From the internationally acclaimed Israeli author, a unique novel in verse that will take its place among the great books of our time. The Same Sea is Amos Oz's most adventurous and inventive novel, the book by which he would like to be remembered. This is Oz free of convention--literary and otherwise. Prose leads to poetry, poetry to prose. The cast of characters ranges from a prodigal son to a widowed father who has taken in his son's enticing young girlfriend, who in turn sleeps with her boyfriend's close friend. The author himself receives phone calls from his characters, criticizing the way he portrays them in his novel. In this human profusion there is chaos and order, love and eroticism, loyalty and betrayal, and ultimately an extraordinary energy. Reminiscent of Under Milk Wood for the range of its voices, its earthy humor, and its poignancy, The Same Sea is heartbreaking and sensuous, filled with classical echoes and Biblical allusions. Oz at his very best. "I wrote this book with everything I have. Language music, structure everything that I have. . . . This is the closest book I've written. Close to me, close to what I always wanted. . . . I went as far as I could. --Amos Oz Editorial Reviews From Publishers Weekly A meditation, a lamentation, a quest for meaning, a story of family love and of erotic longing, and a vibrantly poetic prose poem, this latest novel by one of Israel's preeminent writers ends with a tentative (but only tentative) affirmation about the future of his nation. That message is the subtle subtext of this narrative of intertwined lives. Albert Danon is a mild accountant whose beloved wife, Nadia, has died, and whose son, Rico, has exiled himself to Tibet, Bangladesh and other remote places where he is haunted by his mother's memory and by his conviction that "everyone... is condemned to wait for their own death locked in a separate cage." Another member of this restless, bitter generation, Rico's girlfriend, Dita, moves in with Albert when a shabby film producer cheats her of all her money. Suffused with lust and shame, Albert desires Dita, even while an elderly widow yearns for him; meanwhile, Dita sleeps with Rico's best friend. This small domestic comedy is expressed in musical language charged with lyric intensity, translated by de Lange in collaboration with the author. The free-form verse hovers on the edge of poetry, sometimes slipping into rhyme. A singing bird, the desert and the eternal sea are recurring images, and references to biblical passages add texture. The characters, including the narrator, live in the shadow of their own mortality and general fear. "We have wandered enough; it is time to make peace," the narrator muses. Perhaps, the reader feels, Nadia represents the lost dream of peace that hovers in the memory. In a prefatory statement, Oz (Panther in the Basement, etc.) writes that he thinks this book comes closest to what he wants to say. His eloquent message illuminates a book of classic resonance and haunting literary beauty. 9-city author tour. (Oct.)Forecast: Because of its unconventional format, hovering between prose and verse, this novel may depend on hand-selling to discriminating readers. Oz's existing audience, however, will respond to his usual mixture of cynicism and hope. Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc. From School Library Journal Celebrated Israeli novelist Oz gets daring here, blending prose and poetry in an exploration of the tensions among a wayward son, his widowed father, and the son's girlfriend. The characters even scold the author for his shortcomings. Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.