ISRAELI WOMEN SPEAK OUT

by Geraldine Stern ‧ RELEASE DATE: June 15, 1979

Ten mostly pedestrian interviews with a group of extraordinary women. These are the female super-dynamos of Israel's growing-up years, among them: Shulamit Aloni, Israel's Ralph Nader and ACLU rolled up in one; the fiery, politically right-of-right Geula Cohen; and several ""only women""--Supreme Court judge, kibbutz movement bigwig, and mayor of an Arab town. Stern's focuses are autobiography, Israel, and feminism; her technique is the relaxed, expansive interview that feels as if it were taken out of the living room unedited. Her stories are of suffering and strength in lives that have had to be many times reincarnated--like the Jewish people itself. While persecuted by the Russians, imprisoned, terrorized in Munich, and dragged around the globe by their husbands' careers, these women learn Indonesian Malay, have seven children, set athletic records, write books, and rise, rise, rise. There are several reasoned critiques of the thorny problems of civil rights, Church and State, and womens' roles in Israel. Stern's facilitative remarks are often trite (""Right. The busier you are, the more you can do""), especially when she is pumping the conversation with a bland feminist party line. The book catches fire with the final interview--but the others never approach their potential.

Pub Date: June 15, 1979

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Lippincott

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 1979

Categories: NONFICTION