Etgar Keret and Ben Ehrenreich: Is Reality Overrated? October 30, 2008

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Is Reality Overrated?
Etgar Keret and Ben Ehrenreich: A conversation

Two fiction writers discuss what's real, what's not, and whether or not it really matters.

Etgar Keret is internationally acclaimed for his short stories. Born in Tel Aviv in 1967 to an extremely diverse family, his brother heads an Israeli group that lobbies for the legalization of marijuana, and his sister is an orthodox Jew and the mother of ten children. Keret regards his family as a microcosm of Israel. His book, The Nimrod Flip-Out ( 2006), is a collection of 32 short stories that captures the craziness of life in Israel today. His other books include Bus Driver Who Wanted to Be God (2004,), Missing Kissinger (2007,), and Gaza Blues (2004) Over 40 short movies have been based on his stories. Keret is the writer of several feature screenplays, including Skin Deep (1996), which won First Prize at several international film festivals and was awarded the Israeli Oscar. Wrist Cutters, featuring Tom Waits, was released in August 2007. Jellyfish, his first movie as a director along with his wife Shira Geffen, won the coveted Camera d'Or prize for best first feature at the Cannes Film Festival 2007. Keret is at present a lecturer in the film department at Tel Aviv University.

http://www.etgarkeret.com

Ben Ehrenreich was born and raised in Long Island, New York. He studied religion at Brown University, and eventually emigrated to Los Angeles, where he still lives, writing fiction and journalism. His reporting has taken him from Afghanistan to South America and all over the United States (most recently to Haiti). His articles and essays have been published in L.A. Weekly, the Village Voice, The Believer, the Los Angeles Times, the New York Times, and many other publications. His fiction has appeared in Bomb, McSweeney's, Black Clock, Swink, and elsewhere. His work has been reprinted in anthologies including The Best American Nonrequired Reading 2004, Notes from Underground: The Most Outrageous Stories from the Alternative Press, and The World's Best Sex Writing 2005. His first novel, The Suitors, was published in 2006.

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