A novel reflecting Jewish lives in America.
'"Freedman's depiction is both contemporary and convincingוher language and imagery are rich and imaginativeוShe illuminates the unique way in which each individual [character's] Jewish consciousness comes to reflect the larger layers of history that have formed the Jewish experience.'
Professor Ziva Shamir, Director, Katz Research Institute for Hebrew Literature, Tel Aviv University+Audrey Lindenthal, seasoned archaeologist, experienced lover, reluctant Jew and absent mother, beholds a vision of an ivory pomegranate - a rare treasure unearthed from an ancient archaeological site in Israel - and so her story begins.
A fiery relationship with her colleague Yitz - once a cult member but now a devout Jew determined to bring Audrey too back to Judaism. Yitz's rabbi and mentor, Devora, who possesses a burning secret of her own. Audrey's lover Jose Antonio, young, passionate, unfaithful. And her son Benjamin, eager to reconnect with a mother who is struggling to reconnect with herself. +Set in the dusty plains of Arizona, a tumultuous web of relationships is unearthed to recount a powerful story that resonates today, at a time when religious belief seems arbitrary and the bonds connecting families more precarious. Melodically written and masterfully elaborated, The Ivory Pomegranate is itself, a rare and delicate treasure. +Leora Freedman earned her BA in English Literature from the University of Rhode Island where she was the sole recipient of the English Award. She received her MFA from the University of Arizona, where she won a Henfield Foundation/ Transatlantic Review Fiction Award, and first place in the Robert Downs Fiction Contest. Her experiences of living and travelling in Israel, together with her husband and daughter, led to the writing of The Ivory Pomegranate, which has received three publication awards, including an award from the President of the State of Israel."
