The New York Times' Charles McGrath reports on the retirement of author Philip Roth following his 80th birthday and a celebration that was held for him in Newark, NJ, his home town and locale that has served as inspiration and material for his fiction.
Mr. McGrath writes: "The Irish novelist Edna O’Brien recalled her long and complicated friendship with the “scorchingly handsome” Mr. Roth, described his sometimes hermitlike work habits and ended decades of gossip and speculation by declaring that they were never lovers. The New Yorker critic Claudia Roth Pierpont touched on the role of music and of silverware in Mr. Roth’s work and spoke in some detail about the richness and lifelikeness of his female characters. She once complained to him, she recalled, about a female character who seemed too perfect, too snippy. Mr. Roth replied, “You should hear what she says about you.”
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Thursday, March 21, 2013
Peace and Rockets: President Obama's Visit to Israel
“I recognize that there are those who are not simply skeptical about peace, but question its underlying premise, and that’s a part of democracy and the discourse between our two countries,” Mr. Obama said in the speech at the Jerusalem Convention Center, which was televised live. “But it is important to be open and honest with one another. Politically, given the strong bipartisan support for Israel in America, the easiest thing for me to do would be to put this issue aside and express unconditional support for whatever Israel decides to do.”
"And as the president of a country that you can count on as your greatest friend -- (applause) -- I am confident that you can help us find the promise in the days that lie ahead. And as a man who’s been inspired in my own life by that timeless calling within the Jewish experience -- “tikkun olam” -- (applause) -- I am hopeful that we can draw upon what’s best in ourselves to meet the challenges that will come, to win the battles for peace in the wake of so much war and to do the work of repairing this world." (Applause.)
"That’s your job. That’s my job. That’s the task of all of us. "
Transcript of President Barack Obama's speech in Israel here
"And as the president of a country that you can count on as your greatest friend -- (applause) -- I am confident that you can help us find the promise in the days that lie ahead. And as a man who’s been inspired in my own life by that timeless calling within the Jewish experience -- “tikkun olam” -- (applause) -- I am hopeful that we can draw upon what’s best in ourselves to meet the challenges that will come, to win the battles for peace in the wake of so much war and to do the work of repairing this world." (Applause.)
"That’s your job. That’s my job. That’s the task of all of us. "
Transcript of President Barack Obama's speech in Israel here