A brilliant young author’s stunning fiction debut: gorgeously immersive and imaginative stories set in Israel and the Middle East that transcend borders as they render the intimate lives of people striving for connection
The Man Who Sold Air in the Holy Land announces the arrival of a natural-born storyteller of immense talent. Warm, poignant, delightfully whimsical, Omer Friedlander’s gorgeously immersive and imaginative stories take you to the narrow limestone alleyways of Jerusalem, the desolate beauty of the Negev Desert, and the sprawling orange groves of Jaffa, with characters that spring to vivid life. A divorced con artist and his daughter sell empty bottles of “holy air” to credulous tourists; a Lebanese Scheherazade enchants three young soldiers in a bombed-out Beirut radio station; a boy daringly “rooftops” at night, climbing steel cranes in scuffed sneakers even as he reimagines the bravery of a Polish-Jewish dancer during the Holocaust; an Israeli volunteer at a West Bank checkpoint mourns the death of her son, a soldier killed in Gaza.
These stories render the intimate lives of people striving for connection. They are fairy tales turned on their head by the stakes of real life, where moments of fragile intimacy mix with comedy and notes of the absurd. Told in prose of astonishing vividness that also demonstrates remarkable control and restraint, they have a universal appeal to the heart.
Praise
“A beautiful debut by a deeply humane writer. Every story is a vivid world unto itself, intensely felt, and often revelatory.”—Nicole Krauss, author of The History of Love
“In these wise, capacious, achingly beautiful stories, Omer Friedlander maps the hidden geography of the human heart like a young Chekhov. Each one feels like a fresh new discovery, and collected together, The Man Who Sold Air in the Holy Land becomes a sustained feat of imaginative compassion.”—Anthony Marra, New York Times bestselling author of A Constellation of Vital Phenomena
“Innovative in conception, classical in spirit, these stories, set largely in Israel, resonate with international ramifications. Rarely do we encounter a writer so young but also this wise. . . . A splendid literary debut.”—Ha Jin, National Book Award–winning author of Waiting
“Friedlander blends fable and realism in extraordinarily imaginative ways. Again and again, he achieves a fine balance between the tragic and the absurd. But what is most striking is how full of deeply felt human experience and authentic emotion his fiction is. Every one of these stories moved me and taught me something I did not know before.”—Sigrid Nunez, National Book Award-winning author of The Friend
“As outrageously funny as they are outrageously tender, Friedlander’s stories conjure complex and often difficult emotions with perfect acrobatic skill. This terrible world, he seems to be telling us, is so terribly wonderful that it is perfectly all right to laugh and cry at the same time... A superb collection.”—Kiran Desai, Booker Prize–winning author of The Inheritance of Loss
“The Man Who Sold Air in the Holy Land is a beautifully written collection, and Omer Friedlander is an exceptionally thoughtful writer. He tells these stories with care and attention equal to the complexities of the people and places that fill their pages. I’m already looking forward to what he’ll do next.”—Kevin Powers, author of The Yellow Birds and A Shout in the Ruins
“These stories transcend the particular to become intricately crafted fables, each a country unto itself. With Omer Friedlander as our guide, we are expertly transported over their topographies and even across their respective borders. He is a remarkable talent.”—Elliot Ackerman, author of Red Dress in Black and White
“Friedlander’s voice mixes those two nearly unmixables: intelligence and whimsy. He is one of those rare authors who can trap each moment in a surprising and somehow perfect detail. A major work—I urge you to read it.”—Darin Strauss, New York Times bestselling author of The Queen of Tuesday
“Omer Friedlander is a marvelous new voice, bringing magic, chance, and surprise to his stories without ever losing sight of the human and the real. I’d follow this writer anywhere.”—Rebecca Makkai, Pulitzer finalist for The Great Believers
"In Omer Friedlander’s wonderful stories even the animals bear the weight of history—a one-eyed cat named Moshe Dayan, a turtle named Ghetto Lodz—but it’s the people who are most indelible. A man who sells air in Tel Aviv, a Polish Jewish prima ballerina who kills a Nazi officer with the tip of her heel: there’s a touch of magic in these stories reminiscent of I.B. Singer and Nathan Englander. But the world Friedlander creates is all his own. Through his orange-grove workers, junk collectors, soldiers, and grieving mothers, he makes Israel and Palestine—the whole history of the Middle East—come alive. The Man Who Sold Air in the Holy Land is an astonishing, breathtaking debut." —Joshua Henkin, author of Morningside Heights
“Friedlander’s shimmering prose and admirably versatile points of view make his stories compelling.”—Sarah Moss, author of The Fell
“Wonderfully crafted…[a] fine balance between humor, sorrow, and compassion.”—Ruby Namdar, author of The Ruined House
“This touching debut collection includes the stories of a divorced con artist who sells bottled “holy air” to tourists, a grieving mother who regrets sending her son to die “for a government I hate,” and a Jewish man racked with guilt after betraying his Palestinian friend.” —The New York Times Book Review
“Friedlander debuts with a dynamic collection. . . . With sensitivity and compassion [he] imbues his characters with a deeply felt humanity, and his finely tuned command of emotional tenor will evoke tears and laughter in equal measure. . . . These superior character portraits make for an auspicious start.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“Friedlander’s skillfully crafted, imagistic prose captivates and soars. With this collection, Friedlander positions himself as poised to join a formidable cadre that includes writers such as David Grossman and Etgar Keret.” —Kirkus Reviews
“Imaginative, poignant, fascinating short stories.”— Library Journal
“Friedlander is graceful and lyrical in his exploration of his homeland, critiquing the violence of the historical and present-day situation while never coming across as heavy-handed. Ultimately, he gives readers the opportunity to make their own assessments of this unique world. Friedlander is following the lineage of brilliant, understated Israeli writers like Amos Oz and David Grossman in capturing the particularities of Israel through intelligent prose and subtle characterizations.”—Jewish Book Council (Book Club Selection for May 2022)
“Friedlander is only 27 but has the chutzpah of a veteran scribe.”—Haaretz
“Omer Friedlander’s prose sifts through the junk of this world to find those whimsical elements that are otherwise overlooked. Rich in imagery and sprinkled with humor and spice, The Man Who Sold Air in the Holy Land conjures intimate and inventive portraits of Israeli life. ”—Electric Literature
“27 year old debut author Omer Friedlander paints vivid pictures of characters, tales, and times gone by in The Man Who Sold Air in the Holy Land.”—The Times of Israel
“Omer Friedlander captures Israel through a lens that is equally sensitive, whimsical, and critical…Through depictions of universal themes such as grief, brotherhood, and ancestral ties, Friedlander establishes himself as a writer with an innate gift for capturing the human condition.”—One Story
“I was astonished by the uniqueness of the characters and the world-building in these stories.”—Literary Hub
“The Man Who Sold Air in the Holy Land urges us to pay attention to the human toll of war with sympathy and a great deal of heart.”—October Hill Magazine
“Brilliant…Friedlander is a writer to watch.”— The Reporter
“Masterful." — The American Jewish World
“These stories triumph for their finely tuned character portrayals and evocation of the complexities of life in Israel.”—Jewish Boston (Best Summer Reads)
“Funny, tender, and achingly compassionate.”—The Jewish Chronicle (Best Summer Books)
“An astonishing new voice…this debut dazzles with its reflections on the human condition and universal desire for connection.”—The Free Lance Star
“A host of hypnotic tales, illuminated by rich language…a moving, dazzling collection.” — Buzz Magazine (UK)
“[Omer Friedlander] is very good, very young and very Israeli.” — Howard Freedman, One Bay One Book Selection of the Year
“Tightly written, intimate portraits of lives lived in Israel…Beautifully crafted tales.” — Sue Fishkoff, J. The Jewish News of Northern California
"Israeli literature has big names. Amos Oz and David Grossman…storytellers who penetrate deep into the psyche of their story’s characters. Now a new promising young writer has emerged: Omer Friedlander.” — Friesch Dagblad (Netherlands)
"Charming and warm stories, until reality hits hard.” — De Morgen, Best Books of the Moment (Belgium)
“Each story is laced with sensitivity, compassion, humor, and whimsy.”— Robin Jacobson, Library and Literary Programs Director, Adas Israel
“An impressive literary voice…Friedlander’s fierce imagination emerges to make its own surreal sense.” — Michelene Wandor, Jewish Renaissance (UK)
“A powerful imagination and a facility for words.” — The Tel Aviv Review of Books
“Elements of the near-fantastic and a comic darkness that at times recalls the work of Salman Rushdie…textual richness that situates Friedlander in the ranks of masters like Murakami…By turns bracingly elegiac and deeply, darkly funny, The Man Who Sold Air in the Holy Land is a stunning debut, and marks the arrival of a writer of serious gifts.” — Porter House Review
“I fell in love with these weird, whacky and ultimately human characters…These tales will stay with me.” — Good Housekeeping (UK), Books of the Year
“Omer Friedlander writes with the wisdom of a much older writer.” — The Church Times (UK), Book Club Selection for January 2023
“The universal appeal of this collection reaches above and beyond the political as the stories highlight the kaleidoscope of human experience.”— Association of Jewish Libraries Fiction Award Committee
“A delicate and moving discovery.” — Joi Mag (Italy)
“Incredible and unforgettable stories from a complex homeland.” — Edebiyat Haber (Turkey)
“Remarkable.” — Canadian Jewish News
“A fantastic, imaginative, touching and at the same time funny trip to colorful Israel brings hope in a tangle of absurd situations.” — Forbes (Slovakia)