Herzl

Born in Budapest to a well-to-do assimilated Jewish family, Theodor Herzl (1860-1904) and his family moved to Vienna when he was 18. He studied law before he began writing plays and pieces of journalism. Herzl became the Paris correspondent for Vienna’s leading newspaper, the Neue Freie Presse, and covered the Dreyfus affair, which shocked and galvanized him to write The Jewish State: An Attempt at a Modern Solution of the Jewish Question, published in 1896. After the first Zionist congress of 1897, Herzl wrote in his diary: “In Basel I founded the Jewish state. If I said this aloud today, I would be answered by universal laughter. Perhaps in five years, and certainly in fifty, everyone will agree.”

“A great dramatic biography.” — Alfred Kazin, The New York Times

“Any reader familiar with the sources can appreciate the brilliance, restraint and fidelity of Elon’s narrative... the excitement of events and the quality of their prime mover come through admirably.” — The New Republic

“You could not put the book down without admiring Theodor Herzl’s courage and practical achievements — his romance turned into a Congress, a bank, a diplomacy.” — Bernard Avishai, The New Yorker

“A quite astonishing portrait... positively rewarding” — Kirkus Reviews

“Elon’s 1975 biography of Herzl... vividly portrayed the man with all his quirks, inventiveness and shortcomings” — Lawrence Joffe, The Guardian

“considered one of the best biographies to date of Zionist founder Theodor Herzl” — Benjamin Spier, Jerusalem Post

“arguably the best biography ever written of the founding father of Zionism, Theodore Herzl” — Tom Segev, Ha’aretz

“A fascinating book ... it has the fascination of a novel on the grand scale.” — Arthur Miller, Washington Post

“A skillfully written human look at the man whose life reads like a novel...” — Miami Herald