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The Hebrew Teacher - Maya Arad

The Hebrew Teacher

By: Maya Arad, Jessica Cohen (Translator)

Paperback | 19 March 2024

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"Intensely readable and beautifully observed . . . full of wisdom, generosity, humor, and sharp insights."-Elif Batuman, author ofEither/OrandThe Idiot

NATIONAL JEWISH BOOK AWARD FOR HEBREW FICTION IN TRANSLATION /Risa Domb/Porjes Prize for Hebrew-English translation

Three Israeli women, their lives altered by immigration to the United States, seek to overcome crises. Ilana is a veteran Hebrew instructor at a Midwestern college who has built her life around her career. When a young Hebrew literature professor joins the faculty, she finds his post-Zionist politics pose a threat to her life's work. Miriam, whose son left Israel to make his fortune in Silicon Valley, pays an unwanted visit to meet her new grandson and discovers cracks in the family's perfect facade. Efrat, another Israeli in California, is determined to help her daughter navigate the challenges of middle school, and crosses forbidden lines when she follows her into the minefield of social media. In these three stirring novellas-comedies of manners with an ambitious blend of irony and sensitivity-celebrated Israeli author Maya Arad probes the demise of idealism and the generation gap that her heroines must confront.

Reading group guide toThe Hebrew Teacheris available for download free of charge at newvesselpress.com.

Industry Reviews


"This disturbing and beautiful book concerns itself mostly with Israelis living in America, and Arad has brought her characters and their stories to life in meaningful and unforgettable ways."--The Arts Fuse

"Pitch perfect . . . A poignant, almost elegiac feeling imbues each of Arad's novellas . . . The particulars of language and culture and place set Arad's work apart."--Allegra Goodman, The Jewish Review of Books

"Meticulously observed, with remarkable shades of subtlety and nuance. What could have easily become a political screed is, instead, a gentle inquiry into aging, what it means to be relevant, academic ambition, and, most particularly, the morality of Zionist politics . . . The quiet subtlety of Arad's prose only pulls the strength of her insights into higher relief."--Kirkus Reviews (Starred review)

"Arad makes her English-language debut with an intelligent triptych of novellas that showcase Israeli women navigating their professional and family relationships in the U.S. . . . Throughout, Arad offers an astute and heartfelt look at what brings people together and what drives them apart. Readers will be rewarded by Arad's keen insights."--Publishers Weekly

"Expertly observed . . . More than deserves an American audience . . . For a work first published in Hebrew in 2018, its timeliness is eerie."--Carlin Romano, Moment Magazine

"Stunning . . . Passages like these had me tearing up . . . Demonstrates both the author and the translator's gift for language."--Martha Anne Toll, Lilith Magazine

"It's a story of the moment, when among the many divides in the United States caused by the war in Gaza is a yawning chasm between a baffled Zionist old guard and young anti-Zionist activists . . . a generational clash that seems very relevant and very prescient."--Jewish Telegraphic Agency

"Offers many rewards . . . Arad wrote this story well before the current Israel-Hamas war, but she is strikingly prescient in her understanding of contemporary issues, particularly as they pertain to Israel. Ample credit should go to award-winning translator Jessica Cohen for her seamless work. She has helped make The Hebrew Teacher a must-read."--Hadassah Magazine

"It is a very good time for Hebrew when the language can produce a writer with the evocative power of ?migr?e Maya Arad."--Arts Alive San Antonio

"Sharp, intelligent, full of insights--Maya Arad's writing penetrates the heart and excites the mind."--Ayelet Gundar-Goshen, author of Waking Lions

"An intensely readable and beautifully observed novel of manners, full of wisdom, generosity, humor, and sharp insights into academic and expatriate life."--Elif Batuman, author of Either/Or and The Idiot

"Arad's portraits of contemporary life achieve that rare balance between comedy and pathos, satire and emphathy--often on the same page. The deeply affecting portrayals of various forms of estrangement, missed connections, and distance swill likely linger in readers' imaginations for a long time."--Jewish Book Council

"Maya Arad's outstanding novella trilogy, The Hebrew Teacher, recently translated by award-winning Jessica Cohen and fresh off the press, seems prescient . . . She is a gifted novelist."--The Jerusalem Post

"A brave, nuanced, and compassionate exploration of the tragedy of immigration and relocation from one of the leading voices of contemporary Hebrew literature."--Ruby Namdar, author of The Ruined House

"The finest living author writing in Hebrew."--Haaretz "Cultures and generations clash in Maya Arad's insightful novella collection The Hebrew Teacher, which follows three storylines whose flows are sometimes concentric . . . With clarity and insight, The Hebrew Teacher dissects divides among Israeli immigrants in California."--Foreword Reviews"Touches on contemporary issues, from politics and academia in the title story to life and work in Silicon Valley in the second and adolescents' obesession with social media in the third. Arad presents various facets of contemporary life--with some poignant shading--quite entertainingly in these novellas."--The Complete Review



"This disturbing and beautiful book concerns itself mostly with Israelis living in America, and Arad has brought her characters and their stories to life in meaningful and unforgettable ways."-The Arts Fuse

"Pitch perfect . . . A poignant, almost elegiac feeling imbues each of Arad's novellas . . . The particulars of language and culture and place set Arad's work apart."--Allegra Goodman, The Jewish Review of Books

"Meticulously observed, with remarkable shades of subtlety and nuance. What could have easily become a political screed is, instead, a gentle inquiry into aging, what it means to be relevant, academic ambition, and, most particularly, the morality of Zionist politics . . . The quiet subtlety of Arad's prose only pulls the strength of her insights into higher relief."--Kirkus Reviews (Starred review)

"Arad makes her English-language debut with an intelligent triptych of novellas that showcase Israeli women navigating their professional and family relationships in the U.S. . . . Throughout, Arad offers an astute and heartfelt look at what brings people together and what drives them apart. Readers will be rewarded by Arad's keen insights."--Publishers Weekly

"Expertly observed . . . More than deserves an American audience . . . For a work first published in Hebrew in 2018, its timeliness is eerie."--Carlin Romano, Moment Magazine

"Stunning . . . Passages like these had me tearing up . . . Demonstrates both the author and the translator's gift for language."--Martha Anne Toll, Lilith Magazine

"It's a story of the moment, when among the many divides in the United States caused by the war in Gaza is a yawning chasm between a baffled Zionist old guard and young anti-Zionist activists . . . a generational clash that seems very relevant and very prescient."--Jewish Telegraphic Agency

"Offers many rewards . . . Arad wrote this story well before the current Israel-Hamas war, but she is strikingly prescient in her understanding of contemporary issues, particularly as they pertain to Israel. Ample credit should go to award-winning translator Jessica Cohen for her seamless work. She has helped make The Hebrew Teacher a must-read."--Hadassah Magazine

"It is a very good time for Hebrew when the language can produce a writer with the evocative power of ?eacute;migr?e Maya Arad."--Arts Alive San Antonio

"Sharp, intelligent, full of insights--Maya Arad's writing penetrates the heart and excites the mind."--Ayelet Gundar-Goshen, author of Waking Lions

"An intensely readable and beautifully observed novel of manners, full of wisdom, generosity, humor, and sharp insights into academic and expatriate life."--Elif Batuman, author of Either/Or and The Idiot

"Arad's portraits of contemporary life achieve that rare balance between comedy and pathos, satire and emphathy--often on the same page. The deeply affecting portrayals of various forms of estrangement, missed connections, and distance swill likely linger in readers' imaginations for a long time."--Jewish Book Council

"Maya Arad's outstanding novella trilogy, The Hebrew Teacher, recently translated by award-winning Jessica Cohen and fresh off the press, seems prescient . . . She is a gifted novelist."--The Jerusalem Post

"A brave, nuanced, and compassionate exploration of the tragedy of immigration and relocation from one of the leading voices of contemporary Hebrew literature."--Ruby Nam

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