Based on a True Story

by Hesh Kestin

Set in post-WWII Africa, Polynesia, and Hollywood, the three novellas that make up Based on a True Story reveal the roots of contemporary life in a world at war with itself. These novellas are reminiscent of work by Steve Stern and Philip Roth. Hesh Kestin is a recovering foreign correspondent who reported on local wars, global business, and exotic mayhem in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa for publications such as Forbes , Newsday , and The Jerusalem Post , and US magazines as diverse as Playboy and Inc . Cited by Media Guide for best foreign correspondence, his work has won many awards.

160 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2008

Reviews

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this one a lot. The book is made up of three novellas, all set during the eve of WWII but in wildly different locations—Mombasa, Tahiti, and Hollywood—through the eyes of very different characters—a female codebreaker from Bletchley Park, an itinerant Russian Marxist, and a gay black screenwriter. But all are concerned with power and the way it's instituted and wielded, all against the backdrop of the lowering political situation. History does a lot of the heavy lifting here, but Kestin does the rest—the writing is really fine, and while each story is very good in its own right, taken together they make up three pieces of a bigger puzzle. And I think puzzle is the right word. It really drives home the fact that while we can look back on the Second World War and the events leading up to it now, in 1939 everyone in the world was a blind man with only his or her portion of the elephant to judge by.

Definitely recommended. Short story haters among us, you ought to give this one a try anyway.

[Abigail · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible stories filled with depth of characters and insightful historical references. The 1st and 3rd story were my favorites and will remain among some of the best novellas I have ever read.