She has an MA in Bible studies and works as a literary editor at Keshet publishing house. On January 29, 2004, when she was returning to her home in Rehavia, Jerusalem, after taking her child to kindergarten, a Palestinian suicide bomber blew up a city bus as she was passing by. It took her four months to recover from her injuries. Shalev is married to Ayal Megged, son of Aharon Megged.
Shalev has published four novels, a book of poetry and a children's book. Her novels Love Life and Husband and Wife have received critical acclaim both in Israel and abroad. They have been translated into 21 languages and were bestsellers in several countries. Shalev has been awarded the Book Publishers' Association's Gold and Platinum Prizes, the German Corine Book Award (2001), the French Amphi Award, and the ACUM prize three times (1997, 2003, 2005). Husband and Wife was also nominated for the French Femina prize (2002), and is included in the French Fnac list of the 200 Best Books of the Decade.
Yaarah e o femeie fraged膬 葯i derutat膬. Arie e un b膬tr卯n 卯n葲elept care 卯ncearc膬 s-o extrag膬 din derut膬. Va reu葯i? A葯...
Luna asta n-am avut noroc la femei (dar c卯nd am avut eu noroc la femei?): am dat numai peste f膬pturi in-com-pre-hen-si-bi-le.
A fost mai 卯nt卯i Fermina Daza-Urbino din Dragostea 卯n vremea holerei de Gabriel Garc铆a M谩rquez. N-am priceput ce vrea. Apoi a venit Otilia / Otilita, 鈥瀎ata rea / nes膬buit膬鈥� din romanul lui Mario Vargas Llosa, 搁膬迟膬肠颈谤颈濒别.... N-am priceput ce vrea. Acum am 卯ncercat din r膬sputeri s-o 卯n葲eleg pe Yaarah Korman, femeia la 30 de ani a Zeruyei Shalev. N-am reu葯it nici de aceast膬 dat膬, parc膬 mi-a f膬cut cineva farmece, z膬u a葯a. Unii cititori au scris c膬 nici ei nu au reu葯it, dar asta nu m膬 consoleaz膬 cu nimic. Am un of. Fra葲i cititori, vreau s膬 卯n葲eleg Femeia, ce ia葯te, de unde vine 葯i 卯ncotro se 卯ndreapt膬...
Voi ilustra stilul 葯i problematica romanului prin aceast膬 fraz膬 definitorie, realizat膬 dup膬 chipul 葯i asem膬narea frazelor care l-au consacrat pe Saramago (f膬r膬 liniu葲e de dialog, f膬r膬 paragrafe, f膬r膬 majuscule etc.): 鈥濧rie [e amantul de 60 de ani al femeii la 30 de ani] m-a apucat str卯ns de cot 葯i m-a condus la ma葯in膬, f膬r膬 s膬 arunc膬m o singur膬 privire c膬tre mare, iar 卯n ma葯in膬 am 卯ntrebat unde-mi s卯nt chilo葲ii; m卯na i-a alunecat 卯n buzunar, 卯ns膬 a scos-o la fel de goal膬 葯i a spus, din c卯te se pare, au r膬mas acolo, iar eu m-am 卯ntristat, 卯mi pl膬ceau foarte mult, erau cei mai frumo葯i pe care-i aveam, dar Arie a zis, nu ne-ntoarcem acum pentru o pereche de chilo葲i鈥� (p.61). Se vede c膬 Arie e mai 卯n葲elept dec卯t Yaarah, are de dou膬 ori v卯rsta ei, a avut timp s膬 mediteze la de葯ert膬ciunea tuturor celor omene葯ti.
V膬 spun drept, ca b膬rbat banal 葯i, sper, normal, mi s-a f膬cut dor de o femeie c卯t se poate de normal膬. De葯i prozatorii, 卯ntr-o ame葲itoare unanimitate, 卯mi spun c膬 nu exist膬...
Nu numai un roman despre infidelitate, ci o analiz膬 stufoas膬 per total, de la na葯tere ("Nimic nu va fi simplu din clipa 卯n care ne na葯tem") pin膬 la b膬tr芒ne葲e ("... c芒nd str膬lucirea care d膬 via葲膬 tuturor lucrurilor dispare") - traseu parcurs de c膬tre fiecare dintre noi cu gre葯eli, triste葲i, umilin葲i, mici victorii, iubiri, 葯i cel mai important, cu nevoia de libertate. Unicitate sau acea lupt膬 continu膬 dintre ideea de echilibru, confort 葯i dorin葲a tainic膬 de evadare din coliviile c膬ldu葲e create chiar de c膬tre noi 卯n葯ine.
Rezonez cu scriitura Zeruyei Shalev, mie imi trezeste multe sentimente : fiecare fraza o gasesc rotunda, plina de poezie si durere, ca un cantec cu versuri triste si profunde.
Comportamentul personajelor, mai ales al celui principal, Yaarah, este ciudat si de neinteles de cele mai multe ori, dar este dus cumva la extrem pentru a scoate in evidenta ceea ce, pana la urma, au trait multe femei care, avand o casnicie aparent stabil膬 si fericita, se simt atrase inexplicabil de un barbat mai matur, mai in varsta.
Aceasta puternica atractie te poate purta, fara sa vrei, pe cai pe care nu ti-ai fi imaginat niciodata ca poti umbla, sa scoata la iveala dorinte reprimate, pe care le-ai fi condamnat inainte si sa renunti la ceea ce inainte considerai pretios.
Nu fara in pret : sentimentul de vinovatie care vine odata cu toate acestea, framantarile lui Yaraaah, complexitatea trairilor ei,听 sunt redate cu o finete de psiholog.
Personajul masculin, complex, excelent construit, contradictoriu, atrage si dezgusta in acelasi timp.
Totul se leaga in aceasta carte : comportamentul lui Yaarah este influentat indirect de lucruri petrecute in viata parintilor ei, iar formarea ei poarta in ea greselile acestora.
Mi-a placut si intercalarea in firul naratiunii, deloc intamplatoare, a intelepciunii biblice.
"...n-ai voie sa intorci spatele iubirii, pentru asta se plateste o viata intreaga..."
Zeruya Shalev este unul din scriitorii care ma face sa imi doresc sa ii citesc toate cartile.
Frumos curge fraza Zeruyei Shalev. Doar c膬 eroina ei, lipsit膬 de voin葲膬 - oscil芒nd 卯ntre iner葲ie total膬 葯i av芒nt isteric - perfect confuz膬, nu reuseste s膬 ajung膬 la mine. In afar膬 de Arie, b膬rbatul de v芒rsta tat膬lui ei de care se 卯ndragoste葯te (acela葯i b膬rbat de care mama ei se 卯ndr膬gostise 卯n tinere葲e, o intrig膬 desuet膬, de romatism pu葲in bolnav, de secol 18), toate personajele au un contur ce葲os.
Nu c膬 nu ar fi u葯or sa te r膬t膬ce葯ti asemenea Yaarei, care renun葲膬 la toata via葲a ei pentru o obsesie erotic膬 (la ea mai e si o nevoie infantil膬 de protec葲ie 葯i apartenen葲膬). Doar c膬 pentru mine r膬m芒ne o poveste necredibil膬 din cauza acestei lipse de contur a personajelor. Putem sa-i zicem identitate neformat膬.
Ako ste pomislili da je ovo lagan,provokativan i nadasve zabavan roman o pitanjima ljubavi,prevarili ste se kao i ja. Izuzetno kompleksan,psiholo拧ki istan膷an uvid u 啪enska promi拧ljanja,sa vrlo mnogo biblijskih usporedbi i ponekom eksplicitnom sli膷icom seksa. Veliko djelo. Vrijedno pa啪nje. 膶itala sam kritike gdje su ga prozivali i skandaloznim. Naj膷itanijim.Jako puno klasifikacija za talentirano izraelsko pero.. Moje velike pohvale!
Mi-a pl膬cut foarte mult scriitura, te acapareaz膬, te face sa devorezi romanul care e scris la persoana 卯nt芒i, 卯n paragrafe destul de lungi. De asemenea, m-a cucerit 葯i modul 卯n care autoarea jongleaz膬 cu trecutul 葯i prezentul, cre芒nd un mozaic al amintirilor. De nepl膬cut sunt scenele de sex destul de grote葯ti, iar personajul, Arie, de care protagonista se simte atras膬, provoac膬 repulsie prin tot ce face 葯i prin tot ceea ce 卯l 卯nconjoar膬. Dar, poate c膬 tocmai 卯n asta const膬 for葲a romanului. Conchiz芒nd, c膬r葲ile Zeruyei Shalev reprezint膬 o lectur膬 interesant膬.
This is one of the worst books I have read in a long time. I was particularly disappointed because I had heard so much about it. In the early 2000s, the book was a bestseller, and I have wanted to read it for a long time. A friend of mine loves the book (She is very interested in everything Israeli / Hebrew / Jewish. Now I think her judgement was severely tainted by her overall enthusiasm for the culture.) I was looking forward to reading this book because I was hoping to find out more about modern Israeli culture, considering that the author is an insider. But you get very little of that. In its plainness, this story is rather universal.
During the read, I decided quickly that I might not want to hold on to my edition. Unless the book I am reading is outstandingly great, I usually pass it on to friends. Now I think I may not even do that; instead, it will go straight into the paper bank. It is a very bland story about a young woman who is bored with all the successes in her life. She is in her late 20s, she is married, she is a PhD candidate, and she is hell-bent to throw all this away for a man who does not want her, who does not treat her well, whose sexual performance is not even particularly convincing. She yearns for the unattainable. So she voluntarily becomes the love slave of an older man, a friend of her parents, who is arrogant and aloof, but alluring because their affair is oh-so-forbidden and scandalous, and because he might be the key to the secrets her parents have harboured for decades. She thus unknowingly recreates a former love triangle. Here, I expected the story to turn into a Greek tragedy, that she finds out that her lover is her biological father. No, he isn't. Fortunately the writer was at least a bit less foreseeable than I thought. Nonetheless, the story doesn't have much to say. The characters aren't likable or even moderately interesting. Everytime I closed the book, I was tempted to toss it, if only I weren't such a notorious book finisher. So, at last, I did finish it, but this was one of those stupendously dull books that I couldn't wait to be over and done with. Now I look at all those praises on the book cover, statements by very famous and presumably professional literary critics, who call the book "fantastic","superb", "highly erotic", and "the best thing I have read in a long time" with "incredible language" which "will stand the test of time". You have to be kidding me. Perhaps we need new literary critics.
Ant knygos vir拧elio puikuojasi u啪ra拧as - "Vienas labiausiai 寞kvepian膷i懦 roman懦, kada nors para拧yt懦 Izraelyje". Ir bent pus臈 拧ios fraz臈s yra melas. Tai n臈 velnio ne寞kvepiantis romanas. Jis apie tai, kaip su拧ikti savo ir dar bent keli懦 啪moni懦 gyvenimus. Ir gana 拧lyk拧膷iai tai padaryti, destruktyviai, nebrand啪iai ir labai skaud啪iai.
Though published more than 20 years ago, this Israeli novel (that apparently broke some boundaries there and was a bestseller) feels untouched by time, its obsessions as current, if not more so, today. Ya'ara, a married grad student in biblical studies, falls quickly, if inexplicably, into love with Aryeh, her father's handsome childhood friend who has spent most of his life in France. She does not leave her well-meaning, soft husband, who apparently has frequently said that he knows that their marriage does not mean she is his property, but she is often comparing her husband to him. From the start, we learn that love has been a focus for her - the idea that she would marry the first man who said to her that he would love her forever. This is a narrator who is trying to find her way, and keeps misstepping because she can't actually figure out who she is, what she feels, what she wants in her life. Although her affair with Aryeh has none of the hallmarks of a loving relationship, Ya'ara seems to think proximity to him, her love of him, will give her what he has - strength, power, clarity, and the keys to her parents' past. Why are her parents so unhappy, why did they marry, how have they lived in this push-pull marriage with Ya'ara so often feeling herself helpless to mediate, fearful of being abandoned? How does the psychology of family prime us in certain ways for obsessions in love? It can be difficult to be in the head of Ya'ara - is she actually a little crazy, has that instability always been there because of her parents, and their relationship, their own losses? The affair spirals almost immediately into destructiveness, and as she navigates the terrain of her heart and her mind, the past and the present, the immediacy can be overwhelming. This is the second novel by Shalev that I've recently read. The first, Pain, had a breathlessness to it, and this one, Love Life, is really feverish, a rush of feelings and events, and yet there is control throughout. A fascinating novel with intense immediacy.
I loved the stifling, claustrophobic atmosphere of this book. It's fascinating to see how people do things they don't want to do just because passion beyond control makes them do it.
Meiner Erinnerung nach war das damals die erste Publikation von Shalev auf deutsch, zumindest ist ihr damit der Durchbruch gelungen, nachdem ihr das Qualit盲tssiegel von MRR im Literarischen Quartett verliehen wurde, ich meine mich allerdings zu erinnern, nicht ganz unumstritten, da man MRR indirekt die Befriedigung seiner Altersgeilheit unterstellt hat (junge Frau verliebt sich bzw. entwickelt eine sexuelle Obsession f眉r einen deutlich 盲lteren Mann, einem Freund ihres Vaters).
Ich muss sagen, mir hat das damals gut gefallen; es gab zu der Zeit gar nicht so enorm viele literarisch anspruchsvollere Romane, die so offenherzig mit dem Thema Sexualit盲t umgegangen sind, geschweige denn in einem so heiklen Randbereich. M盲nnerphantasien werden da genau so eingel枚st wie der fast zwangsl盲ufige Ekel, der sich auf Seiten der jungen Frau angesichts des schlaffen alten M盲nnertorsos einstellt. Zus盲tzlich pikant war in dem Zusammenhang, dass es sich um eine junge israelische Autorin handelt, und in dieser Zeit gar nicht so viele israelische Autoren den Buchmarkt bev枚lkerten und wenn dann eher in der Rolle der Zeitzeugen des Holocaust und nat眉rlich gab es Amos Oz und Ephraim Kishon. Aber eine junge Autorin, freiz眉gig, unkonventionell, das war schon was anderes. Das Gesamtpaket fand ich daher sehr faszinierend.
Ich habe im Anschluss 眉ber die Jahre noch 2-3 B眉cher von ihr gelesen/geh枚rt, habe die gleiche Faszination aber nicht mehr wiedergefunden. Irgendwie fand ich Liebesleben richtig gut, aber was danach kam eher eine Art lauwarmen Aufguss, wobei das Urteil vielleicht ein bisschen oberfl盲chlich und zu streng sein k枚nnte, im Detail m眉sste ich mich noch mal mit den anderen Werken besch盲ftigen, die ich aber gerade nicht zur眉ck Hand habe.
Scriitura m-a prins, subiectul mai pu葲in. Nu prea 葯tiu ce s膬 cred despre Yaarah, personajul principal, care d膬 cu piciorul la tot ce are pentru a se l膬sa terfelita 卯n toate sensurile de un b膬tr芒n. Mi-a adus aminte de Confesiunile lui Annie Ernaux care abordeaz膬 un subiect aproximativ asem膬n膬tor. Mi-a葯 fi dorit ca m膬car autorul c膬r葲ii s膬 nu fi fost femeie...
Atsiliepimai at臈j臋 iki man臋s apie 拧寞 skaitin寞 buvo prastoki. Ta膷iau n-t膮j寞 kart膮 寞sitikinau, jog knyg膮 privalu vertinti pa膷iam, prie拧 j膮 nuteisiant ar i拧teisinant. O taip - "Meil臈s gyvenim膮" a拧 tikrai i拧teisinu! Turb奴t daugel寞 suklaidino pats knygos pavadinimas ir apipavidalinimas. Gal ir negaliu teigti, kad meil臈s 膷ia nebuvo, ta膷iau pasakojime ji ne ta, koki膮 mes link臋 apibr臈啪ti. Daugum膮 turb奴t piktino sudievinamos MEIL臇S paniekinimas, o ir a拧 pati, neturiu kuo pateisinti pagrindin臈s heroj臈s poelgi懦, ta膷iau - d臈l to, jog knygos siu啪etas nesutampa su mano po啪i奴riu ar vertyb臈mis - negaliu teigti, kad skaitinys blogas. O ir knygos anotacija klaidinanti: "Vienas labiausiai 寞kv臈pian膷i懦 roman懦"?... ne啪inau kuo istorija gal臈t懦 寞kv臈pti... Bet gal gi literat奴rinis kurinys gali b奴ti ne tik 寞kv臈pimo ir 拧viesos 拧altinis? Jei su tuo sutinkante - tai knyoje rasite kitus jausmus, kurie irgi gali suteikti 寞dom懦 liter奴rin寞 potyr寞: tai tamsus, srautinis pasakojimas, keliantis pykt寞 ir apmaud膮, sumai拧t寞, ta膷iau tuo jis ir stiprus. Savo tir拧tumu ir sunkumu knyga man primin臈听J. C. Grondahl听"Spalio tyl臈jim膮", tik pasakotojas 膷ia kalba moters l奴pomis, o kult奴rin臈 aplinka priduoda dar didesn臈s tamsos.听 Manau skaitytojus erzino i拧ry拧kinami 啪mogaus instiktai, niekinantys dvasines vertybes. Ta膷iau 拧ios prie拧prie拧os leid啪ia pamatyti, jog pavojinga pasiduoti ne tik gyv奴li拧kam norui, ta膷iau ir tobulumo siekiui santykiuose. 听Istorija prad啪ioje i拧ties erzina, atrodo per grubi, ta膷iau puslapis po puslapio ji sluoksniuojasi, imi ie拧koti pateisinim懦, prie啪as膷i懦, kod臈l tokie desperati拧ki sprendimai vyksta pagrin臈s heroj臈s galvoje. Ir nors pateisinti moter寞 nor臈tumei d臈l to, jog ji i拧liko s膮啪ininga savo tro拧kimams, visgi li奴dna liko tod臈l, jog ji nesugeb臈jo b奴ti s膮啪ininga kitam 啪mogui.听 Keblus, jausmus sujaukiantis skaitinys, ta膷iau visad sakau - jei knyga gali sukelti tikras emocijas, tai ji yra gera knyga. O ir lakoni拧kas, melancholi拧kas bei esteti拧kas ra拧ymo stilius, prisid臈jo prie stipraus k奴rinio 寞vaizd啪io. Rekomenduoju ne sald啪ias istorijas m臈gstantiems skaitytojams, tai pat tikrai ne tiems, kurie ie拧kot懦 寞kv臈pimo. 艩寞kart tiems - kam patinka 拧iek tiek nestandartin臈, provokuojanti literat奴ra.
Man truput寞 gaila 啪moni懦, kurie pamatys pavadinim膮 鈥濵eil臈s gyvenimas鈥� ir pasiims skaityti 拧i膮 knyg膮, galvodami, kad 膷ia koks lengvas romanas kelion臈s skaitiniams, o tada pateks 寞 vis膮 拧it膮 painiav膮, nes a拧 net numanydama 寞 k膮 veliuosi vietomis likau sukr臈sta. I拧 prad啪i懦 sunkiai susigyvenau su 拧ia knyga, nes ji viena i拧 t懦, kurios i拧kart 寞meta 寞 veiksm膮 be joki懦 ilg懦 寞啪ang懦. Pasakotoja nuo pirm懦 puslapi懦 priima keistus sprendimus ir jie i拧 prad啪i懦 atrodo tokie padriki ir at臈j臋 i拧 niekur, bet po to, vis geriau susipa啪寞stant su pasakotoja, ima ai拧k臈ti, kad tie sprendimai, nors ir tikrai padriki, bet savoti拧kai pagr寞sti.
Knyga labai tir拧ta ir klampi, joje i拧orinis veiksmas pinasi su pasakotojos min膷i懦 srautu, kapstymusi praeityje ir bibliniais motyvais, pasakojime pilna sekso, aistros, traukos, prisiri拧imo, ilgesio 鈥� kartais skaitant atrod臈, kad esu ka啪kokiame painiame kar拧tligi拧kame sapne, nuo kurio turiu vis atsikv臈pti, bet 寞 kur寞 paskui norisi sugr寞啪ti. Literat奴roje daugma啪 to a拧 vis ir ie拧kau 鈥� lyri拧ku tonu apra拧yt懦 kar拧tligi拧k懦 sapn懦.