The Confessions of Noa Weber - Softcover

Hareven, Gail

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1933633379 ISBN 13: 9781933633374

Publisher: Melville House, 2008

Synopsis

“A very wise book, and it is written in the most beautiful, precise and definitive prose.”
—La Nirgad, Ha’aretz Literary Supplement

“Sometimes one had the experience of reading a book and just falling in love with it—because it is so well written, so moving, and it gets into your soul. That was my experience when I read The Confessions of Noa Weber.”—Eleonora Lev, Ha’aretz  

Acclaimed middle-aged writer Noa Weber—acclaimed both as a writer and as one of Israel’s leading feminists—has all the trappings of a successful “feminist” life: She has a strong career, a wonderful daughter she raised alone, and she’s a respected cultural figure. Yet her interior life is inextricably bound by her love for a man—Alek, a Russian émigré and the father of her child, who, over the years, has drifted in and out of her life.

Trying to understand—as well as free herself from—this lifelong obsession, Noa turns her pen upon herself, and with relentless honesty dissects her life. Against the evocative setting of turbulent, modern-day Israel, the examination becomes a quest—to transform the nature of her love from irrational desire to a greater, transcendent comprehension of the sublime.

The Confessions of Noa Weber introduces to the English-speaking world a startlingly talented writer in a rich tale that illuminates the desires, yearnings, and complexities of life in Israel, and of people trying to balance the needs of the secular world with the ultimate need and desire for transcendence.

Gail Hareven is one of Israel’s leading writers; the author of five novels, three short story collections, plays, a nonfiction book, and two children’s books; and the winner of the prestigious Sapir Prize for The Confessions of Noa Weber. She teaches writing and feminist theory in Jerusalem. This is her first book to be translated into English.

About this title

About the Author:

Gail Hareven teaches writing and feminist theory. Hareven has written five novels, three collections of short stories, plays, a book of non-fiction and two books for children. In 2002 she won the Sapir Prize for Alek. This is her first book to be translated.

From Publishers Weekly:

Noa Weber is the complex narrator of Hareven's moving love story, the first of her works to be translated into English. In 1972, Noa is wrapping up her final exams and preparing to be drafted into the Israeli army when she meets a Russian student named Alek. They promptly sleep together, and Noa is transfixed by her paramour. She's helpless to resist her compulsive love and sexual addiction for Alek, and fantasizes about marrying him, even though she claims he doesn't love her. In fact, her love is so strong, it remains unwavering throughout various life changes and occupations—the birth of her daughter, Hagar; a stint in law school; and a career as an author of feminist thrillers—causing Noa to wonder if her love isn't part of some larger yearning. She's a likable character, and Hareven pulls off the difficult task of allowing the reader to evaluate Noa and Alek's relationship from both inside it and outside of it. This contemplative inquiry into the nature of love speaks across cultures and introduces a compelling new Israeli voice to English-speaking readers. (Feb.)
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About this edition

• Publisher: Melville House
• Publication date: 2008
• ISBN 10: 1933633379
• ISBN 13: 9781933633374
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 300