Israeli author and filmmaker Etgar Keret will spend the evening of March 25 in Beachwood discussing his latest book, The Seven Good Years: A Memoir and the current situation in Israel. The book, a nonfiction account of Keret’s personal life, follows on the successes of earlier books, Suddenly a Knock on the Door; The Girl on the Fridge: Stories; The Bus Driver Who Wanted to Be God & Other Stories; Missing Kissinger; and Gaza Blues: Different Stories.
Keret’s presentation, the Herbert and Marianna Luxenberg Siegal College Israel Lecture in memory of Nili Adler, is at 7 p.m., Wednesday, March 25, at the Beachwood campus of Case Western Reserve University’s Laura and Alvin Siegal Lifelong Learning Program (26500 Shaker Blvd.). The event is free and open to the public. Donations will support the Nili Adler Memorial Fund for the Study of Hebrew Language and Culture. With a $72 donation, preferred seating is available, and with a $180 donation, private dinner with the author is provided.
Known worldwide for his short stories, graphic novels, and scriptwriting for film and television, Keret has received The Book Publishers Association of Israel’s Platinum Prize several times, the Chevalier Medallion of France’s Order of Arts and Letters, and has been awarded the Prime Minister’s Prize and the Ministry of Culture’s Cinema Prize. His books are bestsellers in Israel and have been published in more than 30 languages. He is also a regular columnist for both The New York Times and The New Yorker.
As a filmmaker, Keret is the writer of several feature screenplays, including Skin Deep (1996), which won First Prize at several international film festivals and was awarded the Israeli Oscar. Wrist Cutters, featuring Tom Waits, was released in August 2007. Jellyfish, his first movie as a director along with his wife Shira Geffen, won the coveted Camera d’Or prize for best first feature at the Cannes Film Festival 2007.
For more information and to register, call the Siegal Lifelong Learning Program at 216.368.2091 or visit case.edu/lifelonglearning.