Customer Reviews

Mitla Pass

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

In my (very) humble opinion this is Leon Uris' best written book.

The story of Gideon Zadok as he hunches down in the desert with the Israeli Army awaiting attack the book is mostly flashbacks through Gideon's life and his family's history. Utilizing a variety of narrative styles and a mix of narrators to give the reader a full perspective of events as they transpire, Uris also is able to flow from one time frame to the next with mastery and grace.

For me, however, the true gem of this book is the character of Gideon Zadok himself; not the most likeable of people (cheats on his wife, is self-centered unabashedly) but for all of his very obvious faults you cannot help but sympathize and identify with him. I love stories where the main character is unlikable yet through the author the story is constructed in such a way that the reader is pulled into the characters world and forced to walk their path along with them, creating a perfect binary between protqagonist and reader.

Uris, as far as I am concerned, is at his absolute best in this book and it is definately worth catching!!!

Another fantastic human historical drama from Leon Uris Gideon the Writer is struggling to come to terms with a dysfunctional family (made up of a host of colourful characters make it read like a Jewish Dickens) and a difficult marriage to a wife who he takes for granted as well as his own wavering career He gets an assignment to write on Israels struggle to survive at the time of the Sinai War and has a steamy relationship with a sophisticated and powerful Jewish woman -who is a holocaust victim and an important consultant to the Israeli government But the story goes back to that of Gideons family many years before he was born and is exciting,illuminating,sad,humorous and pictureresque

Mitla Pass is a layered, inspirational tale of love, war(amidst other things) and portrays the main character in a realistic and gritty manner.I first read the book when I was 12 years old and it has remained my favourite novel of all time. Gideon Zadok's struggle is very moving and his remniscing of loved ones helps to emphasise his conflict with himself and those around him. Mitla Pass spans over generations, but contrary to what one might think, you don't lose track.Uris's writing style is exceptional and captures the different settings of the novel beautifully and brings out their individuality.

Another fantastic historical human historical drama from Leon Uris Gideon the Writer is struggling to come to terms with a dysfunctional family (made up of a host of colourful characters make it read like a Jewish Dickens) and a difficult marriage to a wife who he takes for granted as well as his own wavering career He gets an assignment to write on Israels struggle to survive at the time of the Sinai War and has a steamy relationship with a sophisticated and powerful Jewish woman -who is a holocaust victim and an important consultant to the Israeli government But the story goes back to that of gideons family many years before he was born and is exciting,illuminating,sad,humorous and pictureresque

For anyone who has found themselves a part of the human condition. Leon Uris does an excellent job depicting the life of Gideon, a young author struggling to come to terms with himself, his career, and the haunting past of the Holocaust.

Here's a Leon Uris novel I could have done without. I picked it up on a recent vacation, thinking an historical novel would be a nice change of pace. Alas, Uris disappoints.

The book opens with a mass market pot-boiler kind of intrigue, involving the protagonist, his wife and his Hungarian lover. The details and conflicts of these involvements drag on, uninteresting, cliched and over-written, for at least 80 pages.

A few chapters, very few, focus on Israel's 1956 conflict with Egypt in the Sinai, and more specifically the Mitla Pass, the mountainous area of the Sinai just north of the Suez Canal.

Then readers are treated to a bizarre family history of diverse characters who are only marginally connected, and have little or no bearing whatever on the supposed main topic of the story---that is, what happened in 1956. These lengthy middle chapters are redeemed somewhat by somewhat more sophisticated writing, three notches above pot-boiler status, but still far from a major literary achievement.

By the time Mitla Pass came out in 1988, Uris had several other novels under his belt, many of them raving successes. But in this effort, besides for writing a seeming auto-biographical story-line, Uris was obviously somewhat spent.

Read Mitla Pass if you don't mind diving into a mediocre novel, with limited historical information, and an extremely uneven writing style. And hang on. It's a bumpy ride.

Here's a Leon Uris novel I could have done without. I picked it up on a recent vacation, thinking an historical novel would be a nice change of pace. Alas, Uris disappoints.

The book opens with a mass market pot-boiler kind of intrigue, involving the protagonist, his wife and his Hungarian lover. The details and conflicts of these involvements drag on, uninteresting, cliched and over-written, for at least 80 pages.

A few chapters, very few, focus on Israel's 1956 conflict with Egypt in the Sinai, and more specifically the Mitla Pass, the mountainous area of the Sinai just north of the Suez Canal.

Then readers are treated to a bizarre family history of diverse characters who are only marginally connected, and have little or no bearing whatever on the supposed main topic of the story---that is, what happened in 1956. These lengthy middle chapters are redeemed somewhat by somewhat more sophisticated writing, three notches above pot-boiler status, but still far from a major literary achievement.

By the time Mitla Pass came out in 1988, Uris had several other novels under his belt, many of them raving successes. But in this effort, besides for writing a seeming auto-biographical story-line, Uris was obviously somewhat spent.

Read Mitla Pass if you don't mind diving into a mediocre novel, with limited historical information, and an extremely uneven writing style. And hang on. It's a bumpy ride.

This is perhaps the first book where I read about a character who was made the way Gideon Zadok was. Every hero had to be loved. Hated at least. Mixed emotions never existed in my life then towards a particular character. But Gideon, who blundered his way through fame, marriage and relationships found me loving him to bits one minute and hating him to pieces the next.

One of the best works of Uris, if not for the historical value of the book- for the sheer joy in discovering Gideon Zadok.

As a book, Exodus and Redemption are my favorites, but if I go by characters, I still wouldn't know if I love or hate Gideon Zadok.