Synopses & Reviews
"Perhaps most of the essays in this book are substitutes for stories that I have not managed to write," says Amos Oz in the preface to Under This Blazing Light. Published for the first time in English, this collection of essays reveals the personal and political thoughts of Israel's most celebrated novelist. The essays in this volume put a unique perspective on the author's own experiences and development, and reveal a complex and deeply human figure of practical political influence as well as of significant literary stature. Oz's refreshing blend of skepticism and idealism will win for him new readers, while delighting those who will recognize here the qualities evident in his other writings. Relevant in light of recent developments in the Middle East, the topics covered include an examination of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict as a dispute between "Right and Right"; a look at the meaning of socialism in the Israeli context; reflections on the concept of "Homeland" and on the nature of the Kibbutz; and reflections on the character of Zionism. The essays also include portraits of several Jewish writers and thinkers whose ideas and themes in one way or another have proved influential or determinative for Amos Oz himself. Amos Oz is widely considered to be Israel's most famous living writer. His fifteen books include My Michael, Touch the Water, Touch the Wind, In the Land of Israel, Black Box, To Know a Woman, and Fima. His work has been translated into twenty-nine languages, and he has received several major literary awards. He is currently a Professor of Modern Hebrew Literature at Ben-Gurion University.
Review
"Under This Blazing Light by Amos Oz is a wondrous collection of essays that brilliantly reveal to us the heart and mind of one of the great writers of our time." Chaim Potok"Though written in the 1960s and '70s, these searching essays by Israeli novelist and peace activist Oz are remarkably fresh and timely." Publishers Weekly"Adapted from articles, interviews, and lectures from the 1960s and 70s, this is a provocative collection on Israeli society by one of the country's foremost novelists....Whether these musings touch upon the kibbutz, Israeli literature, or his early years in Jerusalem, Oz captivates the reader with his elegantly poetic voice." Kirkus Reviews"Although these essays were written in the 1960s and 1970s, the fears expressed in them still exist, but the hopes they describe now seem a little closer to reality." Booklist"This collection of political, personal and literary pieces by one of Israel's most celebrated novelists is an unmitigated delight...Oz gives us a discreet and charming collection of his writings." Ben Ishtov, Jewish Frontier"By critiquing several well-known Jewish writers and thinkers, Oz gives the reader an insight into the influences on his frame of mind...while providing a highly illuminating perspective on Zionism, Socialism, Judaism, and the Israeli- Palestinian conflict...these useful essays from a major Israeli author are long overdue. Highly recommended for previous fans..." Charles A. Weiss, Library Journal"...the essays present Oz's spellbinding versatility in an attractive and large enough manner to include most of his esthetic and intellectual merits." Yair Mazor, World Literature Today
Synopsis
A collection of essays by Israel's most famous living author.
Synopsis
This collection--published here in English for the first time--brings together a number of political, personal, and literary pieces by Israel's most celebrated living writer. Lively, tentative, and undogmatic, Oz's compelling literary insights make for consistently stimulating reading, while his commentary on Israel's cultural and political situation seems more relevant than ever in the light of recent developments. The essays reveal a complex and humane figure of practical political influence and lasting literary stature.
Synopsis
This collection brings together political, personal and literary pieces by Israel's most celebrated living writer. Amos Oz's commentary on Israel's cultural and political situation, and his thoughts on modern literature, reveal him as a complex and humane figure of political influence and literary stature.
Table of Contents
Introduction; 1. Events and books; 2. Under this blazing light; 3. 'Man is the sum total of all the sin and fire pent up in his bones'; 4. 'A ridiculous miracle hanging over our heads'; 5. The State as reprisal; 6. A modest attempt to set out a theory; 7. The meaning of homeland; 8. The discreet charm of Zionism; 9. A. D. Gordon today; 10. Thoughts on the kibbutz; 11. The kibbutz at the present time; 12. How to be a socialist; 13. Munia Mandel's secret language; 14. Pinchas Lavon; 15. The lost garden; 16. An autobiographical note; 17. An alien city; 18. Like a gangster on the night of the long knives, but somewhat in a dream; Notes; Publication history.