The Incandescent Threads
()
Currently unavailable
Currently unavailable
About this ebook
ONE OF THE SUNDAY TIMES' BEST HISTORICAL FICTION BOOKS OF 2022
‘Zimler is an honest, powerful writer’ – The Guardian
'A memorable portrait of the search for meaning in the shadow of the Shoah.' – The Sunday Times
From the acclaimed author of The Last Kabbalist of Lisbon and The Warsaw Anagrams comes an unforgettable, deeply moving ode to solidarity, heroism and the kind of love capable of overcoming humanity’s greatest horror.
Maybe none of us is ever aware of our true significance.
Benjamin Zarco and his cousin Shelly are the only two members of their family to survive the Holocaust. In the decades since, each man has learned, in his own unique way, to carry the burden of having outlived all the others, while ever wondering why he was spared.
Saved by a kindly piano teacher who hid him as a child, Benni suppresses the past entirely and becomes obsessed with studying kabbalah in search of the ‘Incandescent Threads’ – nearly invisible fibres that he believes link everything in the universe across space and time. But his mystical beliefs are tested when the birth of his son brings the ghosts of the past to his doorstep.
Meanwhile, Shelly – devastatingly handsome, charming and exuberantly bisexual – comes to believe that pleasures of the flesh are his only escape, and takes every opportunity to indulge his desires. That is, until he begins a relationship with a profoundly traumatised Canadian soldier and artist who helped to liberate Bergen-Belsen – and might just be connected to one of the cousins’ departed kin.
Across six non-linear mosaic pieces, we move from a Poland decimated by World War II to modern-day New York and Boston, hearing friends and relatives of Benni and Shelly tell of the deep influence of the beloved cousins on their lives. For within these intimate testimonies may lie the key to why they were saved and the unique bond that unites them.
‘Rarely is a novel published that evidences such extraordinary literary talent… AN ABSOLUTE MASTERPIECE’ – Açoriano Oriental
Richard Zimler
Richard Zimler’s eleven novels have been translated into twenty-three languages and have appeared on bestseller lists in twelve different countries, including the UK, United States, Australia, Brazil, Italy and Portugal. Five of his works have been nominated for the International Dublin Literary Award, the richest prize in the English-speaking world, and he has won prizes for his fiction in the UK, America, France and Portugal. Richard has explored the lives of different branches and generations of a Portuguese-Jewish family in four highly acclaimed historical novels, starting with The Last Kabbalist of Lisbon, now in development as a major film. He grew up in New York and since 1990 has lived in Porto, Portugal. For his contributions to Portuguese culture he was awarded the city’s highest distinction, the Medal of Honour.
Read more from Richard Zimler
Guardian of the Dawn Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Hunting Midnight Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Seventh Gate Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Gospel According to Lazarus Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Search for Sana Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Incandescent Threads Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Related to The Incandescent Threads
Related ebooks
The Incandescent Threads Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Innocence of Roast Chicken: A Novel Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Verdun Affair: A Novel Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Itinerant Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWithout the Moon Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsVictorious Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Hollywood North: A Novel in Six Reels Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSpeak Right On: Conjuring the Slave Narrative of Dred Scott Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Lunacy Commission Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Tender As Hellfire Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Twisted: The Collected Stories of Jeffery Deaver Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Comic Book Killer Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Prophecies: A Story of Obsession, Love and Betrayal Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Country of Ghosts Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLooker: A Novel Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5No Regrets: Ann Rule's Crime Files: Volume 11 Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5In Search of the Free Individual: The History of the Russian-Soviet Soul Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Your Pick: Selected Stories Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Twelfth Card: A Lincoln Rhyme Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Far and Away: Reporting from the Brink of Change Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Seven Terrors Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Promise Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Belting Inheritance Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Living Shadows: Stories: New & Preowned Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Dinner Club Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Best New True Crime Stories: Crimes of Passion, Obsession & Revenge: (True crime gift) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Citizen of the Country: Reisden & Perdita Mysteries, #3 Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5My Last Resume: New & Collected Poems (1971–1980 | 1999–2023) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Storyteller Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Hell Holes: What Lurks Below Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Jewish Fiction For You
The Weight Of Ink Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Postcard Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Chosen Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Book Thief: A Novel by Markus Zusak | Conversation Starters Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Tattooist of Auschwitz: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Disobedience: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Three Sisters: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Ben-Hur: The Novel That Inspired the Epic Movie Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Auschwitz Lullaby: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Marriage of Opposites Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Shmutz: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Hidden Palace: A Novel of the Golem and the Jinni Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5City of Laughter Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Ecstasy Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Teacher of Warsaw Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Last Jew in Prague Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Light After the War: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Literature Companion: My Name is Asher Lev Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/54 3 2 1: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Painted Bird Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Yellow Bird Sings: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Day After Night: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Man Who Saw Everything Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Beyond the Pale: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Her First American: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Boston Girl: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Friday the Rabbi Slept Late Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Oppermanns Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Wolf and the Woodsman: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Seat At The Table: A Novel of Forbidden Choices Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for The Incandescent Threads
0 ratings0 reviews