Messiah of Laguardia

For readers acquainted with Israel’s turbulent yet exhilarating history, the stories in this book present novel, sometimes disturbing images of familiar figures and events. The people who made terrible sacrifices to build and preserve the country are here—soldiers, intellectuals, farmers, immigrants and kibbutzniks—but not as heroes and giants. Instead, the soldiers lose limbs and the intellectuals their inspiration, the farmers forsake their land, the immigrants long for their countries of origin, and the kibbutzniks stray from their ideals. Yet the land of Israel, vividly and lyrically described, remains the home of the Jews.