Rhyming Life & Death - Paperback

by Amos Oz (Author)

In this deft, masterly book, Amos Oz turns his attention away from his family--the subject of the internationally acclaimed A Tale of Love and Darkness--and toward his profession, writing. The plot: eight hours in the life of an author. The setting: Tel Aviv, a stifling, hot night. A literary celebrity is giving a reading from his new book. And as his attention wanders, he begins to invent lives for the strangers he sees around him: here, a self-styled cultural guru, Yakir Bar-Orian Zhitomirski; there, a love-starved professional reader, Rochele Reznik; to say nothing of Ricky the waitress, the real object of his desire. One life story builds on another, and the author finds himself unexpectedly involved with his creations . . .

Front Jacket

Eight hours in the life of an author. Tel Aviv, a stifling hot night. A literary celebrity is giving a reading from his new book. And as his attention wanders, he begins to invent lives for the strangers he sees around him: here, a self-styled cultural guru, Yakir Bar-Orian Zhitomirski; there, a love-starved professional reader, Rochele Reznik; to say nothing of Ricky the waitress, the real object of his desires. Reality and fiction blend in this ingenious, poignant novel from the celebrated author of A Tale of Love and Darkness.

Back Jacket

The title . . . suggests the motif that has haunted [Oz's] work almost from the beginning of his career . . . A fanciful and exploratory look.
Alan Cheuse, San Fransisco Chronicle

Eight hours in the life of an author. Tel Aviv, a stifling hot night. A literary celebrity is giving a reading from his new book. And as his attention wanders, he begins to invent lives for the strangers he sees around him: here, a self-styled cultural guru, Yakir Bar-Orian Zhitomirski; there, a love-starved professional reader, Rochele Reznik; to say nothing of Ricky the waitress, the real object of his desires. Reality and fiction blend in this ingenious poignant novel from the celebrated author of A Tale of Love and Darkness.

"Evocative . . . beautifully translated by Nicholas de Lange."
Liesl Schillinger, New York Times Book Review

Amos Oz is a prize-winning novelist and essayist whose honors include the Prix Femina, the Israel Prize, the Frankfurt Peace Prize, and the Prince of Asturias Award for Letters. His memoir, A Tale of Love and Darkness, was awarded the Koret Jewish Book Award in 2005.

Nicholas de Lange is a professor at the University of Cambridge and a renowned translator. He has translated Amos Oz's work since the 1960s.

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