 | Jews and Words Subjects: Jews -- Intellectual life; Jews -- Origin; Jews -- History; Bible. O.T. -- Criticism interpretation etc.; Hebrew literature -- History and criticism; Judaism -- History; These four long essays-really more of a free-flowing conversation between the noted Israeli novelist and his daughter, a historian-focus primarily on the Jews as "a nation only by virtue of its texts," from the Bible to the work of contemporary Israeli poet Yehuda Amichai-and the interpretations and argumentations that flow from them. The authors, secular Jews who are lovers of the Hebrew Bible, note that "Genesis, Isaiah, and Proverbs are our pyramids... our Gothic cathedrals... undemolished in the flow of time." They look specifically at the role of "vocal women," such as Eve and Lilith, in the Bible and biblical legends. The authors also delve into how the classic Jewish narratives treat time and timelessness, as when a midrash (rabbinic pedagogic story) achieves the "brazen transcendence of time" by having Moses learn about the teachings and terrible fate of Rabbi Akiva, who lived more than a millennium later. A spirited epilogue looks at the strong Jewish tradition of irreverence toward most everything, including God, and cites another novelist, who said that contemporary Judaism's "rendezvous with Western humanism is a fateful one, formative... irrevocable." Oz and Oz-Salzberger's discussion is sometimes disjointed and rambling, but far more often playfully instructive; it will appeal to lay readers interested in a nonreligious Judaism based on contemporary readings of traditional and more modern Jewish texts. (Nov.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved. Amos Oz was born Amos Klausner in Jerusalem on May 4, 1939. As a young teenager, he moved to Kibbutz Hulda, where he completed his secondary education and worked on a farm. After he completed mandatory military service in 1961, the kibbutz assembly sent him to study at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where he received a B.A. in philosophy and literature. After graduation, he moved back to Hulda, where he wrote, did farm work, did guard and dining-room duty, and taught in the kibbutz high school. He fought in the 1967 and 1973 wars and spent a year as a visiting fellow at Oxford University. He wrote novels, collections of short fiction, works of nonfiction, and essays. His novels included My Michael, Black Box, and The Gospel According to Judas. His memoir, A Tale of Love and Darkness, was adapted into a movie in 2016. His last book, Dear Zealot, was made up of three essays on the theme of fanaticism. He was an advocate for peace and believed in a two-state solution, meaning the establishment of a Palestinian state alongside Israel. In the late 1970s, he helped found Peace Now. He received several awards including the Goethe Prize, the French Knight's Cross of the Légion D'Honneur, and the Israel Prize. He died after a short battle with cancer on December 28, 2018 at the age of 79. (Bowker Author Biography) |
