A Place of Exodus
Home, Memory, and Texas

Feelings about the past and its nostalgia sometimes are best left as memories and often make for an awkward memoire. The author lingers in memories that once were and wants to recreate them as he mostly dwells on how special it was to have been living during those stifling days (1980ish Houston most......more

In A Place of Exodus, author David Biespiel shares the story of his experience growing up in a tightly knit Jewish community outside of Houston, Texas. But an argument with his rabbi causes him to move away from his idyllic childhood community. The book explores Biespiel’s journey as a self-proclaim......more

A stunning, heartbreaking memoir about faith and exile. A portrait of Jewish life in the American South -- in Texas!! -- during the Cold War. Biespiel writes with gorgeous fluidity. So many memorable scenes. No wonder Kirkus Reviews gave it a Starred Review -- and writers like former US Poet Laureat......more

The author, a renowned poet, details his childhood and teen years in Houston, Texas. He lived a very Jewish religious life, but becomes disillusioned and argues in public with the Rabbi, who kicks him out of the temple. Sometimes a bit difficult to read the discussion of his religious thinking, his......more