Leon Uris (1924–2003)
Author of Exodus
About the Author
Writer Leon Uris was born in Baltimore on August 3, 1924. He dropped out of school to join the Marines during World War II, but later returned to attend Baltimore City College. His first novel, Battle Cry (1953), was based on his time as a marine. He followed it with a series of New York Times show more bestsellers, including The Angry Hills, Exodus, Topaz, and Trinity. QB VII was adapted into a TV mini-series starring Ben Gazzara and Anthony Hopkins. Uris has also written non-fiction (including Ireland: A Terrible Beauty and Jerusalem: Song of Songs) and screenplays (Battle Cry and Gunfight at the O. K. Corral). He has won the John F. Kennedy Memorial Award from the Irish-American Society and the Scopus Award from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Image credit: Leon Uris
Series
Works by Leon Uris
Jerusalem: Song of Songs: A Passionate History of a Unique and Inspiring City (1981) 162 copies, 1 review
[unidentified works] 3 copies
The Spy Catchers 2 copies
QB VII: Volume 1 of 2 1 copy
L'assalto 1 copy
The Defection of Kuznetov 1 copy
Associated Works
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Canonical name
- Uris, Leon
- Legal name
- Uris, Leon Marcus
- Birthdate
- 1924-08-03
- Date of death
- 2003-06-21
- Gender
- male
- Occupations
- novelist
screenwriter
newspaper correspondent - Organizations
- United States Marine Corps (WWII)
- Awards and honors
- Harry and Ethel Daroff Award (1959)
National Institute of Arts and Letters Grant (1959)
California Literature Silver Medal Award (1962 ∙ for Mila 18)
California Literature Gold Medal Award (1965, for Armageddon)
Irish/American Society of New York John F. Kennedy Medal (1977)
Eire Society of Boston Gold Medal (1978) (show all 10)
State of Israel Jobotinsky medal (1980)
Concord Academy Hall fellowship (with wife, Jill Uris), (1980)
Hebrew University of Jerusalem Scopus award (1981)
Honorary doctorates: University of Colorado, 1976; Santa Clara University, 1977; Wittenberg University, 1980; Lincoln College, 1985 - Relationships
- Uris, Jill (wife)
- Short biography
- Leon Uris was a best-selling novelist known especially for doing deep research into his topics. He was a high school dropout who enlisted in the U.S. Marines at age 17 during World War II, serving in the South Pacific. His writing career began with short stories, and he published his first novel in 1953. Although not well appreciated by literary critics, his works were popular successes and introduced readers to many important social causes and historical events such as the Warsaw Ghetto uprising.
- Cause of death
- kidney failure
- Nationality
- USA
- Birthplace
- Baltimore, Maryland, USA
- Places of residence
- Palestine
Norfolk, Virginia, USA
Baltimore, Maryland, USA
Shelter Island, New York, USA - Place of death
- Shelter Island, Long Island, New York, USA
- Burial location
- Quantico National Cemetery, Quantico, Virginia, USA
- Map Location
- Maryland, USA
Members
Discussions
_Exodus_ by Leon Uris - a Group Read in May in 75 Books Challenge for 2013 (June 2013)
Reviews
This book is so massive that somehow it should count as two! I read Uris's Exodus long ago before I went to college. I wanted to see if it would hold up to my memories. It succeeded in that. It is a powerful book, especially when it focuses on the past injustices to the Jews. It made me sick at heart to read of the brutality and atrocities they suffered. The power of what they endured to create a nation sang to me.
The difference this time is that back in college, I took a course titled show more "History as Seen through the Eyes of the Novelist." Taught by a journalist/historian, the main thought came from the final exam question. Paraphrasing it, the question was, "Every novelist has a reason for writing his book. What was the reason for the books you read? Did the novelist achieve his goal?"
It is evident that Uris is pro-Israeli. It comes through in all of his noble characters that I fell in love with. Ari Ben Caanan, his father Barak, his sister Jordana, Jordana's love David Ben Ami, Karen Hansen Clement, and Dov Landau are richly drawn. Kitty Fremont is the American nurse through whom we see so many of the events and people.
However, Uris definitely paints with a broad negative brush when it comes to the Arabs in the stories. "Dirty" and "stinking" are used too frequently to describe the people, and their homes are almost uniformly "squalid." From what I have read about the history, it does seem accurate. However, I feel the loaded words weren't necessary to clarify what happened was wrong. I felt that I was being shoved down a path I would have taken anyway.
My final verdict is this is a 4.5 star book, losing a half star for the reasons above. It certainly accomplishes the author's objectives. It is an important novel in many ways because it clarifies how the roots of what happened during the Holocaust were already in too many countries. The Jewish ghettos, the pogroms, and the existing discriminatory laws made it too easy to ignore what was happening to a people who were already marginalized.
If you haven't read this massive historical novel, it is well worth the time, with the caveat above. show less
The difference this time is that back in college, I took a course titled show more "History as Seen through the Eyes of the Novelist." Taught by a journalist/historian, the main thought came from the final exam question. Paraphrasing it, the question was, "Every novelist has a reason for writing his book. What was the reason for the books you read? Did the novelist achieve his goal?"
It is evident that Uris is pro-Israeli. It comes through in all of his noble characters that I fell in love with. Ari Ben Caanan, his father Barak, his sister Jordana, Jordana's love David Ben Ami, Karen Hansen Clement, and Dov Landau are richly drawn. Kitty Fremont is the American nurse through whom we see so many of the events and people.
However, Uris definitely paints with a broad negative brush when it comes to the Arabs in the stories. "Dirty" and "stinking" are used too frequently to describe the people, and their homes are almost uniformly "squalid." From what I have read about the history, it does seem accurate. However, I feel the loaded words weren't necessary to clarify what happened was wrong. I felt that I was being shoved down a path I would have taken anyway.
My final verdict is this is a 4.5 star book, losing a half star for the reasons above. It certainly accomplishes the author's objectives. It is an important novel in many ways because it clarifies how the roots of what happened during the Holocaust were already in too many countries. The Jewish ghettos, the pogroms, and the existing discriminatory laws made it too easy to ignore what was happening to a people who were already marginalized.
If you haven't read this massive historical novel, it is well worth the time, with the caveat above. show less
Even though I was caught up in the book when I first read it, I had to leave it halfway through... and when I went back to it some years later, after learning more about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict (not the American-Israeli fiction, but real history), I felt I couldn't read it, it was so nauseating. Now I work in the Middle East, and see the conflict more close at hand. I could talk with many displaced Palestinians, and hear their side of the story. And the aversion to the book has show more increased.
The story of "Exodus" could be summarised in one sentence: "Brave godlike Jews defeat cowardly, evil Arabs and build the beautiful country of Israel."
Yuck. show less
The story of "Exodus" could be summarised in one sentence: "Brave godlike Jews defeat cowardly, evil Arabs and build the beautiful country of Israel."
Yuck. show less
This is a beautifully written novel about the history of Palestine under the British mandate that ultimately became the separate countries of Israel and Jordan and the fights over the West Bank by the surrounding Arab countries. Although I have read a number of books on the establishment of Israel, I have no personal knowledge of the accuracy of this novel, but Uris was famous for his research. He beautifully described the conservative Muslim Palestinian lifestyle of the 1940s under Haj show more Ibrahim, who ruled a village area in what became Israel. The book is written mostly from the perspective of Ibrahim's young son, Ishmael, who learns to read and therefore becomes the key to his family's survival in these murderous times. The tragic creation of hundreds of thousands of refugees, the inability of well-meaning Arabs and Israelis to find a way around the tragedy we all know is coming. The hypocrisy of the surrounding Arab countries and the Western "allies" is so infuriating. The book is so sad but so so beautifully written. I took off one star because I really, really hated the ending. Ishmael should have survived, gone to England to study, then come back to help his people. I so wanted that to be true. There were so many missed opportunities to do the right thing!! Alas, we now have the situation today where both Palestinians and Israelis have suffered for so long. For someone who wants to learn about and actually feel the agony of the Arab Palestinians and the dilemmas facing the Jews of Palestine trapped in their tragic situation by so many factors — history, culture, the competing agendas of so many countries and factions etc — I highly recommend this novel. show less
If this book doesn't make you rage at the injustice that is visited since time began upon the Jews, nothing will. Exodus is a compelling and beautifully written account of the history of prejudice and torment of God's chosen people throughout history, but especially during the Holocaust and during the formation of the nation of Israel. It is heartbreaking and very difficult to read, but it gives a gut wrenching perspective that makes the struggles of the Jewish nation unbearably real. The show more historical events are told with accuracy and specifics that make the Jewish struggle come alive. While I found this book enormously painful, it is one everyone should read. show less
Lists
1970 Club (1)
Revolutions (1)
Sonlight Books (1)
Tour of Ireland (1)
Best War Stories (1)
Favourite Books (2)
Jewish Books (2)
discontinued (2)
1950s (2)
2015 UpROOTed (1)
Awards
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Associated Authors
Statistics
- Works
- 45
- Also by
- 5
- Members
- 21,105
- Popularity
- #1,024
- Rating
- 3.9
- Reviews
- 284
- ISBNs
- 658
- Languages
- 17
- Favorited
- 56
