Elegant readings of Israeli literary autobiography
591701
Self as Nation is a tour-de-force of scholarship and elegant critical readings of a wide range of Israeli literary autobiographical writing. Hess is one of the finest exegetes of Hebrew literature today and so, while this monograph is written for specialists in literary studies, it offers a wonderful opportunity for English-language readers to eavesdrop on her as she explores her subjects in typically nuanced and sensitive fashion. American readers interested in women writers and in Israeli novelists whose works have recently been translated into English but haven't received much critical attention here (e.g. Yoram Kaniuk, Haim Beer, Shimon Ballas) will be especially well served. This is a book for those who want to look beyond Amos Oz's A Tale of Love and Darkness as the sole or even typical frame for understanding Israeli literature and memory.
1005690
Americans life in Israel
Colors From a Zionists Palette by Ariel Larkey, Geffen Publishing (c) 2012; ISBN 978-965-229-605-4; 63 pages, retail price unlisted

By Donald H. Harrison

SAN DIEGO CThe colors referred to in this title probably are in pastel Cvery light shades, in fact  to match the story-telling style of author Ariel Larkey.  His tales are pleasing, perhaps the kind one would enjoy over a steaming cappuccino at a favorite coffee house. Taken together, his short stories draw a picture of a man racked by guilt for having been born in the safety of America during the Holocaust.

The book starts with an account of Larkeys childhood in suburban New JerseyCa nostalgic evocation of the late 1930s and 1940sCand tells of his later decision to move his wife and children to Israel over her objections.  What motivated him to make aliyah, even at the cost of a subsequent divorce and separation from his children he doesnt really say.

Next we learn of his experiences in the Sinai during the 1973 Yom Kippur War.  He is a secular Jew, whose interest in religion stopped with his bar mitzvah.  An Orthodox Jew shares the trench with him, whom he learns immigrated as a child from Germany to South Africa.

Recounting their childhoodsCwhile keeping their heads lowC Larkey recalls that he received in advance of his November 9, 1938 birthday a new snow sled, upon which he happily sped down the embankment near his familys three bedroom home.  His trench mate, Amos, involuntarily winces  for him, November 9, 1938 is indelibly inscribed in his memory as the date of Kristallnacht, a night of terror for him and his family.

The contrast between their early childhood memories prompts in Larkey a series of guilty dreams in which he conflates his life with his comrades Holocaust era experiences.  They include experiencing the terror of a burning town, a trip to Holland, a boat ride to Britain, and then an ocean voyage to a new life in South Africa.

Before longCthis being a book that can be read in a single sitting  we are again on front lines in Israel, but this time they are on the Lebanese border, on a kibbutz where Lackey, having retired from his career as an architect, has taken up writing.  Under rocket attack from the Hezbollah, he volunteers to serve in the kibbutzs emergency communications center.  He feels guilty that the Hebrew that soldiers fighting the war have to hear is so tinged with his American accent.

*
Harrison is editor of San Diego Jewish World.  He may be contacted via donald.harrison@sdjewishworld.com
3476021
From its celebrated opening -- "The past is a foreign country: they do things differently there" -- a reader can deduce a great deal about the tone and theme of this 1953 novel, a recent reissue in the remarkable New York Review Books series. The narrative will be formal, even elegant (note that colon). Emotion will be recollected, perhaps in tranquillity, but certainly without moral judgment. Not least, however, that first sentence suggests the perplexity of a stranger in a place where people act in mysterious ways.
1556552
If for no other reason, author Azar Nafisi provides great value with her memoir by adding texture and dimension to her native Iran, a portrayal that goes well beyond what one sees on CNN. Nafisi is adept at showing the sharp ideological and political divisions between Iranians, obliterating the stereotype of a uniformly anti-American, radical Muslim nation. What makes this book a particularly absorbing read is her compelling storytelling skills, not her political reportage. Of course, there are particularly potent accounts of protests and demonstrations, of bombings and the murders of intellectuals, which help to build the overriding context of Iranian history. However, Nafisi focuses most of her book on the day-to-day activities in which the ideology of the Islamic Republic has insinuated itself into the lives of ordinary Iranians. What evolves from her narrative are personal histories and human concerns expressed by Nafisi and her reading circle. Consequently, she highlights an unacknowledged aspect of a war-torn country, which is the motivation to become more creative than ever in finding outlets for their dreams and passions. As Nafisi notes in one memorable anecdote, many Iranians are just as worried about their illegal satellite dishes being confiscated as they are about witnessing shootings in their backyards. She is able to encompass a wide variety of perspectives and experiences, including her own passionate opposition to the Islamic Republic, as well as several in her reading circle who insist with equal fervor the importance and necessity of Islamic ideology and regulations. These types of penetrating observations are what makes Nafisi's book a vital read.

Where the author goes somewhat astray is in her attempts to draw broader conclusions about these activities, specifically her interpretation of the political ramifications of the pent-up humanism of Iran's people. What begins as an intensely personal pursuit-that of reading novels by western authors-for Nafisi and her students takes on political dimensions. Nonetheless, the responses of Nafisi's students to the works of Nabokov, Fitzgerald, James, and Austen provide a remarkable insight into the thoughts of young Iranians who grew up with the specter of Khomeini and his reforms. This book is ultimately a kindred of Ray Bradbury's classic "Fahrenheit 451" and Dai Sijie's recent "Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress". All three stories revolve around an oppressive society that has sealed itself off from literature and how someone recognizes these works of art as the change agents they are. But I actually recommend reading another book, Kenneth Pollack's "The Persian Puzzle: The Conflict Between Iran and America", after reading Nafisi's book in order to get a complete landscape of the Iranian people and culture.
4678860
A wonderful collection of Jewish folk stories, both amusing and inspirational. Some of the translations (the original was in French) are slightly awkward, but for the most part the book is quite readable. I was hoping these would make good children's bedtime stories, but most would not. The concepts are often too complex for young children.

The paper used is very nice quality, the printing is excellent, and there is a selection of lovely illustrations. The binding looks nice and is of above average quality.
1995768
"The Five Books of [Abraham] Moses" is suitably described on the cover as "An Autobiographical Narrative." Rabbi Abraham Mann grabs storytelling by the reigns as he develops intriguing scenes of his often complicated and sometimes steamy life, yet he's always practical. Some scenes crackle off the page. I couldn't wait to read what happens next. He faces ethical dilemmas with detailed integrity and humanity as he searches for the truth from his soul, revealing an inner voice urging him to always do the right thing. Reading between the lines, I find this rabbi's life is complicated and sometimes thorny, just like most everyone. Self-discovery and eventual mature wisdom led him into the rabbinate where he develops a noted career and begins his family. A stint in the military was challenging for this yeshiva boy. His humor often breaks the tension of dilemmas and disappointments as he always lands on his feet. "God was on my side," he says.
Mann's first book which is well written, crafted and edited, is a joy to read. Thank you for the exceptional fine writing.
Menucha Meinstein, Author of "My Eyes Looking Back at Me: Insight Into A Survivor's Soul"
4895750
Written with clarity and none of the flourishes and writerly indulgences we have come to expect from other memoirs, (most of which employ ghost-writers), My Lunch with Shostakovich is an episodic account of a rich and worthy life. Dr. Hollander's lunch with Shostakovich is the least of it, as the famed musician turned out to be somewhat of a sourpuss. He also had lunch (or dinner) with the king of Sweden, the Israeli actor Topol, and shook hands with the Prince of Wales. Famous scientists were colleagues, (in another more-just universe, Hollander might have gotten the Nobel himself) and famous musicians and actors came and stayed. He tells of these events honestly and plainly. I found myself addicted to this volume.
This memoir was given to my family as a gift by the author. As I found myself re-reading some of the chapters many times, it didn't feel right not to put in my four-and-a-half cents. If Amazon had four and a half stars, I'd have popped those in.
2132349
Abecassis writes well and succinctly. She captures moments exquisitively - feeling to feeling ... human eye view of who what why and where. The whole life rhythm of Judaism and the "Black Hats" (so-called in Israel) is well described in her writing.

Abecassis's Sacred reminds me of Jewish literature in her style and perspective as a writer and story-teller.

Pirke Avot is a famous collection of rabbinic sages wisdom sayings and stories dating back to 250 BCE - 250 CE. Pirke Avot is one of my favorite books. Abecassis covers similar ground in her book Sacred, just from a Chassidic observant woman's wisdom and point of view. The matter of bearing children and parenting future generations has always been central to Judaism with the family being at the core of Jewish life. This theme rubs up so nicely to the individual's experience in this life journey as portrayed in the ten year marriage of Rachel and Nathan.

This paragraph, how Rachel observes and interprets Nathan reminds me of a sacred and surreal spiritual reflection, perhaps even as she feels emotionally and/or rationally about their marriage ...

Discipline and self-control are the key to
happiness. The eye sees then the heart desires
and finally the body sins. Each morning,
Nathan puts on his phylacteries (*Tiffillin) so that he
may see the omnipresent Face of God. Each
morning, he binds his arms, and
he remembers the Name of God. And each
morning, he reflects on what is important in
life. And he wonders why he was born, and
what is the purpose of existence.
(P. 74)

Each morning is repeated three times, which captures the moment and enforces the daily cycle they live. She refers to God twice in classic Torah-style references. More importantly, she successfully describes Judaism and the Jewish Ethos just as effortlessly as the rabbinic sages in Pirke Avot.

Despair bellows and saturates the closing of her book, yet Rachel possesses a stoic dignity of spirit that is undeniable.

While it appears that most critics have assumed this to be a work of feminist literature, I disagree with this premise.

I don't see the "oppression" of women theme as the purpose of the book. Fate ... in the throes of social conventions, throws Rachel into a lover's abyss ... with marriage as the obligatory and underlying social convention.

The tenderness of her love for her husband is bound and feathered with genuine emotion and soulful yearning, even as Rachel succumbs to fate and inertia to change the circumstances and tell Nathan the truth about ...

Sacred is a love story woven within the tapestry of a master writer ... merci pour sa livre Eliette Abecasiss.
3470012
This is a short and lovely book by Israels leading writer. Set on an imaginary kibbutz in the 1950s, a series of interrelated short stories give a sympathetic yet realistic portrayal of people trying to live an ideological, utopian experimentwhich inevitably falls short as human failings like jealousy, gossip, cruelty, arrogance, and disloyalty turn human life into the same difficult challenge that it tends to be everywhere.
Yet Oz, who was a kibbutznik a good part of his life, does not write in anger or satire but in resignation and love. What is intriguing is that Oz, who remains distinctly to the left side of the Israeli political map, expresses here what could be called a conservative insight: human nature is what it is, can never be perfected, and is indeed far from perfect. This captivating collection is full of the subtlest poetic touches.
576018
This intelligent, informative and moving memoir is well worth a quick and easy read. It tells the story of the Israeli author's personal and political transformation. Miko Peled, from a prominent Zionist family, the son of a prominent Israeli general, becomes a critic of the Israeli occupation and a supporter of the Palestinian victims. Highly recommended for both specialists and the general public alike. A book that is worth encouraging others to read.
3216189
This important addition to the living works in Yiddish Literature should be treasured. The translations are honest and true. Among the translators is Yiddish Language and Literature authority Marvin Zuckerman, whose translations of Aleichem and others are classics in the field. Shklar's work has yet to receive the recognition it deserves. Perhaps this volume will help correct that state of affairs.
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In 1980, Israeli poet Yehuda Amichai noted in a lecture that I attended the responsibility of the writer to help their reader understand the nuance of language. Language, he argued, was being appropriated by pundits and politicians in a manner that was systematically degrading the value of the "word".
Edeet Ravel's first novel, a finalist for the Canadian Governor General's Award for literature is a lovely blend exploring language, love, and the  rich contradictions of Israeli society in the late 1970s. While the novel has yet to appear in hebrew (I think), Ten Thousand Lovers is among the very first novels to explore the nuances and growing turmoil of Israeli society in the late 1970s. The novel also takes the reader on several insightful excursions on the meaning of hebrew and arabic words informing the dialogue and backdrop in the narrative.
As someone who lived in Israel through much of the period, I found myself swept back to those days from the hitchhiking experiences (which have largely disappeared), to the carefree night life in Tel Aviv (which is still very real), to the confusing conversations over identity between Israelis, Israeli-Arabs, American and Candian Jews, Georgians, Yeminites, and Ethiopians. The politics of of an emerging occupation culture, which everyone who lived through those days fully appreciates, is wonderfully shared through the love relationship between Ami and Lily.
In the past year or two a number of novels have explored the messy vitality of Israeli society (both jewish and arab) in the post 60's era. While not as rich and mature as A.B. Yehoshua's The Liberated Bride, or Open Heart, Ravel's first novel, is an amazing read for its female-centered characters, its insights and glimpses into the invisible realities of Israeli life. I hope she has another manuscript in the works. I can't wait to read it.
2435062
Avram Davidson died in 1993. He was, as so often said, one of the great originals. His writing was elegant and complex: always adapted to the voices of his narrators and characters, always at some level humorous even when telling a dark story. He was one of those writers whose stories were always enjoyable just for wallowing in the prose: for its sprung rhythms and fine, out of the way, images. And his stories were enjoyable for wallowing in the atmosphere: for its evocation of exotic place-times, whether it be late '50s New York City or early '70s Belize or turn of the century Scythia-Pannonia-Transbalkania or far future Barnum's Planet, and for its evocation of exotic world-views, and the packing and repacking of wondrous, seemingly inconsequential (though rarely truly so) tidbits of history and unhistory into the backgrounds. And his best stories took these characteristics and harnessed them in the service of well-honed themes or (sometimes) clever plots.
This collection is organized as a retrospective, with the selections placed in order of first appearance. This is, I think, an excellent choice for any collection of this magnitude in that it allows the interested reader to try to track evolutions in the writer's style and thematic concerns over time. (I would suggest, perhaps, that the older Davidson was more prone to explorations of esoterica than the younger, and less often openly angry. Throughout his career he was ready with the comic touch, even in the midst of a darker context. His style was always special, but perhaps grew more involved as he grew older.)
Another feature of this collection is the introductions, by many of Davidson's friends: mostly fellow authors and editors, but also his bibliographer, Henry Wessels, and his son. This represent a significant chunk of "value added": they include some personal reminiscences, some analyses of the work, some elegiac passages. I'll add that the book is nicely and elegantly put together, and that editors Robert Silverberg and Grania Davis (as well as Tor in-house editor Teresa Nielsen Hayden) deserve thanks and applause for working to bring us this book.
But, of course, there is no Avram Davidson Treasury without the stories Avram Davidson wrote, of which 38 are assembled here. And the stories are the only real reason to buy and exult in this book. I'm a big Davidson fan, make no mistake: I come to this review not at all objective, and having reading all but a few of the stories already, many of them several times. At least one, "The Sources of the Nile", is firmly on my personal list of the best SF stories of all time.
There is not space to discuss the delightful stories herein contained. Suffice it to say that this collection is big enough, and varied enough, to whet the appetite of any reader whose ear can be tuned to catch the strains of Davidson's voice. And even this large collection inevitably leaves out many fine stories (the other Eszterhazy and Limekiller stories, "The Lord of Central Park", many more), to say nothing of his engaging collection of essays, Adventures in Unhistory, in which he discusses at length many obscure legends, and their possible bases in fact. So buy it and read it, and very likely you will find yourself searching out the out of print and small press books which house the rest of his work (for now), and very likely too you will be hoping with the rest of us Davidson lovers for a few more treasures to be dug from his papers.
1740707
"The New York Times Book of the Dead" enables users to browse through three hundred and twenty print obituaries (some abridged) plus ten thousand more that are unabridged, searchable, and accessible using the provided web-key. Edited by William McDonald, this six hundred and fifty-one page book includes obituaries dating from 1851 to June 3, 2016. The pieces, accompanied by iconic black and white photographs, are arranged by such subject headings as "The Notorious," "Thinkers," "Athletes," and "The Media," but the index allows you to locate a particular name quickly.

Some eyebrow-raising omissions are Anton Chekhov, Soren Kierkegaard, Franz Kafka, and Sylvia Plath, whose significance and reputation grew posthumously. As they thumb through these pages, readers might ask: What aspects of the person's life were emphasized or downplayed? How does the obituary reflect the period in which it was written? Do the obituaries give a balanced account of each individual's positive and negative attributes? As McDonald says in his introduction, "No one has ever called journalism a science," and some will take issue with entries that they believe fail to capture the deceased's essential traits and historical significance.

Why would anyone want to own this hefty volume? "The New York Times Book of the Dead" offers a window into the lives and times of people who were infamous and destructive; brilliant, innovative, and creative; influential and groundbreaking; and talented in sports, the arts, and other fields of endeavor. You'll find such disparate figures as Sitting Bull, Cesar Chavez, Osama Bin Laden, P. T. Barnum, John Lennon, Mata-Hari, Queen Victoria, Frederick Douglass, Al Capone, Robin Williams, Yogi Berra, and Albert Einstein. Whether you read it for enjoyment, factual information, or both, this impressive biographical work will enlighten and entertain you for years to come.
175481
There are many books on the Holocaust, but this volume explores the topic from the perspective of diaries, memoirs, photographs, and other primary sources.  "Holocaust Chronicles" comprises essays on these invaluable first-hand accounts, each written by a noted authority on the subject.  Two Warsaw Ghetto is represented by essays on literary pieces: "Landkentenish: Yiddish Belles Lettres in the Warsaw Ghetto," by David Roskies, and "Literature in the Ghetto in the Polish Language: Z otchlani - from the Abyss," by Rafael Scharf; Janusz Korczak by "Who Korczak Was and Why We Cannot Know Him," by Richard Lourie (who translated Korczak's "King Matt the First"), and "Janusz Korczak on Planet Ro," by Betty Jean Lifton (author of the pre-eminent English-langauge biography of Dr. Korczak); other Warsaw Ghetto diaries by "'Will They Dare?': Perceptions of Threat in Diaries from the Warsaw Ghetto," by David Engel, and "Two Forms of Jewish Resistance, Two Functions of Ringelblum's Oyneg Shabes Archive," by Ruta Sakowska.  The Lodz Ghetto is represented by four esssays: "Diaries and Memoirs from the Lodz Ghetto in Yiddish and Hebrew," by Robert Moses Shapiro, "Individual Experience in Diaries from the Lodz Ghetto," by Marian Turski, "Mendel Grossman: Photographic Bard of Ghetto Lodz," by Pinchas Shaar, and "The Role of Singing in the Ghettos: Between Entertainment and Witnessing," by Gila Flam.  The Vilna Ghetto is represented by four essays: "The Vilna Ghetto Diaries," by Dina Porat, and "Vilna and Warsaw, Two Ghetto Diaries: Herman Kruk and Emanuel Ringelblum," by Samuel David Kassow (who himself grew up in Vilnius and is an authority on Ringelblum's archives), "Two Memoirs from the Edge of Destruction," by Jan Tomasz Gross, and "The Holocaust in the Diaries of Zofia Nalkowska, Maria Dabrowska, and Jaroslaw Iwaszkiewicz," by Magdalena Opalski.  Also included are essays on unpublished diaries and memoirs in Poland and the Soviet Union and a series of Methodological Questions (including Rabbinical works).  What makes this book so important is that it documents contemporary efforts to record the history that the Nazis wanted to erase and the rest of the world wanted to ignore.
2055719
In Words Facing East, Kimberly Becker offers the reader a collection of poems that have the ring of autobiography. Some evidently personal, somewell, one must keep in mind that the I in a poem is not necessarily the I of the poet. But I think this collection is autobiographical in the larger sense: Becker, having reclaimed her Eastern Cherokee roots, takes the reader into moments of and allusions to the history of her own people and the Native American experience as a whole through poignant stories about individual lives and sorrow-filled events. From a literary point of view Becker continues traditions as old as the ancient Greek poets. Her well-crafted free verse abounds in images and themes from nature lovingly used to convey human experience and emotiondesire and loss, grief and enduranceand reveals the universal in the particular.  Like all good poetry her words facing East are to be pondered and savored.
4172423
Amos Oz's newest book is definitely interesting and I must admit that it is much different than the types of books that I usually read.  The book includes eight short stories that take place in the fictional village, Tel Ilan in Israel.  Oz describes Tel Ilan as a beautiful, village, as beautiful as any town in Tuscany.  The village is inhabited by some families who have lived there for generations and a young, yuppie population who stay in the village in their second homes during the weekends.

The apparent purpose of the book is to give a glimpse of what goes on beneath the surface of everyday life.  Oz does this within eight, distinct chapters: Heirs, Relations, Digging, Lost, Waiting, Strangers, Singing, and In a Faraway Place at Another Time.  Each chapter includes an individual short story that is not interrelated to the other short stories in the book, except that some characters from one chapter might be briefly mentioned in another chapter.

Within each chapter, Oz tells the story of a main character.  The characters vary in age and gender.  For example, one is a  single woman who waits for her nephew that never shows up, another is a couple that has lost their only child, and another is a single man who lives with his elderly mother.

Oz has mastered the ability to write with symbolism and the emotions experienced by each character can be felt by the reader.  He skillfully draws the reader immediately into each story and even though the stories were dark, I kept wanting to read them.

Oz does not resolve any of the short stories and the conclusion of the book is as odd as the rest of the book.  The main characters have pathetic existences and the voids in their lives seem to consume them.  I had hoped that at least one of the stories would have been lighthearted, but that never happened.  I look forward to reading other books written by Oz to find out whether this book is typical or untypical of his writing style.

I should add that the translation is exceptional and it is impossible to tell from the writing that Oz did not write this novel in English.