Jericho Mosaic

The Jerusalem Quartet #4

by Edward Whittemore

The distance from Jerusalem down to Jericho in the Jordan River valley is only about fifteen miles. From there up into the Moabite hills of Jordan is but another ten miles, distances a man can walk in one night. When adversaries live at such close quarters they affect each other in strange and unsuspected ways.

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction, Fantasy, Israel, Historical, Literature, Novels

426 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1987

About the author

Edward Whittemore (1933­­­–1995) graduated from Yale University in 1955 and went on to serve as a Marine officer in Japan and spend ten years as a CIA operative in the Far East, Europe, and the Middle East. In addition to writing fiction, he managed a newspaper in Greece, was employed by a shoe company in Italy, and worked in New York City’s narcotics control office during the administration of Mayor John V. Lindsay. He wrote the Jerusalem Quartet while dividing his time between New York and Jerusalem.

Reviews

[Matt Brady · Rating 5 out of 5]

The final book in the Jerusalem Quartet feels different to the other three in many ways. The familiar faces from the rest of the series have vanished, their stories largely wrapped up one way or another, and Jericho Mosaic instead picks up and follows a couple of minor characters from the preceding book, Nile Shadows. With the cast change, the timeline also moves forward, quite rapidly too - Jericho Mosaic begins with the birth of the nation of Israel, and concludes in the early 80s, covering a wider span of time in one book than the rest of the series managed in three. The more fantastical and absurdist elements of the series have also fallen away, the series growing more grounded as the 20th century itself ages into our own modern time, though a tinge of mysticism always lurks around the edges. A sense that time is moving on and things are being lost, or replaced, that ideas and ideals are being slowly transformed into something baser, more practical.

There are moments, long stretches of the book even, that are as moving and powerful as anything else in the series, like the gruelling, grunt's-eye-view of the Six Day War or the sad, doomed friendship between an undercover Mossad agent and a failed Syrian journalist. There's a lot of searching in the book, people looking for purpose and meaning, and the fact that Whittemore was actually dying as he wrote it gives those journeys incredible pathos. This isn't the ridiculous and scathing satire of the intelligence world that Whittemore portrayed in Jerusalem Poker, but a much more somber and reflective investigation of the hidden nature of humanity, the cost of idealism, the death of an old world and the birth of a new one.

It's a hell of a series. It's a secret history of the Middle East, a magical fantasy tale, a gritty espionage thriller, a love story and a bible, and it manages to balance all of that without feeling overstuffed. I really loved these books.

[Alana Storm · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not quite fiction, not quite reality — the entire Jerusalem Quartet is at times an uneven mess, at times brilliant and at other times in need of an editor and author with more time, but by the end, in the final book, I've found no better explanation of the half century of chaos and violence that is living in a middle eastern war zones. Required reading before you open your mouth about this era's missteps into the same.

[Lucy Cummin · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this final book of the Jerusalem Quartet Whittemore follows the career of one Yossi, an Iraqi born Jew who becomes a deep agent for the Mossad in Syria, the Runner, who poses and then, in some way, becomes a Syrian and for decades successfully transfers information that, among others, enables the successful fight for the Golan Heights and some shifting of the borders to the west. In the end he works for the Syrians as well and the stress overwhelms him but it is hardly surprising. The man who is his 'handler', Tajar, the first head of the Mossad (I have no idea of any of the historical accuracy of any of this but I suspect names are changed and the essence is true) is a very minor person in the previous novel as is 'Bell' who in the previous book was the head of 'The Monastery' a British undercover organization in Egypt. Whittemore was undoubtedly an agent himself for the US, deeply knowledgeable about all things Middle Eastern. His description of the implosion of Lebanon is masterful. I grew up reading endlessly about the chaos there and it was helpful to read about how it came about in this more intimate way. I think, having read all four books, Whittemore is attempting to show how generation after generation the same theme, with variations, plays out between Arabs, Jews, and Christians, nothing resolved, nothing changes (as in improves). There are merely periods of quiet punctuated by extreme violence and reshufflings. A few die in the crossfire, a few survive to sit on the sidelines watching history repeat itself very much like water, always different, always the same. Any person interested in the Middle East will find the Quartet worthwhile reading. ****1/2

[George K. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Βαθμολογία: 9/10

Και κάπου εδώ, στο τέταρτο και τελευταίο βιβλίο του Κουαρτέτου της Ιερουσαλήμ, ολοκληρώνεται το μαγικό και συναρπαστικό ταξίδι στον κόσμο της Ιερουσαλήμ και της Μέσης Ανατολής του Έντουαρντ Γουίτμορ. Αφηγηματικά μου θύμισε λίγο το πρώτο βιβλίο, με την έννοια ότι ο Γουίτμορ εξιστορεί διάφορα γεγονότα και στιγμές αρκετών χαρακτήρων σε βάθος πολλών ετών, αν και η αλήθεια είναι ότι και πάλι τα πράγματα -όπως και στο τρίτο βιβλίο-, είναι πιο σοβαρά, πιο ρεαλιστικά, δεν υπάρχει ιδιαίτερος χώρος για μαγεία ή πλάκα στο χάος της Μέσης Ανατολής στα μέσα του 20ου αιώνα και σε όλα τα βρόμικα παιχνίδια μεταξύ Ισραήλ, Συρίας, Λιβάνου, Αιγύπτου και δεν συμμαζεύεται. Η περίληψη στο οπισθόφυλλο της ελληνικής έκδοσης τα λέει μια χαρά, οπότε δεν χρειάζεται να τα επαναλάβω κι εδώ. Μου άρεσε πολύ και αυτό το βιβλίο, το βρήκα αρκετά ρεαλιστικό και με τον τρόπο του μελαγχολικό και σκοτεινό, από τη μια πλευρά αισιόδοξο για το μέλλον κάποιων χαρακτήρων, από την άλλη απαισιόδοξο ως προς τις σχέσεις μεταξύ των χωρών της Μέσης Ανατολής και τη ματαιότητα των πολέμων και όλων αυτών των κατασκοπευτικών παιχνιδιών. Πολύ θα μου λείψει η γραφή του Γουίτμορ, οι χαρακτήρες και ο κόσμος που δημιούργησε αυτός ο ιδιαίτερος συγγραφέας, αλλά πάντως χάρηκα που διάβασα αυτά τα τέσσερα βιβλία (τρία χρόνια με περίμεναν με παράπονο στα αδιάβαστα), και κρίμα που δεν έχει μεταφραστεί στα ελληνικά και το αυτοτελές "Quin's Shanghai Circus", που φαίνεται με τη σειρά του εξαιρετικά ενδιαφέρον. Υ.Γ. Το Κουαρτέτο της Ιερουσαλήμ θα γινόταν μια πολύ γαμάτη τηλεοπτική σειρά τεσσάρων σαιζόν, αλλά φευ...

[Arnis Arnicāns · Rating 5 out of 5]

Līdz šim no Edvarda Vitmora neko nebiju lasījis. Tā kā izlasīt visus četrus sējumus nelikās iespējams, tad apzināti izvēlējos pēdējo grāmatu no Jeruzalemes kvarteta. Likās, ka aprakstītais laika posms būs vairāk vai mazāk saprotams un pazīstamāks. Palestīna, Izraēla, katram taču par to ir priekštats. Ar pirmo daļu gāja raiti, stāstījums likās daudzsološs un interesi kāpināja, bet tad jau otrajā daļā viss it kā pamira. Virzījos uz priekšu pavisam lēni, daudzreiz jau taisījos vispār mest mieru, bet tad trešo daļu, kur notikumi kļuva saprotamāki, vēstures un Tuvo Austrumu valstu apraksti informatīvāki, izrāvu samērā ātri. Būtībā romāns par cilvēka dzīves jēgu. Par to, ka tas , kas sākumā liekas vērtīgs un svarīgs, kaut kādā brīdī no paša neatkarīgu apstākļu dēļ kļūst bezjēdzīgs. Zvaigznīšu skaits varbūt arī zemāks, ja vērtētu visu romānu kopumā, bet man ļoti patika trešā daļa.

[Pablo · Rating 5 out of 5]

The finish, and a brilliant end it was to an extroardinarily unique series!! This book shines and astonishes from start to finish. Deep, moving, loving , sad and intense at the same time, this book more than fulfills the promises of the previous three. This story leaves an entire history, explanation and fragrance of the "Middle East" that one would be hardpressed to forget. Beautiful !!

[Alison · Rating 2 out of 5]

Somehow only noticed this was part of a quartet after finishing it, somewhat disappointing as my last book of the year, but interesting historical perspective. Reads more like a history book then the plot of a spy thriller, which is what I expected.

[Robert Nolin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Perhaps my least favorite of the Quartet, but still worth re-reading.