Eve Harris’ rich tale about the semi-arranged marriage of two young Jews in London mixes humour with pathos and adds a dash of rebellion
Eve Harris
Eve Harris was born in London to Israeli-Polish parents. Her father moved to England aged 10, and had survived the Holocaust by hiding, hence why ‘we’re no longer a religious family’
Harris’s Jewishness is nevertheless important to her. She taught in London schools before moving to Tel Aviv in 1999. On her return in 2002 she worked first at a Catholic convent school and then at an all girls’ ultra-Orthodox Jewish school – the experience that lay behind The Marrying of Chani Kaufman. She also wanted to write the book because ‘It can be hard to see ultra-Orthodox Jews as people with the same types of human frustrations you experience.’ Harris also works with a charity supporting women offenders and women with mental health problems.