Yehoshua Kenaz

Yehoshua Kenaz ( he, יהושע קנז) (2 March 1937 – 12 October 2020) was an Israeli novelist who studied at the Hebrew University and at the Sorbonne. Kenaz is best known for his novel ''Infiltration'', published in 1986.

Biography

Yehoshua Glass (later Kenaz) was born in Petah Tikva, in the British Mandate of Palestine, in 1937. During the Second World War, his father worked for the British Army, and for a while the family moved to Haifa. He learned to play the violin. His brother Hilik was born when he was thirteen. He was drafted to the Israel Defense Forces and was sent to a basic training camp for physically unfit soldiers. He then served in the Israeli Intelligence Corps. He changed his last name to Kenaz, after Othniel Ben Kenaz, a Biblical name with a similar sound.

He studied Philosophy and Romance languages at the Hebrew University, and French literature at the Sorbonne. He wrote his first story in Paris and sent it to Aharon Amir's ''Keshet'' journal under the name of Avi Otniel (literally "father of Othniel"). He became famous in Israel in 1986 when his novel ''Infiltration'' became a best seller.

Kenaz died on 12 October 2020, in Petah Tikva after a COVID-19 infection. He was 83.

Literary career

He translated many French classics into Hebrew, and worked on the editorial staff of the Ha'aretz newspaper. He was awarded the Alterman Prize in 1991, the Newman Prize in 1992, the Agnon Prize (1993), the ACUM Prize (1994) and the Bialik Prize (1995). In 2007, ''Infiltration'' was named one of the ten most important books in Israeli history. Four of his novels have been adapted to film: ''Ahare Hahagim'', directed by Amnon Rubinstein, in 1994; ''Alila'' (from the novel ''Returning Lost Lives''), directed by Amos Gitai, in 2003; ''On the Way to the Cats'', directed by Jorge Gurvich in 2009; and, ''Infiltration'', directed by Dover Koshashvili, released to critical acclaim at the Jerusalem Film Festival 2010.

Kenaz said he was not a Zionist because he did not believe a Jewish state would solve the problem of antisemitism. He supported a two-state solution to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict because he wanted the Hebrew language and culture to be hegemonic and more cultivated in Israel.

Published works

''After the Holidays'' (1964) is about the disintegration of a family in a small farming community in Palestine during the British Mandate. ''The Great Woman of the Dreams'' (1973) depicts the lives of the tenants of a rundown apartment house in Tel Aviv. ''Musical Moment'' (1980) is a collection of four stories dealing with themes of the rites of manhood and the disruption of innocence. ''Infiltration'' (1986) is the story of a platoon of young recruits with minor physical disabilities during their basic training at an Israeli army camp in the 1950s. ''The Way to the Cats'' (1991) tells the story of pensioners in an old-age home, who engage in a pathetic power struggle. ''Returning Lost Loves'' (1997) runs several plots in parallel form, sharing common characters. ''Landscape With Three Trees'' (2000) is two stories about the changes undergone by the Israeli society from the pre-state days to the present-day era.

The sociologist Dafna Hirsch uses Kenaz's 2008 short story, "The Black Briefcase", to illustrate the culture and performance of Zionist masculinity through the consumption of hummus.

In Hebrew

*''After the Holidays'' (novel), Am Oved, 1964; 1987 harei Ha-Hagim*''The Great Woman of the Dreams'' (novel), Dvir, 1973 a-Isha Ha-Gedolah Me-Ha-Halomot*''Musical Moment'' (stories), Hakibbutz Hameuchad/Siman Kriah, *1980;1995 oment Musicali*''Infiltration'' (novel), previously entitled Heart Murmur, Am Oved, 1986 itganvut Yehidim*''On the Way to the Cats'' (novel), Am Oved, 1991 a-Derech La-Hatulim*''Returning Lost Loves'' (novel), Am Oved, 1997 ahzir Ahavot Kodmot*''Landscape with Three Trees'' (2 novellas), Am Oved, 2000 (Nof Im Shlosha Etzim)
*''Between Night and Dawn'' (novella), Hakibbutz Hameuchad, 2006 ein Laila ve-Bein Shashar

Translated into English

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kenaz, Yehoshua
1937 births
2020 deaths
20th-century Israeli novelists
21st-century Israeli novelists
20th-century translators
French–Hebrew translators
Hebrew University of Jerusalem alumni
Israeli novelists
Israeli translators
University of Paris alumni
Recipients of Prime Minister's Prize for Hebrew Literary Works
People from Petah Tikva
People from Haifa
Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in Israel