A Tale of Love and Darkness
Amos Oz · 1939–2018 · Israel
Originally Sipur al Ahava ve-Hoshech (Hebrew) · translated by Nicholas de Lange
Why it matters
Oz reconstructs his Jerusalem childhood, his mother's suicide, and the birth of Israel in one sweeping autobiographical epic. Family sorrow and national becoming braided into the great memoir-novel of the young state.
At a glance
autobiographical fictionfamily sagahistorical fiction
Difficulty 6/10slow pace538 pagesDigressive, essayistic structure ranging across generations and registers rather than moving in a line.
