Israeli novelist Govrin (The Name
) juxtaposes one women's difficult search for personal and professional fulfillment against modern Israel's quagmire of political and social issues. Ilana Tsuriel's accidental death at the book's opening quashes her vision for a revolutionary architecture project in Jerusalem. The project borrows concepts about land and property ownership from biblical texts and is intended to promote peace in a city perpetually in turmoil. Left behind are her journal notes, photographs and sketches. As the title suggests, Ilana's work and private life unfold, often in dialogue with her deceased Zionist father, in a patchwork of musings justifying her personal and professional choices; assessing her father's role in Israel's independence; considering her scholar husband's Holocaust obsessions; finding terms for the perpetual clash between Israelis and Palestinians. She also has multiple affairs, not the least significant of which is with a Palestinian involved with her Jerusalem project. While many observations are vivid and immediate, the vast amount of territory Govrin tries to cover dissipates the narrative and Ilana herself, whose motivations never completely crystallize. (Oct.)
