Victorious

The novel comes from the author of The Memory Monster, a New York Times Notable Book of 2020. Its narrator, Abigail, is a military psychologist and single mother who has built her career inside the Israeli Army. She is among the country's leading specialists in combat psychology. She treats soldiers struggling with the toll of war, and she also advises commanders on how to carry out killing while keeping their units effective and mentally intact.

As her son Shauli nears conscription age, Abigail becomes more entangled in the affairs of the army's Chief of Staff and in the lives of her own patients, and the line between her convictions and her job starts to dissolve. Her father, a clinical psychologist with a strong moral compass, publicly condemns her decision to support the military apparatus. Abigail sees her work as a form of patriotic service. Her composure only gives way when the gentle Shauli joins the paratroopers, an elite and high-risk unit.

Sarid uses this family drama to probe the contradictions behind patriotism, national identity, and the long-running conflicts in the Middle East. The book asks what a society should be prepared to sacrifice in the name of winning.