From British Humor to Jewish Cartoon Art: The Inspiring Journey of Karen Keet

Karen Keet grew up in a traditional but not fully observant Jewish home in England. From early childhood, her quick wit and sense of humor were unmistakable.

“I always loved making people laugh,” she says. On stage at school, in preschool skits, or simply among friends, Karen was one of those people who could invent a joke on the spot.

Still, despite her humorous personality, she didn’t shy away from the serious side of life. Before beginning her English Literature studies at the University of Birmingham, Karen made a life-changing decision: she chose to spend a year in Israel.

Discovering Judaism in Israel

Karen’s brother had recently become religious and was studying at Aish HaTorah in Jerusalem. Karen was curious about his new lifestyle, but she preferred learning about Judaism in a general, non-religious setting.

She signed up for a course focused on Jewish history that included field trips to archeological sites referenced in their studies. “Seeing real places connected to such ancient periods in our history deepened my faith,” she explains.

A Strengthening Bond With Her Brother

"My brother would occasionally share things he had learned, and they resonated with me. At first I felt intimidated by a religious lifestyle, but as I began to understand the reasoning behind the mitzvot and the logic of Jewish belief, I felt that this was the life I had always been searching for.”

One area that drew her powerfully to Judaism was its teachings on love and marriage. “I’m quite romantic, and I wanted to be sure that my marriage would succeed. The Torah’s framework for marriage made so much sense to me. Modesty laws also appealed to me — I saw them as a way to protect my dignity and femininity in a world that often dismisses such values.”

Cartoonist Keren Keet

Returning to England: A Difficult Year and a Fresh Start

Karen returned to England and completed a year at the University of Birmingham — a lonely and difficult year for a young Jewish woman awakening to her spiritual roots.

She eventually transferred to the University of London, where she found a far more supportive environment. There she attended regular Torah classes and spent nearly every Shabbat with local religious families.

As someone who loves humor, did you find it in the Haredi community?

“When I began joining Shabbat meals with Haredi families, I was amazed by their warmth and humor. It made me feel at home. I also had the privilege of hearing fantastic and funny lectures from rabbis like Rabbi David Orlofsky and Rabbi David Kaplan, who use humor to teach Torah values.”

Which Chassidus Do You Belong To?

Marriage and Life in Gateshead

Shortly before completing her studies, Karen married her husband Aharon, a South African baal teshuvah who had studied at Ohr Somayach.

The couple soon moved to Gateshead, where Aharon learned in kollel and Karen worked as a secretary in a kiruv organization. They lived there for nine years and remember the community as warm and embracing.

Weightlifting – The Religious Counterpoint

The Birth of a Cartoonist

“I always loved art, and at some point I began using spare moments at work to doodle humorous sketches. My big break came when I sent a few samples to Aish.com’s humor section.”

Her cartoons stood out immediately: charming, funny illustrations depicting everyday Jewish family life — pre-Pesach chametz-crumb hunts, overindulgence at Shabbat meals, and many other relatable scenes.

Editors loved her work. Karen has since become a regular cartoonist on the site. She also branched out into another artistic venture of creating humorous Jewish greeting cards and selling them throughout London, where she currently lives.

“I thought, Jews love jokes, so why should our greeting cards only be pretty? Why not make them funny too?”

The Keet Family

What Makes People Laugh?

“People especially love comics about modern technology — it’s a rich source of humor, and it gives a fresh angle to traditional Jewish comedic themes like the overprotective mother.

"It’s also funny how people interpret my drawings. Once I drew two non-Jewish men lifting heavy weights beside a Jewish man lifting a Torah scroll for hagbah. A friend told me the cartoon had a deep message: the world thinks strength comes from muscles, but we believe strength comes from Torah. It made sense — but I can’t claim I intended such a lofty idea!”

Do you have a favorite cartoon?

“It’s hard to choose. Multi-panel comics are more complex, and I enjoy building suspense. For example, ‘Tenth Man for a Minyan,’ which shows the missing tenth man arriving like Superman, flying in to save the day.

“But I also love cartoons that have minimal text — or none at all, when the humor comes through the illustration alone.”

Tenth for a Minyan – The Jewish Superman

Advice for Aspiring Cartoonists

Karen offers a few words of advice for others who dream of illustrating humorous cartoons: “Make sure you have a stable job alongside it,” she laughs. “And if you want to be good at what you do, don’t take life too seriously. Remember how ridiculous we all look sometimes from the outside — that usually helps you find the humor.”