Israeli author Naomi Ragen lost a plagiarism suit regarding her best-selling book “Sotah.”
The Jerusalem District Court ruled Dec. 11 that Ragen, a Jerusalem-based writer, was in breach of copyright with “Sotah” because parts closely resembled the 1990 book “Growing Up with My Children: A Jewish Mother’s Diary.”
The court awarded the complainant, U.S.-born and Jerusalem-based author Sarah Shapiro, approximately $250,000 in damages.
Ragen deplored the ruling, and was quoted in the Israeli media as saying that while she may have been inspired by Shapiro’s book, it was not tantamount to plagiarism. – jta