To Jerusalem and Back: A Personal Account.

BELLOW, Saul.

Item Number: 118587

London: Secker & Warburg, 1976.

First British edition of the Nobel Prize-winning author’s account of his journey to Jerusalem. Octavo, original cloth. Presentation copy, inscribed by the author on the title page, “For Sally from Saul Bellow with every good wish.” The recipient, British photojournalist Sally Soames, worked for The Sunday Times from 1968 until 2000 and was highly regarded for her exclusively black and white portraits of many of the most prominent figures of the 20th century including Menachem Begin, Margaret Atwood, Margaret Thatcher, Sean Connery, Rudolf Nureyev, Alec Guinness and Andy Warhol. Soames, who was known to be a warm and personal journalist, performed extensive research on her subjects and developed intimate rapports with them during her process, resulting in striking and revealing portraits. In addition to the several world leaders Soames came to know and photograph, she captured the unique personalities of some of the world’s most gifted authors, poets, and playwrights. She published two books of photographs during her lifetime: Manpower (1987) with text by Robin Morgan and an introduction by Harold Evans and Writers (1995) with a preface by Norman Mailer. Fine in a fine dust jacket. Jacket photograph by Jill Krementz.

This extraordinary book is the result of Saul Bellow's sojourn in Israel in 1975. A personal record of his stay-his experiences and impressions-as well as a meditation, it crackles with wit and controversy on America's relationship with this embattled country. Using quick sketches and vignettes, Bellow captures the personal opinions, passions, and dreams of several Israelis, and he also adds to these his own reflections on being Jewish in the 20th century. The varying viewpoints of those he encounters and interviews offer a revealing look at the history and challenges of Israel, and Bellow's passionate storytelling draws listeners in to share in his experience.