Stone, Bread, Salt

Poetry. Jewish Studies. In this very personal collection of poems Norbert Hirschhorn takes stock of his life and gives voice to his quest to pass on the experiences of the generations before him. Or in the author's own words: "Over the past decades I have lived and worked in the Middle East, coming to a greater understanding not only of Judaism, but also the other Abrahamic religions. As I approach my ninth decade of life I am aware of the need to share with my descendants the wisdom, texts and lessons handed down by our ancestors of all religions. The poems in this collection reflect this aim and necessity." Norbert Hirschhorn experiments with rhyme and metre, free verse and prose poems, yet they all are in his inimitable voice. What makes this collection extra special is Norbert Hirschhorn's work on translating some of Fouad M Fouad's poems from the Arabic. Each poem can be savoured on its own but together they paint a picture of a thoughtful poet and American Health Hero (to quote Bill Clinton) trying to catch the essence of life to hand it down to the next generations.