Amos ozs my michael is the story of a marriage between two quite different people and of their lives during the unsettled period after israel gained its independence, and this unsettledness is paralleled in michael and hannahs marriage. With a new introduction from the author my michael is a beautiful work of great depth and lingers in the mind as a lyric song to his countrys people as much as a moving love story arthur miller 1950s jerusalem hannah gonen has just married and is thrilled and pained by her young wellmeaning husband. Israels literary giant, amos oz 19392018 was one of that countrys bestselling and most prolific writers, capturing the characters and culture of the young state in novels such as my michael, judas, black box, the same sea and many others. Hannah gonen, married to michael, a geology professor, and mother of a young son, tells her story as throughout she strains toward truths denied. I am writing this because people i loved have died. Amos oz s my michael is the story of a marriage between two quite different people and of their lives during the unsettled period after israel gained its independence, and this unsettledness is paralleled in michael and hannahs marriage. My michael, an early work, reveals him to have been from the first everything we know him to be today. The primarysource perspective is a treat, as oz discusses lots of cool details i didnt cover, such as how the. Nov 28, 2016 judas, a new novel by amos oz, is a paradox of stillness and provocation. A couple in jerusalem before the six day war in 1967, fall in love, get married, have a child and drift apart.
Dec 28, 2018 the esteemed israeli novelist amos oz has died at the age of 79, from cancer. My michael book by amos oz 9 available editions half. Part patriot and part prophet, he also penned provocative essays and nonfiction works such as jews and words and in the land of israel and his acclaimed. Amos oz is one of my favorite contemporary writers but i found this novel a hard read. Id like to thank the publishers for sending a copy to the bookbag. His acclaimed memoir a tale of love and darkness was an international bestseller and recipient of the prestigious goethe prize, as well as the national jewish book award.
With irit alter, ruth farhi, oded kotler, efrat lavie. My michael begins as an epistolary novel set in jerusalem in the 1950s, a place and time which constituted, as amos oz has said, a jewish anticlimax after the tragedies and achievements of. My husband and i are like two strangers who happen to meet coming out of a clinic where they have received treatment involving some physical unpleasantness. At first i thought this was a weaker novel than oz s my michael. It was amos oz s good fortune that his breakthrough novel, my michael, was published in 1968, when, in the wake of the sixday war, everything associated with plucky little israel, from moshe dayan to cinderella rockefeller, was trendy in the west. To an extent these initial failings still persist in the rating for the book. At the age of 14, after his mothers suicide, he went to live in kibbutz. Concentrating on the love between a wife hannah and a husband michael during the. My michael begins as an epistolary novel set in jerusalem in the 1950s, a place and time which constituted, as amos oz has said, a jewish anticlimax after the tragedies and achievements of the. The movie is as good as the book like zorba was also a special book and movie. Amos oz is one of the finest novelists of this entire period. Wedded too young, emotionally unprepared for motherhood, and forced to abandon her.
By the book the israeli author, whose most recent novel is judas, would like to meet chekhov, if only to gossip with him. A flickering, multitoned israeli novel which grapples with times incursions, loves deceptions, and the diminishment of desire. In a short time they fall in love and are married, and yet hannah is. Amos oz was an israeli author, journalist and intellectual. He is the author of fourteen novels and collections of short fiction, and numerous works of nonfiction. Judas, a new novel by amos oz, is a paradox of stillness and provocation. Amos klausner later oz was born in 1939 in jerusalem, mandatory palestine, where he grew up at no. Like all great books, it has an enduring power to surprise and mesmerize. When amos oz recently contemplated the onestepforwardthree. Also slated from vintage international is the reprint of my michael, oz s. One of amos ozs earliest and most famous novels, my michael was a sensation upon its initial publication in 1968 and it has an enduring. Oz has published twentyfive books, and they have appeared in dozens of languages. In the background is divided jerusalem 19481967 not 1950s as some wrote.
Its quite the last kind of book one expects from a young writer living in the. Amos oz is a commanding artist who ranks with the most important writers of our time. I n his introduction to this new edition of my michael, written more than 40 years after the books original appearence, amos oz describes how hannah, his intelligent, bored and increasingly. From judas, picked by natalie portman for her inaugural book circle which she started in the wake of his recent death, to my michael, his breakthrough novel, weve picked five of ozs books to introduce you to this great writer.
My michael is a beautiful work of great depth and in some indescribable way lingers in the mind as a lyric song to his countrys people as much as a moving love story. A decidedly sick, egotistical, useless human being, obsessed with herself and nothing else. I also found this audio recording of a bbc world book club interview with amos oz. His books have been translated into dozens of languages. And he has, with his peace now credentials, remained the international literatis darling.
Amos oz, israeli novelist, shortstory writer, and essayist in whose works israeli society is unapologetically scrutinized. If this book appeals then you might like to try theres no home by alexander baron. Oz, amos my michael is a novel written in hebrew by the israeli author amos oz, published in 1968 by am oved, and translated into about thirty languages. My michael by amos oz used very good 9780099529057.
My husband and i are like two strangers who happen to meet coming out of a clinic where they have. I am writing this because when i was young i was full of the power of loving, and now that power of loving is dying. Beautifully realized, my michael, which shows hannahs possessiveness and. My michael by amos oz and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. Amos ozmy michael jan 12th, 2012 by mary my husband and i are like two strangers who happen to meet coming out of a clinic where they have received treatment involving some physical unpleasantness.
My initial lofty expectations were not met, im afraid. As hannah gonens seemingly happy marriage to michael gradually breaks. It is very well written, only the main character provoked in me very strong feelings of antipathy. Read my michael a novel by amos oz available from rakuten kobo. Jan 30, 2019 amos oz was one of israels greatest authors a novelist, essayist, political activist, intellectual and soldier. Set in 1950s jerusalem, my michael is the story of a remote and intense woman named hannah gonen and her marriage to a decent but unremarkable man named michael. Just send us an email and well put the best up on the site. My michael was the first amos oz i read, judas the last, said chika unigwe, a nigerianborn novelist who served on the panel that shortlisted oz s judas for the 2017 man.
The bertelsmann publishing house named it among the one hundred best novels of the 20th century the book describes the love and marriage of a young woman against the background of 1950s jerusalem. Where to start reading amos ozs books recommendations. Dec 28, 2018 jerusalem amos oz, the renowned israeli author whose work captured the characters and landscapes of his young nation, and who matured into a leading moral voice and an insistent advocate for. A tale of love and darkness by amos oz, black box by amos oz, judas by amos oz, how to cure a fanatic by amos oz, and my michae. My michael has 9 available editions to buy at half price books marketplace. As the years pass and hannahs tempestuous fantasy life encroaches upon reality, she feels increasingly estranged from him and the marriage gradually disintegrates. Jan 05, 2019 the israeli writer amos oz, who died on december 28th, at the age of seventynine, was a cultural hero in the old sense, an acolyte who patiently made himself the gray eminence of a lost, or. Amos oz has 96 books on goodreads with 88694 ratings. One of amos oz s earliest and most famous novels, my michael was a sensation upon its initial publication in 1968 and established oz as a writer of international acclaim.
But they drifted apart as they lived in different worlds. A child of european jewry, the israeli writer amos oz, who has died aged 79, became the father of a hebrew literature where the personal and the public overlapped. Also slated from vintage international is the reprint of my michael, ozs. My michael was the first amos oz i read, judas the last, said chika unigwe, a nigerianborn novelist who served on the panel that shortlisted ozs judas for the 2017 man. One of amos oz s earliest and most famous novels, my michael created a sensation upon its initial publication in 1968 and established oz as a writer of international acclaim. He was the recipient of the prix femina, the frankfurt peace prize, the goethe prize, the primo levi prize, and the national jewish book award, among other international honors. The form of the story told mainly through written letters the characters sent to one another felt clunky and inappropriate for the type of story amos oz it seemed was trying to tell. Arthur miller amos oz is a great writer because he tells stories about real people in a way that noone else can. This classic novel by amos oz is a good introduction to this brilliant israeli author. My michael paperback april 28, 1992 by amos oz author. Gossip, after all, is a distant cousin of stories and novels. Oz, an israel prize laureate, was the author of dozens of hebrewlanguage books including novels, novellas, shortstory collections and essays, as well as around 500 pieces for israeli and foreign periodicals. The root of his dualism may be a profound moral unease.
Set in 1950s jerusalem, my michael is the story of a remote and intense. My michael is the third book i have read by amos oz. Unlike most translations of foreign books into english, oz, who speaks fluent english, closely supervises the translation of his work and therefore the english translations of his work beautifully capture the rhythm of his writing in the original hebrew. Amos oz, remembered by those who knew him the forward. Amos ozs 1968 classic takes the reader into the fevered mind of a young woman in 50s jerusalem, writes rosanna boscawen. My michael ebook by amos oz 9780547542669 rakuten kobo. With michael away at war, his wife starts fantasizing about twin arabs she used to play with as a child.
Just dreamy wonderful perfect prose in translation of hannah telling us about her history with michael, her husband, a geologist, a goodnatured man. A passionate advocate of a twostate solution with palestine, oz rocketed into the limelight with his 1968 novel my michael and became globallyrecognised in 2002 with his complex autobiographical account a tale of love and darkness. Thanks to my cousin michal aka miki for her linguistic insight and for gifting me with this beautiful book. But advance rumors hardly prepare one for this first translation of. He also served on the faculty of literature at bengurion university oz was born amos klausner in jerusalem on may 4, 1939, during the british mandate, the son of yehuda arieh and fanya klausner. To be honest, i felt that of the three books, this one is the weakest. Through numerous short stories, novels and essays, oz described a world often at odds with the optimism of the nascent nation state, his writing focused on his immediate geography and situation. In articulate, impassioned articles written during the 80s, israeli writer oz urges israelis to talk peace with the plo. Set in 1950s jerusalem, my michael is the story of a remote and intense woman named hannah gonen and her marriage to a decent but. See all books authored by amos oz, including a tale of love and darkness, and judas, and more on. The israeli author, a longrumored contender for the nobel prize, has reduced the physical action of this story to a.
Discover delightful childrens books with prime book box, a subscription that delivers new books every 1, 2, or 3 months new customers receive 15% off your. He was the only child of fania mussman and yehuda arieh klausner, immigrants to mandatory palestine who had met while studying at the hebrew university of jerusalem. My michael is a novel written in hebrew by the israeli author amos oz, published in 1968 by am oved, and translated into about thirty languages. In a short time they fall in love and are married, and yet hannah is never satisfied. The esteemed israeli novelist amos oz has died at the age of 79, from cancer. This book was first published in 1972 to great acclaim. Sep 24, 2011 i n his introduction to this new edition of my michael, written more than 40 years after the book s original appearence, amos oz describes how hannah, his intelligent, bored and increasingly. A hint or clue to possibility commands investigation.
Hannah meets michael in a stairway at the university they both attend. Books by amos oz author of a tale of love and darkness. You see, i dont have a bookshelf with my eternal beloved ones on it. The bertelsmann publishing house named it among the one hundred best novels of the 20th century. When my michael became a bestseller, oz continued the socialist practices of the kibbutz. His notable books include the novels my michael 1968 and black box 1987 and the memoir a tale of love and darkness 2002. He a geology student she literature love at first sight. When his novel my michael became a bestseller, oz quipped, i became a branch of the farm, yet they still said i could have just three days a week to write. Now 33, he has published two novels, two novellas, short stories and various political, social and literary essays. Thoughtful, selfassured and highly sophisticated, full of the most skillful modulations of tone and texture.
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