The World Between

by Zeeva Bukai

With the breakup of her marriage, a once famous actress of the Yiddish theater travels to Tel-Aviv to revisit the apartment she once shared with her husband, Max. Soon after, she finds herself at the Sisters of Saint Joseph of the Apparition Hospice in Jaffa, a sanitorium, run by a group of nuns. Unclear as to how she got there, she begins to piece together the events that led her to this moment. From New York to Tel -Aviv, and the Siberian gulag, The World Between explores the landscape of a marriage, friendship, loss, and the way childhood war trauma bleeds into every aspect of the characters’ lives.

Genres: Jewish, Fiction, Historical Fiction, Israel

150 pages, Hardcover

Published February 24, 2026

Reviews

[Fran Hawthorne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wondered if this novella, in far fewer pages, could be as beautifully textured, and explore its characters as generously, as the author's award-winning debut, "The Anatomy of Exile."

Yes, it can and does. Even more amazing, author Zeeva Bukai achieves this with an entirely different and more difficult format.

This book is structured as the unmailed letters of an unnamed narrator--a Holocaust survivor now in her seventies-- to her estranged long-time husband, Max, who was her colleague in the Yiddish theater in New York, he as writer-director, she as lead actress. Every chapter circles back to one of a half-dozen key plot lines or incidents in the narrator's life, each time carving a slightly different arc that reveals a touch more of the truth. What caused the estrangement with Max? Why did she leave New York to return to their long-abandoned apartment in Tel Aviv? What is her relationship to the mysterious impressario Rothman? What is the significance of a woman who wears blue? And why the heck is the narrator being kept against her will in a kind of sanitarium in Israel, with nuns as guards and regular visits with a psychiatrist?

The gradual unraveling of some secrets is brilliantly laid out, and I was never lost even as the story backtracks and twists in time. Through all this, Bukai paints a rich portrait of the diverse people, cities, and smells of Israel.

Unfortunately, the epistolary structure has some inherent problems that this book doesn't escape. (Best-sellers like "The Correspondent" and "We Need to Talk about Kevin" share this weakness.) In order to give readers necessary grounding, the letters are filled with clumsy locutions that people normally don't put in letters to friends and family, because those recipients already know the background--locutions like "do you remember the biblical scholar who lived next door?" or "how unsettled you get venturing out of our Upper West Side neighborhood." Max knows that their neighborhood is the Upper West Side of Manhattan; in real life, his wife would simply say "our neighborhood." I look forward to a more subtle novelist who solves this problem.

I also wish Bukai had let this book play out into full novel length, because some of the revelations are not built up enough. We need to see the narrator's crucial relationship with Leon develop more gradually, for instance.

Of course, that's one sign of a good novel--when a reader wants more of it!

[Laurie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heads up Book Clubs/Discussion Groups that will discover a plethora of interesting issues including the challenges of marriage, multigenerational family, the Holocaust and more.
The World Between, set in New York and Tel-Aviv, should be your next fiction selection!
Brava, talented author, Zeeva Bukai!

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book so much and was taken in from the very first page. It’s a short book but reads like an epic novel that flips back and forth between different eras and places and leaves the reader wondering what will happen (or rather what happened in the past) until the very end!

[ambersometimesreads · Rating 3 out of 5]

this is definitely a thought provoking book, I just wish it had dates along with the time jumps. this follows about 3-4 different time periods the fmc is a part of but I truly couldn't tell which were her imagination and which were actually occurring.

this is one of those books where the ending is left up to interpretation which isn't my favorite thing but if you enjoy that, you'd love it. I did really enjoy learning more about different historical times though, I haven't read a historical fiction like this and it was also only 150 pages so it flew by!

thank you so much to delphinium books for sending me a copy of this book!!

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

the yellow wallpaper meets death in venice meets night (with a faint dust of gentleman in moscow) yet wholly singularly Zeeva Bukai in an astonishing read that further proves you don’t need to go long to be EPIC.

[Marcia reading past dark · Rating 4 out of 5]

THE WORLD BETWEEN is a quietly powerful and poetic work, written by the talented Zeeva Bukai. Following the breakup of her marriage, a once renown Yiddish-theater actress finds herself in a sanitorium/convent, the Sisters of Joseph of the Apparition Hospice in Jaffa, and is cared for by nuns. As she narrates her own story, readers learn of her past memories, her life history, and her traumas. But in her fragile state, who knows what is real and what is imagination?

“Time heals, or maybe it only obscures.”

I kept reading, drawn to want to know more—how did she get here? Did her husband play a part in her psychiatric confinement? Did the tragedy she suffered make her the woman she is now? This work of art is beautifully written with thoughts that linger and return to my mind again and again. Yet, I am sure of this—though her vessel may be shattered, her light shines on.

[Talya Jankovits · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a literary meal sized book - best devoured in one sitting. Bukai’s characters are beautifully and boldly broken, and the expertly crafted narrative slowly teases out the development of these people, brought together and apart through shared love and pain. It is not only a story of existential weight but one written so carefully so intentionally that each word is integral to the singular sections as well as the novel as a whole. This is a worthy second novel to follow Bukai’s award-winning debut.

[Anna Persky · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful prose. This novella tells the story of an older actress, slowly revealing how she ended up in an institution. It explores themes of memory, loss, and trauma in a compelling and suspenseful way.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

A friend and I frequently disagree when it comes to judging the books we’ve read. There are authors I love whom she finds herself unable to read. Last year, one of her favorite novels made my “wish I hadn’t bothered to read this” list. We still enjoy talking about books because, even when we disagree, it’s interesting to discuss our impressions. I’ve come to realize one reason for our differences: we’ve had an almost indescribable emotional response to the books that mean the most to us, a response that is as individualistic as falling in love.
I thought about this because I know that not everyone will agree with my thoughts about two recent books: “The World Between” (Delphinium Books), the second novel by Israeli author Zeeva Bukai*, and “Remember to Eat and Other Stories” (SparkPress), a book of short stories by Meryl Ain**.
See the rest of my review at https://www.thereportergroup.org/book....

[Tali · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m not sure how I feel about this book. It was a short book that felt long. Filled with trauma and its ramifications, the story follows a female narrator who is institutionalized in a sanitorium in Jaffa that is run by nuns. Through a very nonlinear narrative jumping from a Siberian gulag during the Holocaust, to New York and Tel Aviv, the story that led her to her predicament is examined in drips and dribbles as she writes letter to her estranged husband. I think the story touched on some really important aspects on the lasting effects of trauma, as each character grapples with their own and often falls down in the process. There is a stifling feeling to the writing that really brings the reader into the character’s pain. But overall, I didn’t enjoy the very unreliable narration and ambiguity surrounding the characters and what they had been through. I had a hard time connecting to the characters and finding a purpose for the story. I do enjoy Bukai’s writing and that kept me going.

[Holly · Rating 5 out of 5]

The World Between is enormously affecting. So much is packed into this slim volume, but it never feels stuffed or dense. Each chapter — each one, a letter written by the protagonist — reveals a little bit more of her interiority, of her past, of her present, of her relationships, of her feelings, of her mind, of her surroundings, of her trauma.

Bukai is absolutely genius at saying more with less, at exercising restraint, at providing both ambiguity and closure. In lesser hands, the emotional impact would be carried off with a brute punch. Somehow Bukai manages to deliver heartbreak in a way that feels delicate and graceful, with genuine empathy for every character. Masterful. Highly recommend.

[LuckyPalm · Rating 5 out of 5]

War camp survivor, wife, Yiddish theater actor, mother; a life filled with trauma and tragedy is slowly winding down at a sanatorium in Tel-Aviv.

During a lucid timeframe, the fragile elderly actress recounts growing up in a Siberian Gulag, a one-sided romantic love towards her protector Rothman, her marriage to Max and the loss of their beloved son.

A mix of past memories and present realities merge together. She describes herself as having a bad case of nerves and is ready to come home, however she is still full of unresolved internal demons. The pain of relieving hurtful truths, divorce, unrequited feelings, the emotional toll of the war is presently beyond her inner self tolerance.

[Erika Dreifus · Rating 5 out of 5]

Zeeva Bukai's second novel (after last year's lauded The Anatomy of Exile), is quite different from the debut, but no less stunning. This more slender book wraps the reader within a less populated tableau—fewer characters and storylines—but an equally exquisitely-crafted story. I'm so grateful for the sneak peek and the opportunity to immerse myself in these pages, and I'm eager to follow the discussions that it will evoke.

[Briann Shear · Rating 5 out of 5]

This mezmerizing novel is told by the narrator, an aging Jewish Yiddish-theater actress, who finds herself in a convent in Jaffa being cared for by nuns. We are privy to her confusion, her memories, her life experiences and her traumas. They are revealed as she pulls them from her uncertain, frail mind. As this process moves forward, the book grips the reader who is lead by the skillful writing to want to know more—how she got here, what are the pieces that make up her life, what has made her what she is. It is a stunning work of art and imagination.

[Nina B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

The World Between is a slight novel with a remarkably impactful story about loss, grief, memory, and love. Love so profound it feels like the simmering energy and raison d'être of everything thing that happens: thoughts, actions, inactions, dreams, fears, and pure survival, despite a pain and insanity that appears impossible to bear. In the end, it's a deeply moving story about resilience in the face of evil, and the power AND weakness of the human spirit that despite it all, seeks beauty and goodness in the world.

[Michelle Brafman · Rating 5 out of 5]

The World Between is one of the most beautifully written page-turners I've ever read. In 176 pages, Zeeva Bukai tells a devastating, layered story about the multi-generational emotional ripples of the Holocaust. She writes with psychological savvy, tremendous compassion, and the soul of a poet. I wasn't surprised since her first novel, Anatomy of Exile, was also the kind of book that enlarges the reader, this reader for sure. I highly recommend this novel for a book group. So much to discuss!

[MicheleReader · Rating 4 out of 5]

This haunting tale begins in 1998. A sixty-seven-year-old former star of the Yiddish theater is at the Sisters of Saint Joseph of the Apparition Hospice in Jaffa, in their sanitorium. The unnamed woman had traveled from New York City to Israel to visit, along with her lifelong friend Rothman, the apartment she had shared with her husband Max, who was the author of her plays. Through sessions with her doctor and her deep reflections, her story unfolds. We discover that she has endured unimaginable hardships, having survived the Holocaust, a Siberian Gulag, and the loss of nearly everyone she loved. The story shifts across several timelines as she recalls the ghosts of her past. 

Zeeva Bekai's compelling book, The World Between, is about a woman who is unable to come to terms with her past. A challenging marriage, an unrequited love, and all her loses have led her to her current state. At 150 pages, it's a short yet powerful and unsettling story.

4.25 stars.

Review posted on MicheleReader.com.

[Alice Kaltman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heartbreaking, original, impeccably paced and written. Talk about survival! Totally original use of imagination and family memories/myths/conjectures to create a rich landscape for an anonymous actress: so interior and psychological, and so physically palpable. I felt I could reach through the pages and touch her mind.

[Chava · Rating 5 out of 5]

The kind of book I really enjoy: strong sense of place in Israel, literary references, excellent pacing that builds to answer the question you ask yourself while you're reading -- how did she end up in the mental hospital? What pushed her over the edge?

[Meg Richman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I truly believe Bukai is one of our greatest living writers.
This book is poetic and resonant with ghosts. Ghosts of lost loved ones, and the ghosts of love itself.

[Robin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was recommended to me by a dear friend. It is a short book, but deep with emotion and rich, beautiful writing.