previously designed by the studio, in which all of the texts and images were supplied by the client, the process behind this book was different. Gafni recalls: "We began by exploring what a chapter should look like—what the template for a single letter should be, and how a collection of letters should be organized. We developed a consistent structure for each letter and then examined what happens to the experience of reading a chapter devoted to a particular letter, as well as the place of each chapter within the overall sequence of the book. This was important to us in order to create interest and points of distinction from one letter to the next."
At this stage, the designers proposed complementing the text with an illustrated visual language that would refresh the book, give it a contemporary character, and establish a distinct identity. Einat Tsarfati was chosen to illustrate the closing sentence of each letter. Gafni explains: "We suggested Einat because she has a remarkable ability to capture moments with a certain playfulness in her illustrations. She knows how to take a sentence and add another layer of meaning—the combination of reading the sentence and looking at the illustration offers something unexpected."
At the same time, an abstract visual language of shapes was developed to serve as the graphic foundation for the appearance of each letter. It became clear that the book required a coherent system that would unify all of its components—the texts, the letters, the historical development of each letter, the abstract symbol, and the illustrations. Handel describes an evolving working method that tied together the ways in which content and form responded to one another: a circular process in which the raw text called for a graphic framework; once that framework had been established, the text itself was revised and reshaped in relation to it. One could argue that, in this case, the dialogue between the designers and the author redefines the role of the designer as a genuine content editor.
Handel launched a crowdfunding campaign, which proved highly successful. "What amazes me most is meeting people who grew up speaking Hebrew fluently, leafing through the book and saying, 'We didn't know that. Wow, really? This is completely new to me.' Things that seemed entirely self-evident turned out not to be."
Although the book was published in Israel, it was written in English. Handel's original intention was for it to reach readers abroad with an interest in the Hebrew language. At the same time, it also speaks to immigrants who did not grow up with Hebrew and who can use the book as a way of entering more deeply into the language. This diversity of audiences creates a certain ambiguity regarding the book's place on the bookshelf. On the one hand, it is a cross-generational book; on the other, its accessibility makes it especially suitable for relatively young readers. "The audience that surprises me the most is children who try to guess the character of each letter and why it was drawn that way." Accordingly, Handel presents her material through light, accessible narratives that appeal to readers of all ages.
The book's formal qualities reinforce the accessible character of Aleph Is For Love. It is a book that invites non-linear reading: readers return to it from time to time, set it aside, and then come back again. Its size and overall feel make it pleasant to hold and browse. Together with its carefully considered color palette, the book conveys a strong sense of warmth and ease, both in the hand and to the eye. The design challenge of developing a color system that could vary meaningfully across all twenty-two letters creates a dynamic reading experience. Another design decision that I found particularly compelling is the emphasis on the grid, which helps clarify the underlying logic of each chapter.
The designers' involvement was so substantial that Handel asked for their names to appear on the cover alongside hers as content editors. "I truly believe this is a collaborative work. The final book is entirely the result of a shared creative process."
The book is structured around three principal axes: the linguistic, the historical-developmental, and the Jewish-mystical. "My attraction to the Hebrew letters begins with their beauty. In Judaism, beauty holds a place of significance—the calligraphic tradition of Torah scrolls, the decorative crowns (tagin) that adorn certain letters, the commandment during Sukkot to choose the most beautiful etrog, or the ornate mantle of the Torah scroll. There is something about aesthetics that Judaism lingers over."
The book seeks to draw attention to the formal qualities of the Hebrew letter—features that often escape the eye precisely because of their subtlety and therefore require careful explanation. As a people who, over the course of centuries, have devoted profound attention to the reading of texts, a book that celebrates the Hebrew letter ultimately celebrates the text itself—not only what it says, but also how it appears. There is no doubt that the book casts a spotlight on a fundamental aspect of the cultural heritage with which many of us grow up from early childhood.
Esti Handel is a language editor who researches the Alpha-Beit.
Keren and Golan (born 1977), are graphic designers working together. The each hold a B.Des. (with honors) from the Department of Visual Communication Department, Faculty of Design of the Holon Institute of Technology (HIT). Keren and Golan Studio was established in 2005 and provides a range of design services in the field of printed media, including book design, catalogues, artist’s books, and graphic design for exhibitions. The studio focuses mainly on the fields of art, culture and education. Alongside working with clients, the studio initiates projects in the field of design and art. In 2007, the studio started the magazine A5—an independent art magazine presenting works in the field of art and visual communication by local and international artists. The magazine circulates in Israel and abroad, participates in international exhibitions and fairs, and is well received by an expanding audience with each issue. Golan is on the faculty of the Department of Visual Communication at the Faculty of Design at the Holon Institute of Technology, Keren teaches at Shenkar College of Engineering and Design.
