| Details | | Publication Date: | 1998-11-01 | | Series: | The Helen Rose Scheuer Jewish Women's Series |
| Size | | Length: | 260 pages | | Height: | 7.5 in | | Width: | 5.0 in | | Thickness: | 1.2 in | | Weight: | 12.8 oz |
Publisher's Note
In this compassionate memoir to A Cross and a Star Agosín follows the life of her father Moisés, a doctor, scientist, and classical painist, whose life reflects the lives of so many Jews of his generation destined to be always refugees, always the "others." This memoir explores the boundaries of national and cultural identities and the meanings of exile and home.
Industry Reviews
"Journeys for Jews are like textures of memories," writes Chilean poet Agos!n (A Cross and a Star: Memoirs of a Jewish Girl in Chile) in this beautifully composed tribute to the life of her father, Mois?s Agos!n (b. 1922), a volume in the Helen Rose Scheuer Jewish Women's Series. In tracing the story of Mois?s, who is an internationally known research scientist specializing in parasitology, the author first describes the flight of her grandparents, Abraham and Raquel, from the war-ravaged, increasingly anti-Semitic Russia of 1917. They lived as refugees in Istanbul and Marseilles, where Mois?s was born, before settling with their three sons in Quillota, Chile. In vivid detail, Agos!n contrasts the beauty of the Chilean countryside with the ugliness of the entrenched anti-Semitism that made her father a permanent outsider. Stigmatized as the sole Jewish child in his public school, he moved to Santiago for his medical training in the 1940s, only to discover that many of his professors and students were pro-Nazi. Despite his distinguished career, he was barred from influential university positions. In 1968, the Agos!n family moved to the U.S., where Mois?s was treated professionally as a Latino interloper. Agos!n paints a moving portrait of a man who, despite his love for his family, his work and classical music, was, like herself, marked at the core of his identity as a wandering exile, always spiritually and historically from somewhere else. B&w photos. (Dec.)
White
Americans know very little about Jewish life in Latin America. Agos!n's memoir of her father, renowned scientist Moses Agos!n, will help redress the balance. Agos!n's previous book, A Cross and a Star: Memoirs of a Jewish Girl in Chile (Univ. of New Mexico, 1995), told the story of her mother's life in a town with only three Jewish families. Here she recalls her father's family, the only Jewish family in Quillota, a city outside Santiago. The Agos!ns, who endured anti-Semitism as well as the effects of the repressive pre-Allende government, have lived in the United States since 1968, and Agos!n includes thoughtful insight into the differences between Chilean and American culture. Agos!n, a prize-winning writer, poet, human rights activist, and Spanish professor at Wellesley College, infuses her language with lyricism and poetic imagery that helps the reader become part of the physical and emotional landscape in which this memoir is set. Recommended for larger collections specializing in Jewish and Latin American history and culture. Olga B. Wise, Compaq Computers, Austin, TX
Fox
"Journeys for Jews are like textures of memories," writes Chilean poet Agos¡n (A Cross and a Star: Memoirs of a Jewish Girl in Chile) in this beautifully composed tribute to the life of her father, Mois‚s Agos¡n (b. 1922), a volume in the Helen Rose Scheuer Jewish Women's Series. In tracing the story of Mois‚s, who is an internationally known research scientist specializing in parasitology, the author first describes the flight of her grandparents, Abraham and Raquel, from the war-ravaged, increasingly anti-Semitic Russia of 1917. They lived as refugees in Istanbul and Marseilles, where Mois‚s was born, before settling with their three sons in Quillota, Chile. In vivid detail, Agos¡n contrasts the beauty of the Chilean countryside with the ugliness of the entrenched anti-Semitism that made her father a permanent outsider. Stigmatized as the sole Jewish child in his public school, he moved to Santiago for his medical training in the 1940s, only to discover that many of his professors and students were pro-Nazi. Despite his distinguished career, he was barred from influential university positions. In 1968, the Agos¡n family moved to the U.S., where Mois‚s was treated professionally as a Latino interloper. Agos¡n paints a moving portrait of a man who, despite his love for his family, his work and classical music, was, like herself, marked at the core of his identity as a wandering exile, always spiritually and historically from somewhere else. B&w photos. (Dec.)
Publishers Weekly (11/16/1998)
Americans know very little about Jewish life in Latin America. Agos¡n's memoir of her father, renowned scientist Moses Agos¡n, will help redress the balance. Agos¡n's previous book, A Cross and a Star: Memoirs of a Jewish Girl in Chile (Univ. of New Mexico, 1995), told the story of her mother's life in a town with only three Jewish families. Here she recalls her father's family, the only Jewish family in Quillota, a city outside Santiago. The Agos¡ns, who endured anti-Semitism as well as the effects of the repressive pre-Allende government, have lived in the United States since 1968, and Agos¡n includes thoughtful insight into the differences between Chilean and American culture. Agos¡n, a prize-winning writer, poet, human rights activist, and Spanish professor at Wellesley College, infuses her language with lyricism and poetic imagery that helps the reader become part of the physical and emotional landscape in which this memoir is set. Recommended for larger collections specializing in Jewish and Latin American history and culture. Olga B. Wise, Compaq Computers, Austin, TX
Library Journal (02/01/1999)
"Journeys for Jews are like textures of memories," writes Chilean poet Agos¿n (A Cross and a Star: Memoirs of a Jewish Girl in Chile) in this beautifully composed tribute to the life of her father, Mois¿s Agos¿n (b. 1922), a volume in the Helen Rose Scheuer Jewish Women's Series. In tracing the story of Mois¿s, who is an internationally known research scientist specializing in parasitology, the author first describes the flight of her grandparents, Abraham and Raquel, from the war-ravaged, increasingly anti-Semitic Russia of 1917. They lived as refugees in Istanbul and Marseilles, where Mois¿s was born, before settling with their three sons in Quillota, Chile. In vivid detail, Agos¿n contrasts the beauty of the Chilean countryside with the ugliness of the entrenched anti-Semitism that made her father a permanent outsider. Stigmatized as the sole Jewish child in his public school, he moved to Santiago for his medical training in the 1940s, only to discover that many of his professors and students were pro-Nazi. Despite his distinguished career, he was barred from influential university positions. In 1968, the Agos¿n family moved to the U.S., where Mois¿s was treated professionally as a Latino interloper. Agos¿n paints a moving portrait of a man who, despite his love for his family, his work and classical music, was, like herself, marked at the core of his identity as a wandering exile, always spiritually and historically from somewhere else. B&w photos. (Dec.)
Publishers Weekly (11/16/1998)
Americans know very little about Jewish life in Latin America. Agos¿n's memoir of her father, renowned scientist Moses Agos¿n, will help redress the balance. Agos¿n's previous book, A Cross and a Star: Memoirs of a Jewish Girl in Chile (Univ. of New Mexico, 1995), told the story of her mother's life in a town with only three Jewish families. Here she recalls her father's family, the only Jewish family in Quillota, a city outside Santiago. The Agos¿ns, who endured anti-Semitism as well as the effects of the repressive pre-Allende government, have lived in the United States since 1968, and Agos¿n includes thoughtful insight into the differences between Chilean and American culture. Agos¿n, a prize-winning writer, poet, human rights activist, and Spanish professor at Wellesley College, infuses her language with lyricism and poetic imagery that helps the reader become part of the physical and emotional landscape in which this memoir is set. Recommended for larger collections specializing in Jewish and Latin American history and culture. Olga B. Wise, Compaq Computers, Austin, TX
Library Journal (02/01/1999)
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