Fields of Exile

2015 Canadian Jewish Literary Awards – Winner, Fiction

Judith finds the courage to stand up for her beliefs and protest anti-Semitic hypocrisy. Judith is a young woman who lived in Israel for a decade, was a peace activist there, and defines herself as «left-wing,» yet in graduate school back in Canada, she discovers that vilification of Israel is the expected norm. When the keynote speaker for Anti-Oppression Day turns out to be a supporter of terrorist attacks not only against Israeli military targets, but also against Israeli civilians and Jews around the world, Judith protests. As a result, she is marginalized by the faculty and her peers, and her life begins to unravel. This is a moving novel about love, betrayal, and the courage to stand up for what one believes, as well as a searing indictment of the hypocrisy and intellectual sloth that threaten the integrity of our society. 'Wistful Woman' painting on the cover was created by Peter Worsley (http://www.peterworsley.com/), and used with the artist’s permission.