facebook   linkedin   goodreads    Buy the Book
  • Home
  • Authors
    • Sister Authors
    • Meet Leslie
    • Meet Meryll
  • Book
    • About the Book
    • Discussion Questions
    • Beyond the Pale
    • Behind the Scenes
    • More about the Dedication Page
    • Reviews
  • Blog
    • Latest Blogs
    • Featured Books
    • Blog Archive
  • Extras
    • Deleted Chapters
      • Choose Your Beginning
        • The Missing Introduction
        • Alternate Chapter 1
      • Ballerina Alla
      • Baubie Chapters
        • Celestial Tea and Essig Flaish
        • Celestial Tea and Mandelbrot
        • Celestial Tea and Poppy Seed Cookies
    • Recipes from Baubies
      • Recipes from Grandma Rae
        • Essig Flaish
        • Mandelbrot
        • Mohn Cookies
  • Press
    • Press Kit
    • In the Media
    • Reviews
  • Events
  • Contact
Font size: + –
Print
Bookmark |

June Author of the Month--Joseph Kanon

Monday, 01 May 2017
Meryll
Highlighted Books
2042 Hits
0 Comments
June Author of the Month--Joseph Kanon

​Leslie and I have moved far afield from recommending books that connect to Jewish Luck. This month's author has set his upcoming novel, Defectors, in Moscow.There is at least a tenuous connection now to Jewish Luck.  The main reason for my recommendation is that Kanon's books create a world.

Like many authors, Kanon favors one genre—the thriller. I think my own predilection for thrillers and mysteries was nurtured by my obsession with Nancy Drew in fourth grade. Our teacher disdained the series, my mom tolerated a limited number per month so I resorted to smuggling home Nancy Drew books from friends and reading them with a flashlight under the covers. This, by the way, is an excellent method to encourage reading—make it illicit.

When reading mysteries and thrillers now as an adult, I sometimes uncover historical inaccuracies and anachronisms. For me, it's a signal to slam the book shut and look for a new author. So far, Kanon hasn't disappointed. His research doesn't scream "look what I know that you don't," but builds a more realistic stage for his imagination.

Kanon's works intrigue me because of their temporal and geographic settings--his creation of a world.The five novels that I've read are set between 1945-1947.In each book whether set in Los Alamos, Berlin, Hollywood, or Istanbul, Kanon is able to evoke the end of war and postwar chaos and fear.I feel like I'm lurking in the shadows of the war when I read his books. The Good German was translated into a film, but I liked the book even more. Each time I completed a Kanon work, I began to imagine, what if he wrote about Shanghai in 1945 or Australia or Argentina or Palestine? I understand how his characters arise from the place. Even as a reader I can begin to imagine the characters who cope with the unknown as the world reshapes itself. My friend Susan introduced me to the term, liminality—a transitional phase of a process, an in between place or time. Kanon has captured the liminality of the postwar era in each of his books.

Before I knew anything about Kanon, I assumed he was born in Europe and remembered the postwar chaos. I was wrong. He is a Pennsylvanian born in 1946. He attended Harvard as an undergrad and received his MA in English literature from Trinity College at Cambridge. So, perhaps he was CIA, a qualification of other thriller authors. Wrong again. He was safely ensconced in a Manhattan publishing house and only in this millennium has he turned to writing.Even though he certainly has connections in the publishing world, a fact any aspiring author envies, his works stand on their own.

Start with any of his books and begin to piece together the broken world after World War II.Perhaps there's an author who will take the same approach to 1968 or another liminal time.

Books by Joseph Kanon I've read from most favorite to less favorite

Istanbul Passage

The Good German

Leaving Berlin

Los Alamos

Stardust

Tags:
Joseph Kanon The Good German The Defector Thriller recommendations Istanbul Passage
What happened to Meryll's blogs?
Moments of Peace

About the author

Meryll

Meryll

  http://morejewishluck.com
View author's profile More posts from author
Meryll Levine Page is a retired high school history teacher with a special interest in women’s history. She taught extensively about the Soviet Union and its break-up. Currently she co-facilitates the Minneapolis Jewish Artists’ Lab.
Author's recent posts
Sunday, 02 July 2017 Hack Attack
Sunday, 02 July 2017 July Book of the Month: Bloodlines by Neville Frankel
Sunday, 11 June 2017 Haunted by the Past; Family Pictures, Part II
Friday, 26 May 2017 What happened to Meryll's blogs?
Monday, 01 May 2017 June Author of the Month--Joseph Kanon
 

Comments

No comments made yet. Be the first to submit a comment
Already Registered? Login Here
Guest
Tuesday, 26 January 2021

Captcha Image

Recent Blogs

Leslie
Leslie
28 June 2020
Earthquake
Wearily, I don my mask, my gloves for the weekly drive from my Minneapolis home to my suburban office to collect my mail. My footsteps echo in the empty hall. The calendar is still turned to March 2020 which means I have spent less than three months in this space that does not yet feel like my own. The March calendar photo of Little Paradise, New Zealand reminds me of my visit to an exquisite plac...
Read More
Leslie
Leslie
07 April 2019
Mirror, Mirror
The date- April 15, 2018.The place- Minneapolis. The weather-15 inches of snow due to fall by the end of this day. The dilemma—Do I move the gilded mirror measuring 39" by 54" and weighing over 40 pounds from my sister's house to ours?I had delayed responding to the question—do I want this family heirloom—for a year and now Meryll was moving the next day.This forty pound heirloom seemed so much we...
Read More
Leslie
Leslie
26 May 2018
The Regina Monologue or Feh! on Calling Me A Black Widow
When my mother was 8 years old, she had a "grandmother" for just over a year, the only grandmother she remembers.How did this happen? Grandfather Emil, a widower, lived with her family until 1937 when he was introduced to a "nice widow." Thirteen months after his wedding, Emil died at the age of 59.Cause of death? "Overfeeding by Regina," my mother said.Mom was sure that Regina was a " black ...
Read More

Invite Us To Speak

invite

We were featured speakers at Hadassah Brandeis Institute and Levy Summer Series. Our speaking engagements include JCCs, synagogues, libraries, book groups, retirement communities, schools, and organizations (e.g. ORT, Hadassah, and Women's League). References are available. 

Invite Us To Speak
 

Upcoming Events

No events

Talk Review

"I was very fortunate to be able to hear Meryll and Leslie speak at a Hadassah event in Israel. Each of the ~50 participants really enjoyed the event because Meryll and Leslie were so engaging. While they had a natural rapport with the audience, you could also tell they had prepared well so they could connect with our particular group's interests. I learned a lot from listening to them, and I found their sisterly interaction unique and fun. If you want an enlightening and uplifting experience, attend one of their book talks."
Lisa Shimoni, Modiin Israel

Book Review

"Truly, you have written a story that makes accessible the reality of existence in Russia, through the eyes of individuals who lived through the various regimes and dictates.  It is fascinating and very well told.  As I read Vera and Alla's story, I learned more Russian history than I had known from a textbook.  That's a big deal, women!  You tell the tale with vivid detail and hook us on the two women and their stories, then weave in the history to illuminate their journeys. It is such a necessary book.  I am thrilled that the two of you collaborated, as I can see the uniqueness of your personalities come through in the stories, and that, too, makes the book a gem."
Margaret Leibfried, Danielson Group consultant

Buy the Book

Online:

Click here to order your copy of Jewish Luck: A True Story of Friendship, Deception, and Risky Business on Amazon.com.

The Kindle version is available here

In Stores:
cgb250
logo-sholom
Make a donation to Sholom Home and enjoy Jewish Luck at the same time. Jewish Luck is now available at the Sholom Home West gift store. Meryll and Leslie will donate 50% of the proceeds back to Sholom Home. Enjoy!

Tasting Torah

Nourish mind, body, and soul with Meryll's Tasting Torah, which will bring oneg (joy) and limmud (learning) to your Shabbat, broaden your culinary horizons, and draw your Shabbat guests closer together.

logo tasting torah

Highlighted Books

Meryll
Meryll
02 July 2017
July Book of the Month:  Bloodlines by Neville Frankel
July Book of the Month: Bloodlines by Neville Frankel
Leslie and I began writing Jewish Luck with an underlying question in our minds—what would life have...
Read More

Copyright © 2016 All Rights Reserved by More Jewish Luck

Terms & Conditions | Privacy Policy | Login

Site created by LiveSites