Passionate, insightful, multilayered and did I say deeply passionate! Extremely difficult to give this one 3 stars, but the sheer magnitude of detail finally wore me down. Sooo much is good and great here. So much history, so much introspection into the roots of this quagmire, and at the same time so much strife within his own life. Recommended with the warning that you will be digging DEEEEP.

I took my time to read this fabulous part autobiography part epos of Jewish diaspora and the birth of the Israeli state, but it kept me enthralled from beginning to the end. Amos Oz has a masterful way of embedding his earliest memories, small observations, the trivial things of daily life in a erudite, yet heartfelt reflection on life's meaning and the enduring grab of sorrow. Despite the unique set of characters he brings forward in the book, there was much in their gestures, thoughts and feelings I could identify with. This is a book with a universalist outlook; it touches upon the raw nerve of the human condition.

I struggled to enjoy this because there's just so much detail, with all the relatives and their dozens or languages and all the minutiae, but there are some great, great passages in it about the birth of the nation, the violence and the souring idealism. It's worth reading for that, if you can plough through the rest. God knows there's enough propaganda about Israel, and the world needs human stories now, to remind ourselves of what's at stake and how Israel came to be.

Gran libro, cubre varios niveles y te lleva de uno a otro de forma maravillosa. Desde la historia de la migración de intelectuales de Europa del Este hacia Israel, la fundación del Estado y la intimidad de su familia. Lo quise leer por conocer más de la vida del "pacifista" Amos Oz y aunque no llega a esa parte de su vida no hay desperdicio en su historia.

sorry. got as far as chapter 14, but just too dull for me. gave up. I'm sure it's me, not him, but life's too short. On to the next book.

Amos rights beautifully. While I felt some passages dragged on his use of repetition and diction took my breath away

An honest, funny, sad, observant, gripping autobiographical novel. Oz's melancholy story weaved a long velvety wrap for my winter nights.

Soms wat lastig om te lezen met alle Joodse termen, maar wat een aangrijpend boek! Vooral de laatste pagina is fenomenaal mooi.

Long and meandering, I made it ~100 pages in but I don't see myself going back. I was hoping to learn something about history and culture in Israel during that time, but this book is more about the minute details of family relationships. Well-written prose but that's just not enough to keep me interested long-term.