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Amor y exilio
"Una memoria asombrosamente intima de los itinerarios internos del autor de Sombras sobre el Hudson." Desde el final de La Primera Guerra Mundial, hasta el Nueva York de los años treinta, Isaac Bashevis Singer retrata la primera época de su vida en esta emotiva autobiografía. En la primera parte, "Un niño en busca de Dios", el autor rememora su infancia en Radzymin como hijo de un rabino ortodoxo absorbido por las primeras lecturas científicas y filosóficas. Con el tiempo, y después de trasladarse a Varsovia para probar suerte con la escritura, las mujeres llegaron a obsesionarle tanto como la persecución de la verdad y el conocimiento, y en "Un joven en busca de amor" recoge las sorprendentes y dramáticas intrigas de sus primeros amoríos. Por ultimo, en "Perdido en America", el autor relata los oscuros años de soledad y depresión del principio de su exilio en Estados Unidos, donde emigra desde Polonia en los albores de la Segunda Guerra Mundial. Desde la primera hasta la última pagina, Amor y exilio arroja una nueva luz sobre la vida y la obra del insigne escritor polaco.
432 pages
First published January 1, 1982
15 people are currently reading
459 people want to read
About the author
Isaac Bashevis Singer
554 books1,100 followersIsaac Bashevis Singer was a Polish American author of Jewish descent, noted for his short stories. He was one of the leading figures in the Yiddish literary movement, and received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1978.
His memoir, "A Day Of Pleasure: Stories of a Boy Growing Up in Warsaw", won the U.S. National Book Award in Children's Literature in 1970, while his collection "A Crown of Feathers and Other Stories" won the U.S. National Book Award in Fiction in 1974.
His memoir, "A Day Of Pleasure: Stories of a Boy Growing Up in Warsaw", won the U.S. National Book Award in Children's Literature in 1970, while his collection "A Crown of Feathers and Other Stories" won the U.S. National Book Award in Fiction in 1974.
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
September 25, 2014
Given that the latest book by Isaac Bashevis Singer I read ('The King of the Fields') turned out to be a big disappointment, I didn't lose my trust in one of my favourite authors overall.
With 'Love and Exile' the good old I.B. I knew came back to send his regards from a very special time: his formative years.
Although the cover of the book boasts that this is 'An Autobiographical Trilogy', what we have here is an account of the first thirty-five years of Mr Singer's long life. This means that the size of the book is a manageable 352 pages which won't put off any eager readers but with limited time on their hands.
On a personal note, I would have loved if Isaac Bashevis had written even more about his early years than he did here. Not to mention including something on his following fifty-three years. But I noticed how many great authors who flirted with their memoirs were somehow reluctant to include their more mature and successful years in those books. Vladimir Nabokov, Stefan Zweig, Gregor von Rezzori, Gyorgy Faludy, Witold Gombrowicz and Stanislaw Lem come to mind and I.B. Singer joins the club.
So, let's talk about what Isaac Bashevis chose to tell us. Yes, let's talk about 'Love and Exile' which is a very carefully chosen title indeed.
First comes love. You might not know or suspect this but young I.B. was no short than a womanizer. If you can picture a penniless, skinny, poorly dressed, red haired proofreader playing the Don Juan in Warsaw in the late 1920s this is what Mr Singer was. Some of his conquests were women who could have been his mother, others were communist tomboys, and others were nevrotic and opinionated beauties who were just looking for a cultivated lover.
By reading about this women, I could recognise the hectic behaviors and sexual perversions of many a female character narrated by I.B Singer in novels such as 'Enemies', 'The Slave', 'Shadows On the Hudson' and - alas! - even from that awful 'The King of the Fields'.
True, Isaac Bashevis Singer wasn't only going from a bed to another one in those turbulent years for him and for Warsaw alike. He was also talented a writer for his young age, but in the Yiddish-Polish circles of his time there were dozens of authors who had published more than him gaining money and reputation.
One of the shining stars of Yiddish literature in Warsaw was another Singer, Israel Joshua (I.J.) who happened to be Isaac Bashevis' elder brother. It was I.J. who brought home novels by Hamsun, Turgenev and Dostoyevsky along with scientific publications, newspapers. It was I.J. who contested the status quo of the Singer's household engaging in theological arguments with his father, a pious rabbi portrayed by Isaac Bashevis as a holy man twice removed from modernity.
It was I.J. who introduced his younger brother in the Warsaw literary scene finding him the post of proofreader in the magazine where he was editor in chief. And again, it was I.J. who became the Polish correspondent for an American-Yiddish newspaper while Isaac Bashevis soon found out that he wasn't made for journalism.
The respect, admiration and awe that the future Nobel Prize for Literature felt for his elder brother are expressed umpteen times thorough 'Love and Exile'. Young Isaac Bashevis knew very well that he lived in the shadow of Israel Joshua's success to the point he was often confused with him and yet in this book one can only find words of gratitude for this brother.
Second comes exile.
The exile from a country, Poland, that both the Singer brothers loved in a way, but that they couldn't fully perceive as their homecountry. Isaac Bashevis explains that he could read books in four or five languages (including Polish), but that Yiddish was the only language he spoke well admitting that 'women in Warsaw were constantly correcting my Polish'.
Now I can certainly relate with such a statement myself, but I'm a foreigner while I.B. was born and bred in Poland. Well, bred to some extent as he spoke Yiddish at home, attended cheder instead of Polish school and later never went to university. The author here makes crystal clear that he's at the same time proud of his Jewish heritage and ashamed for having not had the possibility of learning Polish well which I've found touching.
Anyways. Let's go back to the exile.
Guess what? It was Israel Joshua who moved first to the US and it was I.J. who sent his brother an affidavit to come and join him in New York City. Isaac Bashevis arrives in the United States with only one published book in his portfolio - 'Satan in Goray' - and out of fear for what he feels will happen to the Jews in Poland. As far as we know, he never looked at the US with keen or curious eyes before. Among the novelists he read the most, the future Nobel laureate mentions Aleichem, Peretz, Hamsun, Mann, Rolland, Turgenev, Dostoyevsky, not a single American one, save Twain.
And yet, because Israel Joshua migrated to the US - not before having his novel 'Yoshe Kalb' translated into Polish: quite an accomplishment - Isaac Bashevis goes with the flow and leaves Europe behind.
The chapters regarding the trip to the US by ship are among the most interesting ones in this book. The sense of claustrophoby and discomfort felt by Mr Singer on board is described very well. He only pines for loneliness and gets discriminated for his asking to eat alone and for being a vegetarian. These pages are poignant and disturbing at the same time. One cannot help but asking themselves what I.B. Singer did for being treated so badly by the crew and the injustice of this treatment hurts.
The final part of the 'trilogy' depicts the arrival and the first years of the novelist in the US being hosted by (I bet you know by whom)...his brother Israel Joshua.
Once more, it's I.J. who finds Isaac Bashevis a job in the newspaper he has been writing for and buys him an Yiddish typewriter. And later on I.J. will even rescue his younger brother from a writer's block crisis by helping him to put an order and give a sense to the drafts Isaac Bashevis is working on.
Unfortunately, 'Love and Exile' ends up before two crucial events in the life of I.B. Singer: the sudden death of his elder brother at the age of 50 and the publication of 'The Family Moskat' a masterpiece that will be dedicated to Israel Joshua, mentor and model for Isaac Bashevis.
With 'Love and Exile' the good old I.B. I knew came back to send his regards from a very special time: his formative years.
Although the cover of the book boasts that this is 'An Autobiographical Trilogy', what we have here is an account of the first thirty-five years of Mr Singer's long life. This means that the size of the book is a manageable 352 pages which won't put off any eager readers but with limited time on their hands.
On a personal note, I would have loved if Isaac Bashevis had written even more about his early years than he did here. Not to mention including something on his following fifty-three years. But I noticed how many great authors who flirted with their memoirs were somehow reluctant to include their more mature and successful years in those books. Vladimir Nabokov, Stefan Zweig, Gregor von Rezzori, Gyorgy Faludy, Witold Gombrowicz and Stanislaw Lem come to mind and I.B. Singer joins the club.
So, let's talk about what Isaac Bashevis chose to tell us. Yes, let's talk about 'Love and Exile' which is a very carefully chosen title indeed.
First comes love. You might not know or suspect this but young I.B. was no short than a womanizer. If you can picture a penniless, skinny, poorly dressed, red haired proofreader playing the Don Juan in Warsaw in the late 1920s this is what Mr Singer was. Some of his conquests were women who could have been his mother, others were communist tomboys, and others were nevrotic and opinionated beauties who were just looking for a cultivated lover.
By reading about this women, I could recognise the hectic behaviors and sexual perversions of many a female character narrated by I.B Singer in novels such as 'Enemies', 'The Slave', 'Shadows On the Hudson' and - alas! - even from that awful 'The King of the Fields'.
True, Isaac Bashevis Singer wasn't only going from a bed to another one in those turbulent years for him and for Warsaw alike. He was also talented a writer for his young age, but in the Yiddish-Polish circles of his time there were dozens of authors who had published more than him gaining money and reputation.
One of the shining stars of Yiddish literature in Warsaw was another Singer, Israel Joshua (I.J.) who happened to be Isaac Bashevis' elder brother. It was I.J. who brought home novels by Hamsun, Turgenev and Dostoyevsky along with scientific publications, newspapers. It was I.J. who contested the status quo of the Singer's household engaging in theological arguments with his father, a pious rabbi portrayed by Isaac Bashevis as a holy man twice removed from modernity.
It was I.J. who introduced his younger brother in the Warsaw literary scene finding him the post of proofreader in the magazine where he was editor in chief. And again, it was I.J. who became the Polish correspondent for an American-Yiddish newspaper while Isaac Bashevis soon found out that he wasn't made for journalism.
The respect, admiration and awe that the future Nobel Prize for Literature felt for his elder brother are expressed umpteen times thorough 'Love and Exile'. Young Isaac Bashevis knew very well that he lived in the shadow of Israel Joshua's success to the point he was often confused with him and yet in this book one can only find words of gratitude for this brother.
Second comes exile.
The exile from a country, Poland, that both the Singer brothers loved in a way, but that they couldn't fully perceive as their homecountry. Isaac Bashevis explains that he could read books in four or five languages (including Polish), but that Yiddish was the only language he spoke well admitting that 'women in Warsaw were constantly correcting my Polish'.
Now I can certainly relate with such a statement myself, but I'm a foreigner while I.B. was born and bred in Poland. Well, bred to some extent as he spoke Yiddish at home, attended cheder instead of Polish school and later never went to university. The author here makes crystal clear that he's at the same time proud of his Jewish heritage and ashamed for having not had the possibility of learning Polish well which I've found touching.
Anyways. Let's go back to the exile.
Guess what? It was Israel Joshua who moved first to the US and it was I.J. who sent his brother an affidavit to come and join him in New York City. Isaac Bashevis arrives in the United States with only one published book in his portfolio - 'Satan in Goray' - and out of fear for what he feels will happen to the Jews in Poland. As far as we know, he never looked at the US with keen or curious eyes before. Among the novelists he read the most, the future Nobel laureate mentions Aleichem, Peretz, Hamsun, Mann, Rolland, Turgenev, Dostoyevsky, not a single American one, save Twain.
And yet, because Israel Joshua migrated to the US - not before having his novel 'Yoshe Kalb' translated into Polish: quite an accomplishment - Isaac Bashevis goes with the flow and leaves Europe behind.
The chapters regarding the trip to the US by ship are among the most interesting ones in this book. The sense of claustrophoby and discomfort felt by Mr Singer on board is described very well. He only pines for loneliness and gets discriminated for his asking to eat alone and for being a vegetarian. These pages are poignant and disturbing at the same time. One cannot help but asking themselves what I.B. Singer did for being treated so badly by the crew and the injustice of this treatment hurts.
The final part of the 'trilogy' depicts the arrival and the first years of the novelist in the US being hosted by (I bet you know by whom)...his brother Israel Joshua.
Once more, it's I.J. who finds Isaac Bashevis a job in the newspaper he has been writing for and buys him an Yiddish typewriter. And later on I.J. will even rescue his younger brother from a writer's block crisis by helping him to put an order and give a sense to the drafts Isaac Bashevis is working on.
Unfortunately, 'Love and Exile' ends up before two crucial events in the life of I.B. Singer: the sudden death of his elder brother at the age of 50 and the publication of 'The Family Moskat' a masterpiece that will be dedicated to Israel Joshua, mentor and model for Isaac Bashevis.
August 8, 2013
I loved it. He's my favourite author anyway (is he? Is that true? Yes, I think he really is now) so I already knew I liked his style. This is his memoir; well, one of his memoirs, consisting of various other chunks of memoir brought together in one volume.
He was born in Poland, and emigrated to New York in the 1930s. He went on to be an incredibly successful writer, but this book ends when he's still poor and miserable and relatively unknown.
He writes about everything from the tiniest fly (hmm, there are actually quite a few tiny flies described in minute detail in this book, now I come to think about it) to the name of God, and is always trying to figure out what connects and differentiates the two. Basically, he's got issues with the Problem of Suffering - how can an omnipotent God allow such terrible suffering in the world? That old problem. (Probably most Jewish people in Poland in the 1930s had issues with the Problem of Suffering, all things considered. But most people don't write like Singer.)
It's not just about God though - it's also all about him growing up with his super-religious rabbi father and his adult life in Warsaw. To the east, horrible things are happening in Russia; to the west Hitler has come to power in Germany. Singer is more interested in his romantic problems and his ongoing issues with God than in politics, but he hangs out with lots of ideologically driven writers, so you get to hear about all the lefty infighting between, eg the Stalinists and the Trotskyites too. It's interesting and sad and funny - and you even get to meet his brother, Israel Joshua Singer! Also a famous Yiddish writer in his own right (wrote The Brothers Ashkenazi).
He was born in Poland, and emigrated to New York in the 1930s. He went on to be an incredibly successful writer, but this book ends when he's still poor and miserable and relatively unknown.
He writes about everything from the tiniest fly (hmm, there are actually quite a few tiny flies described in minute detail in this book, now I come to think about it) to the name of God, and is always trying to figure out what connects and differentiates the two. Basically, he's got issues with the Problem of Suffering - how can an omnipotent God allow such terrible suffering in the world? That old problem. (Probably most Jewish people in Poland in the 1930s had issues with the Problem of Suffering, all things considered. But most people don't write like Singer.)
It's not just about God though - it's also all about him growing up with his super-religious rabbi father and his adult life in Warsaw. To the east, horrible things are happening in Russia; to the west Hitler has come to power in Germany. Singer is more interested in his romantic problems and his ongoing issues with God than in politics, but he hangs out with lots of ideologically driven writers, so you get to hear about all the lefty infighting between, eg the Stalinists and the Trotskyites too. It's interesting and sad and funny - and you even get to meet his brother, Israel Joshua Singer! Also a famous Yiddish writer in his own right (wrote The Brothers Ashkenazi).
November 4, 2009
This is one of the first writer's memoirs I have really loved. Singer is a wonderful storyteller, and from the very beginning he brings you into the mind of an incredibly neurotic Jew in Warsaw in the years before World War Two. The memoir is deeply philosophical and personal. As the world is teetering on the edge of collapse, he can't help spending his time wondering about the impractical big questions: why is God so cruel? Why would he allow sin to exist? etc. He is also concerned with the little questions - How can I be less lonely? How can I sleep with my cousin and my girlfriend without getting in trouble?
Amazingly for such a memoir, Hitler is mentioned maybe ten times. Instead, the worldly events Singer focuses on are drawn to show the absurdity of human nature. The Yiddishist writers, big fish in a disappearing pond, constantly declare themselves communists and become rabid and bloodthirsty, waiting for the revolution to come. Several of them sneak into Russia, only to be sent off to Siberia and never heard from again.
Eventually, Singer makes it to New York, and gets terribly depressed. He says it is because he doesn't feel comfortable there. Could it maybe be because the holocaust has just destroyed everything and everyone he left behind? Who knows, the mind of a neurotic is a lovely thing to follow.
Oh, and I couldn't help wondering the whole time if the movie Love and Death was based on this memoir. Any thoughts anyone?
Amazingly for such a memoir, Hitler is mentioned maybe ten times. Instead, the worldly events Singer focuses on are drawn to show the absurdity of human nature. The Yiddishist writers, big fish in a disappearing pond, constantly declare themselves communists and become rabid and bloodthirsty, waiting for the revolution to come. Several of them sneak into Russia, only to be sent off to Siberia and never heard from again.
Eventually, Singer makes it to New York, and gets terribly depressed. He says it is because he doesn't feel comfortable there. Could it maybe be because the holocaust has just destroyed everything and everyone he left behind? Who knows, the mind of a neurotic is a lovely thing to follow.
Oh, and I couldn't help wondering the whole time if the movie Love and Death was based on this memoir. Any thoughts anyone?
October 2, 2025
Σπανίως ανατρέχω στη ζωή των –αγαπημένων και μη– λογοτεχνών, παρά μόνο εν τάχει. Δεν με ενδιαφέρει ιδιαίτερα ο βίος τους αλλά το έργο τους, όχι τόσο η εποχή τους και το περιβάλλον όσο η αντίληψή τους γι’ αυτό. Υπάρχουν αρκετοί λόγοι, αλλά δεν είναι του παρόντος. Από την άλλη πλευρά, οι λογοτεχνικές βιογραφίες (ή βιογραφίες λογοτεχνών) με ενδιαφέρουν ως ένα σημείο: εκείνο μέχρι το οποίο πραγματεύονται το έργο τους σε σύνδεση με τα βιώματά τους, επομένως και το πλαίσιο της σκέψης τους, την επίδραση που είχαν οι ιδέες τους (και επομένως εκείνες της εποχής τους στα βιβλία τους).
Μόνο ως παρεπόμενο με αφορά η ερωτική τους ζωή, οι οικογενειακές τους σχέσεις, οι πολιτικές τους επιδιώξεις και συνδέσεις. Φυσικά πρόκειται περί δικής μου ιδιοτροπίας, καθώς εν προκειμένω κάνω προβολή επιθυμιών, αναζητώντας στον βίο του δημιουργού τη δημιουργία του και όχι τα παθήματά του ή το κουτσομπολιό, το οποίο με αφήνει αδιάφορο. Ως εκ τούτου αδιαφορώ για την ειλικρίνεια ή την αλήθεια των λεγομένων, τα οποία ποτέ δεν θα διασταύρωνα, καθότι αντιμετωπίζω την αυτοβιογραφία ως κατασκευή και μυθοπλασία – μια ακόμα παρανάγνωση, του εαυτού τη φορά αυτή. Σε τελική ανάλυση όμως, ο τρόπος του συγγραφέα είναι εκείνος που θα με κρατήσει ή όχι στο βιβλίο – τα ψέματα ή οι αλήθειες είναι δευτερεύοντα, αφού όλοι μας γνωρίζουμε ότι η αφήγηση του παρελθόντος μας είναι σε σημαντικό βαθμό παραποιημένη ή ωραιοποιημένη προκειμένου να ταιριάξει στην τρέχουσα εικόνα μας.
Εξαιρετικό παράδειγμα λογοτεχνική βιογραφίας ήταν εκείνη του Σ. Πιτόλ («Η τέχνη της φυγής», εκδ. Δώμα), όπου ο συγγραφέας έδωσε έμφαση στο έργο του και στη λογοτεχνικότητα. Είναι κάτι που δεν βρήκα στο «Έρωτας και εξορία» του Σίνγκερ, ενός συγγραφέα του οποίου το έργο εκτιμώ ιδιαίτερα. Η αφήγηση μου φάνηκε επίπεδη, χωρίς διακυμάνσεις μεταξύ των περισσότερο ή λιγότερο σημαντικών στιγμών της ζωής του. Δεδομένου ότι ολοκληρώνεται στα 35 χρόνια του, προφανώς δεν ήταν δυνατόν να καλύψει τις σημαντικότερες στιγμές του έργου του (όταν έφτασε στην Αμερική είχε εκδώσει ένα μόνο μυθιστόρημα), κάτι που με κάνει να αναρωτιέμαι ποιος ο σκοπός αυτής της αυτοβιογραφίας, την οποία αναφέρει κι ο ίδιος ότι θα μπορούσε να συνεχίσει εφόσον υπήρχε ενδιαφέρον (εμπορικό υποθέτω).
Οι βασικοί πυλώνες/ θεματικές του βιβλίου είναι η αναζήτηση και σχέση του με τον Θεό ως Εβραίου και εκείνη με τον έρωτα και το γυναικείο φύλο. Σε κανένα από τα δύο δεν βρήκα ιδιαίτερο ενδιαφέρον – ιδίως στο δεύτερο όπου η ενοχική, ανώριμη και επιδερμική σχέση του με τον εαυτό του τον απέτρεπε (κρίνοντας από τα γραφόμενά του) από οποιαδήποτε εμβάθυνση, με αποτέλεσμα μια απλή καταγραφή σεξουαλικών σχέσεων, κατά βάση αδιάφορων για τον αναγνώστη, αφού η αφήγησή τους ήταν επίπεδη και αδιάφορη. Δεν μπορώ να του καταλογίσω πολλά βέβαια, καθότι άντρας άλλης εποχής και καταγωγής, καταπώς κι ο ίδιος το αναφέρει, του οποίου η εβραϊκή του ανατροφή έθετε ως ιδανικό τη σοβαρή σχέση με παρθένα σύζυγο και επομένως αυτόματη υποτίμηση των γυναικών με τις οποίες σχετιζόταν. Τα κεφάλαια της σχέσης με το Θείο είχαν περισσότερο ενδιαφέρον, ιδίως οι φιλοσοφικές αναφορές, αλλά και πάλι με συχνές επαναλήψεις, σε μια κυκλική κίνηση που δεν έβγαζε κάπου. Σε αυτό συνέτεινε και το ότι συχνά τα κεφάλαια κόβονταν απότομα και συνεχίζονταν σε μετέπειτα χρονικό σημείο, οπότε χανόταν η σύνδεση με το προηγούμενο γεγονός.
Εκείνο όμως που με ενόχλησε περισσότερο ήταν κάτι βαθύτερο, το οποίο αρχικά απέφυγα να χαρακτηρίσω, αλλά με το πέρασμα των κεφαλαίων έγινε όλο και πιο έντονο, ώσπου στο τέλος κατέκλυσε τα πάντα, αφήνοντας ανάλογη επίγευση. Το βιβλίο αυτό αφενός αποπνέει μιζέρια και αφετέρου διαπνέεται από μόνιμη αίσθηση γκρίνιας για τα πάντα (δύο χαρακτηριστικά που μου είναι κατά βάση συμπαθή). Θεωρώ ότι ο συγγραφέας έπασχε από κατάθλιψη και είχε αυτοκτονικές τάσεις, όχι αποκλειστικά γιατί ο βίος του ήταν αβίωτος, αλλά για εσωτερικούς ψυχολογικούς λόγους, τους οποίους είτε αδυνατεί να διευκρινίσει γιατί αγνοούσε, είτε δεν ήθελε να καταγράψει. Εκείνο που ως σύγχρονος αναγνώστης τολμώ να πω είναι ότι για πνευματικός άνθρωπος είχε τεράστια κενά και τυφλά σημεία στα πιο σημαντικά ζητήματα, αλλά αυτό δεν θα ενοχλούσε εάν έβρισκα, όπως προείπα, τα γραφόμενα αφηγηματικώς ενδιαφέροντα.
Για να επανέλθω στη μιζέρια και την γκρίνια, τη μόνιμη αίσθηση καταδίωξης και την ηττοπάθεια, τονίζω ότι αυτά τα στοιχεία μπορούν να αποβούν δημιουργικά, εφόσον συνδυαστούν όμως με το χιούμορ και τον αυτοσαρκασμό. Τυπικό παράδειγμα εβραϊκής καταγωγής ο Φ. Ροθ, ο οποίος έπαιξε με τα ζητήματα της εβραϊκής ταυτότητας χωρίς να εκπέσει στον μονοδιάστατο και ασήμαντο καλλιτεχνικά ρόλο του θύματος, του καταδιωγμένου και του αενάως ηττημένου. Αντιθέτως, ο Σίνγκερ βρίσκεται σε μόνιμη άρνηση, παρατάσσοντας μια αλληλοδιαδοχή δυστυχίας που αποδεικνύεται εν τέλει κουραστική, αποτρέποντας τον αναγνώστη από το να συμπάσχει (προς το τέλος του βιβλίου έφτασα στο σημείο να σκεφτώ ότι δεν του άξιζε η τύχη να καταλήξει στην Αμερική με τη συνδρομή τόσων ανθρώπων, αλλά να επιστρέψει στην Πολωνία, όπως το επιθυμούσε κι ο ίδιος σε κάποιες αυτοκτονικές φάσεις, να δοκιμάσει την τύχη του με την Γκεστάπο).
Κλείνοντας, να τονίσω ότι στην περίπτωση του Σίνγκερ ισχύει ο κανόνας που ορθά έχει τεθεί ως προαπαιτούμενο για τους συγγραφείς: το έργο τους να είναι πιο ενδιαφέρον από τους ίδιους. Εν προκειμένω, έχουμε το ιδανικό παράδειγμα.
https://fotiskblog.home.blog/2025/09/...
Μόνο ως παρεπόμενο με αφορά η ερωτική τους ζωή, οι οικογενειακές τους σχέσεις, οι πολιτικές τους επιδιώξεις και συνδέσεις. Φυσικά πρόκειται περί δικής μου ιδιοτροπίας, καθώς εν προκειμένω κάνω προβολή επιθυμιών, αναζητώντας στον βίο του δημιουργού τη δημιουργία του και όχι τα παθήματά του ή το κουτσομπολιό, το οποίο με αφήνει αδιάφορο. Ως εκ τούτου αδιαφορώ για την ειλικρίνεια ή την αλήθεια των λεγομένων, τα οποία ποτέ δεν θα διασταύρωνα, καθότι αντιμετωπίζω την αυτοβιογραφία ως κατασκευή και μυθοπλασία – μια ακόμα παρανάγνωση, του εαυτού τη φορά αυτή. Σε τελική ανάλυση όμως, ο τρόπος του συγγραφέα είναι εκείνος που θα με κρατήσει ή όχι στο βιβλίο – τα ψέματα ή οι αλήθειες είναι δευτερεύοντα, αφού όλοι μας γνωρίζουμε ότι η αφήγηση του παρελθόντος μας είναι σε σημαντικό βαθμό παραποιημένη ή ωραιοποιημένη προκειμένου να ταιριάξει στην τρέχουσα εικόνα μας.
Εξαιρετικό παράδειγμα λογοτεχνική βιογραφίας ήταν εκείνη του Σ. Πιτόλ («Η τέχνη της φυγής», εκδ. Δώμα), όπου ο συγγραφέας έδωσε έμφαση στο έργο του και στη λογοτεχνικότητα. Είναι κάτι που δεν βρήκα στο «Έρωτας και εξορία» του Σίνγκερ, ενός συγγραφέα του οποίου το έργο εκτιμώ ιδιαίτερα. Η αφήγηση μου φάνηκε επίπεδη, χωρίς διακυμάνσεις μεταξύ των περισσότερο ή λιγότερο σημαντικών στιγμών της ζωής του. Δεδομένου ότι ολοκληρώνεται στα 35 χρόνια του, προφανώς δεν ήταν δυνατόν να καλύψει τις σημαντικότερες στιγμές του έργου του (όταν έφτασε στην Αμερική είχε εκδώσει ένα μόνο μυθιστόρημα), κάτι που με κάνει να αναρωτιέμαι ποιος ο σκοπός αυτής της αυτοβιογραφίας, την οποία αναφέρει κι ο ίδιος ότι θα μπορούσε να συνεχίσει εφόσον υπήρχε ενδιαφέρον (εμπορικό υποθέτω).
Οι βασικοί πυλώνες/ θεματικές του βιβλίου είναι η αναζήτηση και σχέση του με τον Θεό ως Εβραίου και εκείνη με τον έρωτα και το γυναικείο φύλο. Σε κανένα από τα δύο δεν βρήκα ιδιαίτερο ενδιαφέρον – ιδίως στο δεύτερο όπου η ενοχική, ανώριμη και επιδερμική σχέση του με τον εαυτό του τον απέτρεπε (κρίνοντας από τα γραφόμενά του) από οποιαδήποτε εμβάθυνση, με αποτέλεσμα μια απλή καταγραφή σεξουαλικών σχέσεων, κατά βάση αδιάφορων για τον αναγνώστη, αφού η αφήγησή τους ήταν επίπεδη και αδιάφορη. Δεν μπορώ να του καταλογίσω πολλά βέβαια, καθότι άντρας άλλης εποχής και καταγωγής, καταπώς κι ο ίδιος το αναφέρει, του οποίου η εβραϊκή του ανατροφή έθετε ως ιδανικό τη σοβαρή σχέση με παρθένα σύζυγο και επομένως αυτόματη υποτίμηση των γυναικών με τις οποίες σχετιζόταν. Τα κεφάλαια της σχέσης με το Θείο είχαν περισσότερο ενδιαφέρον, ιδίως οι φιλοσοφικές αναφορές, αλλά και πάλι με συχνές επαναλήψεις, σε μια κυκλική κίνηση που δεν έβγαζε κάπου. Σε αυτό συνέτεινε και το ότι συχνά τα κεφάλαια κόβονταν απότομα και συνεχίζονταν σε μετέπειτα χρονικό σημείο, οπότε χανόταν η σύνδεση με το προηγούμενο γεγονός.
Εκείνο όμως που με ενόχλησε περισσότερο ήταν κάτι βαθύτερο, το οποίο αρχικά απέφυγα να χαρακτηρίσω, αλλά με το πέρασμα των κεφαλαίων έγινε όλο και πιο έντονο, ώσπου στο τέλος κατέκλυσε τα πάντα, αφήνοντας ανάλογη επίγευση. Το βιβλίο αυτό αφενός αποπνέει μιζέρια και αφετέρου διαπνέεται από μόνιμη αίσθηση γκρίνιας για τα πάντα (δύο χαρακτηριστικά που μου είναι κατά βάση συμπαθή). Θεωρώ ότι ο συγγραφέας έπασχε από κατάθλιψη και είχε αυτοκτονικές τάσεις, όχι αποκλειστικά γιατί ο βίος του ήταν αβίωτος, αλλά για εσωτερικούς ψυχολογικούς λόγους, τους οποίους είτε αδυνατεί να διευκρινίσει γιατί αγνοούσε, είτε δεν ήθελε να καταγράψει. Εκείνο που ως σύγχρονος αναγνώστης τολμώ να πω είναι ότι για πνευματικός άνθρωπος είχε τεράστια κενά και τυφλά σημεία στα πιο σημαντικά ζητήματα, αλλά αυτό δεν θα ενοχλούσε εάν έβρισκα, όπως προείπα, τα γραφόμενα αφηγηματικώς ενδιαφέροντα.
Για να επανέλθω στη μιζέρια και την γκρίνια, τη μόνιμη αίσθηση καταδίωξης και την ηττοπάθεια, τονίζω ότι αυτά τα στοιχεία μπορούν να αποβούν δημιουργικά, εφόσον συνδυαστούν όμως με το χιούμορ και τον αυτοσαρκασμό. Τυπικό παράδειγμα εβραϊκής καταγωγής ο Φ. Ροθ, ο οποίος έπαιξε με τα ζητήματα της εβραϊκής ταυτότητας χωρίς να εκπέσει στον μονοδιάστατο και ασήμαντο καλλιτεχνικά ρόλο του θύματος, του καταδιωγμένου και του αενάως ηττημένου. Αντιθέτως, ο Σίνγκερ βρίσκεται σε μόνιμη άρνηση, παρατάσσοντας μια αλληλοδιαδοχή δυστυχίας που αποδεικνύεται εν τέλει κουραστική, αποτρέποντας τον αναγνώστη από το να συμπάσχει (προς το τέλος του βιβλίου έφτασα στο σημείο να σκεφτώ ότι δεν του άξιζε η τύχη να καταλήξει στην Αμερική με τη συνδρομή τόσων ανθρώπων, αλλά να επιστρέψει στην Πολωνία, όπως το επιθυμούσε κι ο ίδιος σε κάποιες αυτοκτονικές φάσεις, να δοκιμάσει την τύχη του με την Γκεστάπο).
Κλείνοντας, να τονίσω ότι στην περίπτωση του Σίνγκερ ισχύει ο κανόνας που ορθά έχει τεθεί ως προαπαιτούμενο για τους συγγραφείς: το έργο τους να είναι πιο ενδιαφέρον από τους ίδιους. Εν προκειμένω, έχουμε το ιδανικό παράδειγμα.
https://fotiskblog.home.blog/2025/09/...
June 9, 2025
After my latest round of finishing three more of his novels (saving Collected Stories in Library of America trio for last), finally got around to this autobiographical trilogy, here as a single publication. So, lacking Raphael Soyer's illustrations, but it's via Kindle, thus limited choices to plain text, alas.
From the start, Singer speaks in an accessible, yet polished, style full of erudition, eroticism, realism, speculation, spiritual and scientific Big Questions, and of course many events he's drawn on in fiction. As a Rebbe's son (Singer observed his father's community court in another pair of autobiographical reminiscences), Isaac shows how he and older brother [Israel] Joshua, determinedly atheist, from an early age squared off as the little boy wrestled with concerns I've wondered about all my span as well.
It's refreshing to find an account of growing up without wallowing in reverie, resenting parents, or blaming "society": he adopts an "ethics of protest." Unable to be swayed by Tolstoy, Spinoza, the Torah, or Einstein, Isaac affirms doing as little harm as possible, diminishing suffering caused by slaughter of animals, and, from WWI on, to insist upon nagging about behaviors, exploring passions, seeking justice, rejecting rhetoric, exposing cruelty, denying fanaticism, and resisting fatal ideologies.
Part two follows him in Warsaw between the wars. Looking for stimulation, shy but driven to meet women, bent on making a scant living by his Yiddish typewriter, he indulges in hypnotism even as he vows to study philosophy. Zionist emigration isn't an option, as skepticism hobbies idealism. Refusing to bow down to any "World Betterment" political, psychological, or physicist 1920s idols, nevertheless he stirs up whims, a penchant for affairs, diversions, and for sabotaging any system imposed upon his stubborn self. As he doesn't confesses, he can't stop worshipping two other icons: love and literature.
He can't shut off suicidal thoughts, conjuring up "suspense" as his irritating spice of life which he incorporates into his relationships and fantasies, or posing as a nihilist vs. a hidden, merciless God. There's meandering, uneven pacing, but I'm unsure if this can be attributed to Yiddish in translation.
You can see where a plot of The Certificate emerged, and elements infiltrating The Family Moskat and Shosha in their womanizing protagonists, learned, lazy, low-budget, lackadaisical though they both be. A final section shows him following Joshua to the Daily Forward in Manhattan, fortunately. For it's 1935, he's thirty, and he's off thanks to acclaim afforded Satan in Goray, his long-form fiction debut.
There's an extended detour to Toronto, as he needs a workaround for his visa to stick. He's in quirky company of Zosia and Reuben, intriguing figures who undoubtedly show up in some as yet unread by me story (actually Z. can be recognized among the cast of Shosha). But the tone can't shake off steady melancholy. Despite his amorous conquests, happiness never stays. It ends off-kilter, with Singer in isolation, unable to return to his homeland. Searching for solutions which will evade but inspire him.
From the start, Singer speaks in an accessible, yet polished, style full of erudition, eroticism, realism, speculation, spiritual and scientific Big Questions, and of course many events he's drawn on in fiction. As a Rebbe's son (Singer observed his father's community court in another pair of autobiographical reminiscences), Isaac shows how he and older brother [Israel] Joshua, determinedly atheist, from an early age squared off as the little boy wrestled with concerns I've wondered about all my span as well.
It's refreshing to find an account of growing up without wallowing in reverie, resenting parents, or blaming "society": he adopts an "ethics of protest." Unable to be swayed by Tolstoy, Spinoza, the Torah, or Einstein, Isaac affirms doing as little harm as possible, diminishing suffering caused by slaughter of animals, and, from WWI on, to insist upon nagging about behaviors, exploring passions, seeking justice, rejecting rhetoric, exposing cruelty, denying fanaticism, and resisting fatal ideologies.
Part two follows him in Warsaw between the wars. Looking for stimulation, shy but driven to meet women, bent on making a scant living by his Yiddish typewriter, he indulges in hypnotism even as he vows to study philosophy. Zionist emigration isn't an option, as skepticism hobbies idealism. Refusing to bow down to any "World Betterment" political, psychological, or physicist 1920s idols, nevertheless he stirs up whims, a penchant for affairs, diversions, and for sabotaging any system imposed upon his stubborn self. As he doesn't confesses, he can't stop worshipping two other icons: love and literature.
He can't shut off suicidal thoughts, conjuring up "suspense" as his irritating spice of life which he incorporates into his relationships and fantasies, or posing as a nihilist vs. a hidden, merciless God. There's meandering, uneven pacing, but I'm unsure if this can be attributed to Yiddish in translation.
You can see where a plot of The Certificate emerged, and elements infiltrating The Family Moskat and Shosha in their womanizing protagonists, learned, lazy, low-budget, lackadaisical though they both be. A final section shows him following Joshua to the Daily Forward in Manhattan, fortunately. For it's 1935, he's thirty, and he's off thanks to acclaim afforded Satan in Goray, his long-form fiction debut.
There's an extended detour to Toronto, as he needs a workaround for his visa to stick. He's in quirky company of Zosia and Reuben, intriguing figures who undoubtedly show up in some as yet unread by me story (actually Z. can be recognized among the cast of Shosha). But the tone can't shake off steady melancholy. Despite his amorous conquests, happiness never stays. It ends off-kilter, with Singer in isolation, unable to return to his homeland. Searching for solutions which will evade but inspire him.
February 27, 2023
An incredibly honest autobiography from Singer’s pre-World War One childhood to his immigration to America between the wars. I couldn’t help but think how fortunate it was that Singer emigrated from Poland in 1935, otherwise we may not have had his writings.
Want to read
February 22, 2024Υπενθύμιση: Σιντ, μην ξεχάσεις να μοιάζεις σαν τον παππού Ισαάκ, όταν μεγαλώσεις.. Όχι με λευκές μουσάρες όπως ο Lev Nikolayevich, ούτε μουσάρες ασύλου όπως ο Walt Whitman ή ναυάρχου Ε.Α. όπως ο Auguste Rodin- ή εξαντρίκουε, όπως ο Τσάρλι Ντίκενς - όοχι!
Να γίνεις δύο μάτια, αν θέλεις βγάλε και ένα γεροντικό σώμα, για να μην σε κυνηγάει ο Θινγκ από την οικογένεια Άνταμς, και να κοιτάς.. να κοιτάς - και να βλέπεις όμως, - όπως ο παππούς Isaac..
Με τι ΔΕΝ είχε ασχοληθεί μέχρι σήμερα ο σιδεράς; με τρίχες (ή μηξπως είχε;)! Μπράβο σιδερά, πάντα τέτοια! Αν ξεμείνεις ποτέ από δουλείες, ψάξε στην ιστοσελίδα του Madame Frigarou, εκεί στο career opportunitiez σεκσιον: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MsE5N...
Να γίνεις δύο μάτια, αν θέλεις βγάλε και ένα γεροντικό σώμα, για να μην σε κυνηγάει ο Θινγκ από την οικογένεια Άνταμς, και να κοιτάς.. να κοιτάς - και να βλέπεις όμως, - όπως ο παππούς Isaac..
Με τι ΔΕΝ είχε ασχοληθεί μέχρι σήμερα ο σιδεράς; με τρίχες (ή μηξπως είχε;)! Μπράβο σιδερά, πάντα τέτοια! Αν ξεμείνεις ποτέ από δουλείες, ψάξε στην ιστοσελίδα του Madame Frigarou, εκεί στο career opportunitiez σεκσιον: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MsE5N...
November 5, 2023
IG: clautmontesinos
Una novela autobiográfica para reflexionar si perteneceremos siempre al exilio.
El autor recorre las dudas que la mayoría de seres humanos hemos atravesado. Dudas que ni la religión, ciencia, naturaleza o filosofía han podido despejar.
Por un lado, tenemos la sabiduría de la naturaleza, capaz salvaguardar cada estrella en el cielo, pero carente de compasión. Por otro, la ciencia ofreciéndonos el consuelo de saber que las estrellas están formadas por la misma materia que compone la Tierra, radiando enormes cantidades de energía que se pierden en el espacio o que se transformarán algún día de nuevo en materia.
Aceptar el hecho de que algunas cosas han existido desde siempre, y eso vale tanto para la naturaleza como para Dios, no nos salva de la melancolía como resultado de la compasión insoportable hacia quienes están sufriendo o de que somos capaces de innumerables desgracias solo por escapar del aburrimiento.
Si bien podemos estar dotados de conciencia, sabiduría, belleza y misericordia; la auténtica verdad no se ha sabido jamás, tampoco se sabe ahora ni nunca se sabrá.
¿Cómo es posible vivir en un mundo así?
¿Cómo respirar cuando estamos condenados a no saber nunca de dónde procedemos, quienes somos ni adonde nos dirigimos?
Puede que los libros sean solo papel y tinta, escritos por personas. Pero mientras la llama arda, todo puede corregirse.
“Tal vez nuestro mundo también forme parte de alguna cerilla cósmica. Quizás en el universo infinito existen seres capaces de meterse nuestro sistema solar en el bolsillo, y quizás lo hagan realmente sin que nosotros lo advirtamos…”
Una novela autobiográfica para reflexionar si perteneceremos siempre al exilio.
El autor recorre las dudas que la mayoría de seres humanos hemos atravesado. Dudas que ni la religión, ciencia, naturaleza o filosofía han podido despejar.
Por un lado, tenemos la sabiduría de la naturaleza, capaz salvaguardar cada estrella en el cielo, pero carente de compasión. Por otro, la ciencia ofreciéndonos el consuelo de saber que las estrellas están formadas por la misma materia que compone la Tierra, radiando enormes cantidades de energía que se pierden en el espacio o que se transformarán algún día de nuevo en materia.
Aceptar el hecho de que algunas cosas han existido desde siempre, y eso vale tanto para la naturaleza como para Dios, no nos salva de la melancolía como resultado de la compasión insoportable hacia quienes están sufriendo o de que somos capaces de innumerables desgracias solo por escapar del aburrimiento.
Si bien podemos estar dotados de conciencia, sabiduría, belleza y misericordia; la auténtica verdad no se ha sabido jamás, tampoco se sabe ahora ni nunca se sabrá.
¿Cómo es posible vivir en un mundo así?
¿Cómo respirar cuando estamos condenados a no saber nunca de dónde procedemos, quienes somos ni adonde nos dirigimos?
Puede que los libros sean solo papel y tinta, escritos por personas. Pero mientras la llama arda, todo puede corregirse.
“Tal vez nuestro mundo también forme parte de alguna cerilla cósmica. Quizás en el universo infinito existen seres capaces de meterse nuestro sistema solar en el bolsillo, y quizás lo hagan realmente sin que nosotros lo advirtamos…”
August 10, 2007
amazing that a writer can be so self absorbed, so honest, and yet have such empathy with the sufferring of others. his struggle with faith and his cultural history is very sensitive and i think expresses well the inner dialogue of the agnostic.
February 5, 2022
The book starts off in one tone and end in a completely different one. Well written.
February 6, 2023
Απολαυστικό! Περιγραφές που σε μεταφέρουν στα χρόνια, τα ιστορικά γεγονότα , τις καταστάσεις και τα συναισθήματα που φέρεται να έχει νιώσει ο ίδιος ο συγγραφέας...
December 13, 2011
Singer's biography viewed through the lens of spiritual searching and artist endeavor. The book ends well before Singer wins the Nobel Prize, in fact it sort of ends in a nadir for him. But it has vivid descriptions of life in the old world, and a rare first-hand account of the immigrant experience.
Read
July 17, 2011love this writer, he's a one of the best ive read
July 20, 2019
What strikes me is I.B. Singer's complete honesty about his struggles and shortcomings. At the same time one must view with a critical eye his characterization of many of his contemporaries as bloodthirsty revolutionaries. It is possible that some might have been, but Singer never identified with those who looked to political revolution as a method for achieving social justice (as his brother did). As a result his portrayal of those who did, such as biographer Isaac Deutscher, is particularly unflattering.
The author is also to be credited with acknowledging the immense debt he owed to his brother I.J. Singer who facilitated I.B.'a literary career time and again, and literally saved his life by securing a visa to America for him. It is most curious and telling that the author's mental state was such that he could do nothing to save himself while in Poland and in the early months in America when he was in danger of being deported.
Critics have made interesting psychological observations to regarding the fact that I.B. was unable to emerge as a great writer while his brother was alive. But emerge he did, and his body of work is most impressive. For those who have not read I J. Singer I urge you to investigate his masterworks THE BROTHERS ASKENAZI, YOSHE KALB, THE FAMILY CARNOVSKY, and EAST OF EDEN (not to be confused with Steinbeck's work of the same name).
The author is also to be credited with acknowledging the immense debt he owed to his brother I.J. Singer who facilitated I.B.'a literary career time and again, and literally saved his life by securing a visa to America for him. It is most curious and telling that the author's mental state was such that he could do nothing to save himself while in Poland and in the early months in America when he was in danger of being deported.
Critics have made interesting psychological observations to regarding the fact that I.B. was unable to emerge as a great writer while his brother was alive. But emerge he did, and his body of work is most impressive. For those who have not read I J. Singer I urge you to investigate his masterworks THE BROTHERS ASKENAZI, YOSHE KALB, THE FAMILY CARNOVSKY, and EAST OF EDEN (not to be confused with Steinbeck's work of the same name).
August 6, 2019
Hard to get through, but at the same time fascinating. The book's three parts, originally published separately in the 1970s, span Singer's upbringing in Poland and his early years in America. The book's "I" constantly reminds us that he is a physically modest person who is by nature fearful, shy and also a brooder and vegetarian with bad nerves. This refrain would have been tiring in the long run had it not been for his empathic writing about his Hassidic-Jewish family background, about Poland with its Yiddish culture in the interwar period and about his complicated love affairs. Despite Poland having its miserable aspects, life in the United States does not get any better - at least not at first.
The book differs from a traditional biography in that many of the characters, especially the women, are given fictitious names. Both dialogues and events are fictionalized, as also stated in the foreword. Like Stephan Zweig, Singer portrays a "world of yesterday." In this way, he not only gives us a self-portrait, but also an account of a way of life and culture lost during World War II.
This review is based on the Norwegian translation published in 1981/87.
The book differs from a traditional biography in that many of the characters, especially the women, are given fictitious names. Both dialogues and events are fictionalized, as also stated in the foreword. Like Stephan Zweig, Singer portrays a "world of yesterday." In this way, he not only gives us a self-portrait, but also an account of a way of life and culture lost during World War II.
This review is based on the Norwegian translation published in 1981/87.
December 13, 2023
Was mostly compelled by the early childhood religious education bits at the start of the book, the horny immigrant condemned to kafkaesque problems of bureaucracy, as fun as that sounds, didn't land as well. Part of me thinks it is because of the total absence of any ideological orientation. this is a good lesson though, in dissident art: the art comes first, the politics next. plenty of unreadable dissident art out there, at least Singer's sentences are tight
November 21, 2025
The title is misleading. It's about so much more than love and exile: it's about alienation and escape, escape from:
– his Chasidic orthodoxy
– Polish antisemitism pre-World War II
- feeling lost, hopeless and depressed.
It's also about a search for God, and a meaning to life.
What's wonderful is how he describes his internal discussions, his questions, his lack of answers, and his despair.
– his Chasidic orthodoxy
– Polish antisemitism pre-World War II
- feeling lost, hopeless and depressed.
It's also about a search for God, and a meaning to life.
What's wonderful is how he describes his internal discussions, his questions, his lack of answers, and his despair.
October 6, 2017
"Avevo sempre pensato che il racconto della Genesi in cui Adamo ed Eva mangiano del frutto dell’Albero della Sapienza e quindi prendono coscienza della propria nudità, esprimesse l’essenza dell’uomo, che è l’unico a vergognarsi di essere ciò che è. Tutta la cultura umana è un unico grandioso sforzo per coprire e abbellire se stessa; un’immensa e complessa foglia di fico." (p. 141)
March 28, 2023
Δεν γνώριζα τον συγγραφέα και όπως στην περίπτωση του Στάινερ η πρώτη γνωριμία μαζί του έγινε με αυτοβιογραφικό του έργο, το έρωτας και εξορία με πολύ απλά και λίγα λόγια είναι ο ορισμός του storytelling με τρόπο πειστικό και παραστατικό. Η σημασία του να είσαι Εβραίος μέσα από τα μάτια του Σίνγκερ. Εξαιρετικό.
March 4, 2025
Som alltid fängslas jag av Singers berättande. Det är ytligt i någon mening eller kanske snarare flytande och samtidigt utlämnande i dubbel bemärkelse - han berättar utförligt som sina tankar och demoner samtidigt som det är stora luckor i kronologin. Men men, en läsupplevelse är det.....
May 12, 2017
Singer is a true master of storytelling. In this case, about himself and his life. Great reading.
December 16, 2019
Really good entry in the 'depressed writer wanders around city feeling sad' genre.
Read
July 11, 2020History pre-WW2 in Jewish Poland by the Nobel laureate in literature. Slow and enthralling.
March 9, 2021
An autobiographic and philosophic book about the meaning of being a Jew
September 17, 2022
An amazing storyteller, especially when it is self biography. 5 minus. Read the Norwegian translation.
November 26, 2022
"Kombinacja rzeźni, burdelu i domu wariatów - oto czym naprawdę jest świat".
July 1, 2024
Młodość Singera, to przygoda okraszona walką o ducha. Singer jest myślicielem, nie jest czarno-biały, długie lata spędza na poszukiwaniu Boga, jednocześnie na próbie spełnienia swoich lubieżnych rządz.
W swojej książce opisuje Polskę, a przede wszystkim Warszawę XX-lecia międzywojennego. Jest to punkt widzenia, którego w obecnych wieku nie byłoby możliwości zobaczyć, bo jest to spojrzenie Żyda, który słabo mówi po polsku.
Późniejsza ucieczka jest jedynie uniknięciem śmierci z rąk nazistów. Singer momentami szuka śmierci, ale nie ma siły, aby przeciwstawić się życiu w formie ostatecznej. Odwleka swoją śmierć jak się da w pewnych momentach, za to w długich fragmentach robi wszystko, aby żyć jak trup, jak sam o sobie mówi.
W swojej książce opisuje Polskę, a przede wszystkim Warszawę XX-lecia międzywojennego. Jest to punkt widzenia, którego w obecnych wieku nie byłoby możliwości zobaczyć, bo jest to spojrzenie Żyda, który słabo mówi po polsku.
Późniejsza ucieczka jest jedynie uniknięciem śmierci z rąk nazistów. Singer momentami szuka śmierci, ale nie ma siły, aby przeciwstawić się życiu w formie ostatecznej. Odwleka swoją śmierć jak się da w pewnych momentach, za to w długich fragmentach robi wszystko, aby żyć jak trup, jak sam o sobie mówi.
November 21, 2012
I love his children's books. This memoir describes growing up in Poland, in a poor but very religious family - his father a rabbi. He tells his thoughts and musings about God and life, and it's beautiful. In his teens it's after World War I, and there's so much political upheaval and conflict that he feels sure the world will erupt in war again. It's a fascinating description of all the factions and intense disagreements of that time period. He gets to the US, but that last part is relatively lackluster.
May 1, 2017
"En el mejor de los casos, el arte no podía ser más que un instrumento para olvidar momentáneamente el desastre humano."
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