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My Father's Paradise: A Son's Search for His Jewish Past in Kurdish Iraq

3 Ratings: 5.0

A book by Ariel Sabar

Starred Review. For his first 31 years Sabar considered his father, Yona, an embarrassing anachronism. Ours was a clash of civilizations, writ small. He was ancient Kurdistan. I was 1980s L.A. Yona was a UCLA professor whose passion was his native language, … see full wiki

Tags: Books, Family Relationships, Family, Biographies & Memoirs, Israel, Judaism, see all

Author: Ariel Sabar

Publisher: Algonquin Books

3 reviews about My Father's Paradise: A Son's Search for...

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review by quinncx. October 22, 2008

True immigrant tale that documents a now lost community

Though Ariel Sabar may regret that his relationship with his father was so contentious, readers have cause to rejoice because that fractured relationship led Sabar to pen this elegant tale of his father's life and language. Yona Sabar, a Jewish Kurd, grew up speaking Aramaic, an ancient language now all but lost. He is also a celebrated linguist who has worked tirelessly to document his language before it dies. This book traces that effort, weaving a colorful tapestry of Jewish … more

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review by Cascadian. September 29, 2008

posted in Cafe Libri: Reviewing Books & More

Excellent story that balances the historical and the personal

I wasn't quite sure what to expect from this book's description, but knowing I'm not a fan of "sweeping multi-generational sagas" on the fiction side, I approached "My Father's Paradise" with a little nervousness. But Ariel Sabar won me over very quickly with what turned out to be a surprisingly engrossing, educational, and ultimately moving story. The narrative covers a lot of literal ground, from Kurdistan to Israel to New Haven to Los Angeles and back, but also thematic … more

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review by amoslassen. August 25, 2008

Reconciling Past and Present

Sabar, Ariel. "My Father's Paradise: A Son's Search for his Jewish Past in Kurdish Iraq", Algonquin, 2008. Reconciling Past and Present Amos Lassen We really do not have a great deal of literature about Jewish life in Iraq so "My Father's Paradise" is extremely welcome. Ariel Sabar, a noted journalist gives us a look at past and present in the Arab country and it is all fascinating. Kurdish Iraq can be described as "a … more

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