Ot me-Avshalom (

Hebrew Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and ...

: אות מאבשלום Translation: A Letter from Avshalom or A Sign from Avshalom) is a novel by Israeli author Nava Macmel-Atir published by Yediot Books in 2009. The book quickly became a best-seller, and Macmel-Atir received the Golden Book award for selling 20,000 copies in just three months after its release. Half a year after its publication, ''Ot me-Avshalom'' received the Platinum Book award from the Book Publishers Association of Israel for selling 40,000 copies. In June 2015, it received the "Diamond Book" commemoration for selling 100,000 copies.

Plot

A young

graphologist Graphology is the analysis of handwriting in an attempt to determine the writer's personality traits. Its methods and conclusions are not supported by scientific evidence, and as such it is considered to be a pseudoscience. Graphology has been ...

, Alma Bach, embarks on the trail of a man whose handwriting was sent to her for analysis. She discovers characteristics such as sharp wit, high degree of general knowledge, and courage. She discovers a passionate man with a highly developed imagination, linguistic style, and the sensitivity of an artist, a man with a magnetic personality who draws people to him while at the same time secluding himself and keeping a secret, and who is capable of loving at great magnitudes and willing to sacrifice for his love, for his love of the land, for his love of a woman, and eventually to pay the ultimate price. Alma is determined to meet this man face-to-face. The story moves back and forth between two time periods: modern-day Israel, where Alma undergoes her journey to discover the man, and a biographical depiction of

Avshalom Feinberg Avshalom Feinberg (, 23 October 1889 – 20 January 1917) was one of the leaders of Nili, a Jewish spy network in Ottoman Palestine, Palestine that helped the United Kingdom, British fight the Ottoman Empire during World War I. He was killed duri ...

, founder and leader of the Nili spy ring, which starts in late 19th-century Palestine and continues into the early 20th century.

Awards

* Golden Book Commemoration – Book Publishers Association of Israel – September 2009 * Platinum Book Commemoration – Book Publishers Association of Israel – January 2010 * Diamond Book Commemoration – Book Publishers Association of Israel – June 2015

External links

Nava Macmel-Atir Official Website
(Hebrew)
Ot me-Avshalom
at the Israeli Hebrew Authors Union (Hebrew) * * *

References

{{Portal bar, Books, Biography, History, Israel Books by Nava Macmel-Atir 2009 novels Books about Israel Biographical books Biographical novels Novels about rebels History books about Israel Novels set in Israel 21st-century Israeli novels Israeli biographies Spy novels Novels set in Ottoman Syria Words and phrases in Modern Hebrew