Far from Zion: In Search of a Global Jewish Community

A fascinating narrative of community and faith, Charles London’s Far From Zion explores the Jewish Diaspora in some of the most unexpected places—from Burma to Tehran to Cuba and even Bentonville, Arkansas. The award-winning author of the highly acclaimed One Day the Soldiers Came, London tells the stories of the Jews who stayed behind, choosing to remain in the countries of their birth rather than immigrating to the Holy Land of Israel. At once a riveting modern history of a scattered People of the Book and London’s moving story of his own personal odyssey of religious and cultural discovery, Far From Zion is an affecting and unforgettable study of diversity, tenacity, survival, and rebirth.

Raised in a nonreligious Jewish family, Charles London knew hisheritage but had no strong desire to experience it personally. Thenin the summer of 2004, while doing relief work in Bosnia, he stumbled upon a remarkable community—where Jews worked alongside Muslims and Christians to rebuild a city ravaged by war. This encounter gave him the idea for a journey that would take him aroundthe world and back to his roots.

Far from Zion is the story of Jews in far-flung, often surprising places. Despite efforts by Israel to bring these scattered people home to Zion, they have chosen to remain in the lands of their birth: a shopkeeper selling Jewish trinkets in Iran, a caretaker keeping watch over an all-but-forgotten synagogue in Rangoon, revelers at a Hanukkah celebration in an Arkansas bowling alley, a Cuban engineering professor, proud of his Jewish heritage and prouder still of his Communist ideals. It is through their stories and many others that London examines his own identity, as he, too, struggles to come to terms with his connection to Zion.

“In the tradition of the classic road narrative, Charles London’s new book, Far From Zion, gives us everything we have come to expect: he visits exotic places, encounters colorful people, and experiences adventures you couldn’t make up if you tried. But there is something else that sets the book apart. It’s not your ordinary road trip; it’s a Jewish road trip. Think Jack Kerouac meets Jackie Mason, resulting in a picaresque travel journal, with impressive intellectual ambitions that London only just misses.... London’s method of inquiry is refreshing. His ability to go out into the field—and confidently switch between the storyteller’s, the anthropologist’s, and the historian’s hat—produces a rich and personalized narrative.” - Newsweek

“[London is] a sincere and soul-searching observer.” - Publishers Weekly

“London’s understanding of the nature of the Diaspora experience [is] insightful...making the book...enjoyable for fans of personal journeys of discovery.” - Library Journal