Scenes from Village Life

This is a dark book, with a dark vision of contemporary Israel… The whole, rich, disturbing mixture makes one feel as if something dark is digging away at the foundations, something unnameable ready to emerge. It is one of the most powerful books you will read about present-day Israel. – David Herman * Jewish Chronicle *
These stories have both force and mystery, and they cast a quiet spell * Scotland on Sunday *
A powerfully bleak portrait of loneliness, confusion and cracked bonds * The Times *
These stories, in their humanity, may do more for Israel than any of the decisions we have been led to expect of its leaders in the months to come * New Statesman *
I enjoyed Amos Oz’s Scenes From Village Life a great deal… it explores what is universal, what is entirely idiosyncratic, about daily life in Israel away from the obvious conflicts – Kate Kellaway * Observer *
Oz’s characters might be drawn from Chekhov: their lives seem an irresoluble muddle of sorrow, baffled hopes and missed chances; his compassion for them makes the reader care deeply about them, too. This is a wise, beautiful and enduring book – Richard Davenport-Hines * Spectator *
Potent and uncanny – Tom Sutcliffe * Independent *
The stories resemble an echo chamber of recurring themes, steeped in a strangeness and danger that lingers on like a dream’ * Metro *
Admirably rendered in English by Oz’s longtime translator, Nicholas de Lange, these linked stories prove achingly melancholy… It is like a symphony… There is, in each story, a particular chord or strain; but taken together, these chords rise and reverberate, evoking an unease so strong it’s almost a taste in the mouth… Scenes From Village Life is a brief collection, but its brevity is a testament to its force. You will not soon forget it – Claire Messud * New York Times *
Impressive and very affecting – Karl Miller * Times Literary Supplement *

Born in Jerusalem in 1939, Amos Oz is the internationally acclaimed author of many novels and essay collections, translated into over 30 languages, including recently his brilliant semi-autobiographical work, A Tale of Love and Darkness. He has received several international awards, including the Prix Femina, the Israel Prize, the Goethe Prize, the Frankfurt Peace Prize and the 2013 Franz Kafka Prize. He lives in Israel.

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