Yossi Avni-Levy

Yossi Avni-Levy is an Israeli author born to Iranian and Afghan parents. His early works explored relationships between men and laid a foundational stone in Israeli gay literature. Over time, his writing expanded to examine the hybrid roots of Israeli identity and its layered relationship with Europe. His deep engagement with the Holocaust culminated in his most recent and widely celebrated novel, Three Days in Summer, which earned him both the Brenner and Sapir Prizes. The book focuses on the days leading up to the annihilation of a Jewish town in Lithuania during World War II. With a surgeon’s precision, Avni-Levy investigates the subterranean currents that led to the destruction – while insistently seeking out moments of humanity and pockets of compassion amidst the horror. Rather than linger on the blow of the axe, he tenderly attends to the vibrant life of the town just before its fall, capturing the web of minor and major dilemmas that sustained it.

Photo by: Sivan Farag