Ram Oren (; born 8 March 1936) is an
Israel
Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
i author who has sold an unprecedented 1 million books in Hebrew.
Oren was born in
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( or , ; ), sometimes rendered as Tel Aviv-Jaffa, and usually referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the Gush Dan metropolitan area of Israel. Located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline and with a popula ...
during the
Mandate era. At age 15, he began his journalistic career as a messenger boy for ''
Yediot Aharonot
(, ; lit. "Latest News") is an Israeli daily mass market newspaper published in Tel Aviv. Founded in 1939, is Israel's largest paid newspaper by sales and circulation and has been described as "undoubtedly the country's number-one paper." '', and was a correspondent for that newspaper from 1952 to 1955. From 1955 to 1958, he served in the
Israel Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the State of Israel. It consists of three service branches: the Israeli Ground Forces, the Israeli Air Force, and ...
as a reporter for the IDF's weekly magazine ''
Bamahane''. From 1958 to 1963, he studied law at the
Hebrew University of Jerusalem
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJI; ) is an Israeli public university, public research university based in Jerusalem. Co-founded by Albert Einstein and Chaim Weizmann in July 1918, the public university officially opened on 1 April 1925. ...
. From 1964 to 1994, he worked again for ''Yediot Aharonot''. He advanced to editorship of important sections in the newspaper, and was at one point its chief correspondent in
New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
. He only began his career as a literary writer at a relatively advanced age.
In 1994, he published his first book, ''Seduction'' (
Keter Publishing
Keter or Kether (; ) is the first of the ten sefirot in the Kabbalistic Tree of Life, symbolizing the divine will and the initial impulse towards creation from the ''Ein Sof'', or infinite source. It represents pure consciousness and transcen ...
). The book did not sell well at first, and was considered a commercial failure. Then Oren appeared on
Dan Shilon
Dan Shilon (; born 24 October 1940) is an Israeli television host, director, and producer.
Career
Dan Shilon began his career in the 1960s with Israel Radio, was a correspondent of Kol Israel (Voice of Israel), and was a journalist for '' Yedi ...
's television show, the most popular Israeli talk show at the time. The appearance was a springboard for the book, which turned into one of Israel's most popular bestsellers ever. A 2002 movie adaptation was also successful.
Oren's success at the tills, nearly unprecedented in Israeli publishing, led him to found a publishing house, "Keshet".
[ Founded in 1996, the company advertises Oren's books as well as bestsellers by authors such as Shifra Horn, Irit Linoor, ]Shelly Yachimovich
Shelly Rachel Yachimovich (; born 28 March 1960) is an Israeli politician, who served three terms as the official Leader of the Opposition, a member of the Knesset, and a member of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee. She served as leade ...
, and Koby Oz.
His books have been translated into several languages, including English and French.
Most of his books are in the detective fiction
Detective fiction is a subgenre of crime fiction and mystery fiction in which an criminal investigation, investigator or a detective—whether professional, amateur or retired—investigates a crime, often murder. The detective genre began around ...
genre. In 2002 his first book presenting a historical episode was published, ''Latrun'', employing his compelling, readable style. In 2004 he published another book in this category, ''Target: Tel Aviv'', concerning the Egyptian Army's invasion of Israel in the War of Independence
Wars of national liberation, also called wars of independence or wars of liberation, are conflicts fought by nations to gain independence. The term is used in conjunction with wars against foreign powers (or at least those perceived as foreign) ...
.
Oren lives in Tel Aviv. He has been married to his wife Nitza since 1961. They have three children and grandchildren.
Books
List of published booksMark of Cain
The curse of Cain and the mark of Cain are phrases that originated in the story of Cain and Abel in the Book of Genesis. In the stories, if someone harmed Cain, the damage would come back sevenfold. Some interpretations view this as a physical ...
(suspense; 1996). English translation: Tel Aviv: Keshet, 1998, .
* Heart (suspense; 1997)
* Shadow of Doubt (suspense; 1997)
* Ashram (novel; 1998)
* Live Ammunition (suspense; 1999)
* Eve and Adam (novel; 2000)
* Nude (suspense; 2000)
* Love Behind Closed Doors (suspense; 2001)
* Addiction and Other Stories (2002)
* Latrun (historical novel; 2002)
* African Princess (suspense; 2003)
* The Heiress (suspense; 2004)
* The Target: Tel Aviv (historical novel; 2004)
* Little Sister (suspense; 2005)
* My Lover, My Enemy (suspense; 2006)
* Red Days (historical novel; 2006)
* '' Gertruda's Oath'' (2007). English translation released by Doubleday in 2009
* Chief of Staff (novel; 2007)
* Ghosts (suspense; 2008)
* Green Card (suspense; 2008)
* From the Bible with Love (biblical stories; 2009)
* Sylvia Rafael: The Life and Death of a Mossad Spy. With Moti Kfir. (biographical novel; 2010)
* One Child Too Many (suspense; 2010)
* Secrets (novel; 2011)
* Double Identity (suspense; 2011)
* Yearning Soul (historical novel; 2012)
* Black Sheep (suspense; 2012)
* The Red Scarf (historical novel; 2013)
* Mother (novel; 2014)
* Painful Love: Shiri (trilogy, part 1; 2014)
* Painful Love: Danny (trilogy, part 2; 2015)
* Painful Love: Amira (trilogy, part 3; 2015)
* Live TV (novel; 2016)
References
External links
Ram Oren's official web site
רם אורן- דף מרצה
Ram Oren's lecturer page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oren, Ram
1936 births
Living people
Hebrew University of Jerusalem Faculty of Law alumni
Israeli lawyers
Israeli novelists
Writers from Tel Aviv
Yedioth Ahronoth people
Israeli thriller writers