AB Joshua and Vichy Sarid's Books Entered the New York Times 100 Recommended Books • Joshua: "The Writer Is Important in His Homeland"
Yishai Sarid, AB Yehoshua
Photography:
Liron Almog, Yehoshua Yosef
Israeli Pride:
Two titles that have been published in Israel in recent years have entered the New York Times newspaper's list of one hundred recommended books for 2020.
The first book is "The Tunnel" by the Israeli author AB.
Yehoshua, and the other "The Monster of Memory" by the writer Yishai Sarid.
"This is a short, daring, brilliant novel," read the "Memory Monster" in the American newspaper, "which deals with a tour guide in the extermination camps who is slowly going crazy, as his knowledge of genocide mechanisms becomes an obsession."
About the book "The Tunnel", which deals with a person who is in the early stages of dementia, the New York Times wrote as follows: "Joshua masterfully combines social interpretation with a portrait of a brain in the stages of deterioration."
"From the age of 30 I say this, and I also say at the age of 84," the author AB Yehoshua responds to the entry of his book into the 100 recommended, "For me the main thing is the criticism in Israel and reading my books here. "Or the New York Times" is less important to me than a review in "Israel Today" and other newspapers in the country.
"The importance of the writer is in his homeland, and here his words and influence are considered. Beyond that I was already on this list and therefore I am not excited, but more than that large and important in Hebrew literature were not mentioned in such lists and are still very important in the context of Israel. These are the great writers we have had, and yet they have not gained much recognition abroad.
Most of the literature is in Israel and at home. "
Author Yishai Sarid says that he was surprised by the news and did not prepare or try to enter the list.
“I didn’t know about it, until a friend in the country told me, and then my U.S. publisher also sent me an update email.
Tens of thousands of writers compete on the list every year, so it's a very nice achievement for me.
"There is confirmation here that my books do not only speak to an Israeli audience but to other audiences around the world. Every writer always wants to speak to new audiences, so it's a sense of satisfaction. However, what made me most happy was being on the same list with AB Yehoshua, who is "I am one of the greatest Israeli writers and I am revered. It is a very great honor."
