Zalmen, or The Madness of God

Geneva, Switzerland: The Bibliophile Library (Gercor Ltd). As New in As New dust jacket. 1987. First Edition Thus. First Printing. Leather. 0935613137 . Flat-signed by Elie Wiesel on the half-title page (in addition to the facsimile signature on the cover). Publisher's full brown leather, spine in three compartments, separated by seven gilt and two green borders each, gilt lettering in one compartment, gilt lettering in green panel in second compartment, gilt and green decoration in final compartment, gilt and green borders on covers, author's facsimile signature, gilt, on cover, a.e.g., printed burgundy endpapers. Illustrated with several monochrome drawings by Mark Podwal. Adopted for the stage by Marion Wiesel. On Yom Kippur eve in 1965, Elie Wiesel found himself in Russia, “in a synagogue crowded with people. The air was stifling. The cantor was chanting . . . Suddenly a mad thought crossed my mind: Something is about to happen; any moment now the Rabbi will wake up, shake himself, pound the pulpit and cry out, shout his pain, his rage, his truth. I felt the tension building up inside me; the wait became unbearable. But nothing happened . . . It was too late. The Rabbi no longer had the strength to imagine himself free.”In Zalmen, or The Madness of God, Wiesel gives his Rabbi that strength, the courage to voice his oppression and isolation, and the result is a passionate cry. This play illuminates not only the plight of the Soviet Jew, but the anguish of individuals everywhere who must survive—and yet long for something more than mere survival. . This volume is in perfect, pristine condition, unmarked, unread, tight, square and clean. An extremely handsome volume. A very scarce flatsigned copy. AS NEW. . The Bibliophile Library Series. Vol. 13. Monochrome Drawings. 8vo 8" - 9" tall. 237 pp. Signed by Author .