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Shop nowTo Jerusalem and Back
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Learn moreThis extraordinary book is the result of Saul Bellow’s sojourn in Israel in 1975. A personal record of his stay—his experiences and impressions—as well as a meditation, it crackles with wit and controversy on America’s relationship with this embattled country.
Using quick sketches and vignettes, Bellow captures the personal opinions, passions, and dreams of several Israelis, and he also adds to these his own reflections on being Jewish in the twentieth century. The varying viewpoints of those he encounters and interviews offer a revealing look at the history and challenges of Israel, and Bellow’s passionate storytelling draws listeners in to share in his experience.
Saul Bellow (1915–2005), author of numerous novels, novellas, and stories, was the only novelist to receive three National Book Awards. He also received the Pulitzer Prize, the Nobel Prize in Literature, the National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters, and the American Academy of Arts and Letters Gold Medal for Fiction. During the 1967 Arab-Israeli conflict, Bellow served as a war correspondent for Newsday. He taught at New York University, Princeton, and the University of Minnesota and was chairman of the Committee on Social Thought at the University of Chicago.
Malcolm Hillgartner is an accomplished actor, writer, and musician. Named an AudioFile Best Voice of 2013 and the recipient of several Earphones Awards, he has narrated over 175 audiobooks.
Reviews
“An impassioned and thoughtful book...Bellow delights in the liveliness, the gallantry of Israeli life—people on the edge of history, an inch from disaster, yet brimming with argument and words.”
“Essentially a plea for a greater understanding of the state of Israel by one of its most articulate admirers.”
“Steeped in the skepticisms of Chicago but still responsive to the war-cries of ideology, Bellow proves a keen listener. Like every other visitor to Israel, he soon tumbles into ‘a gale of conversion.’ He loves it—it makes him feel at home.”
“Bellow goes to Israel in 1975—not to see the sights, but to talk, listen, and learn—and returns drenched in issues…Bellow is overwhelmed—and occasionally rendered naïve or tedious—by the seriousness of what you discover ‘when you leave your desk and enter life.’”
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