Mordecai Richler Summary

One of Canada's most accomplished writers, Mordecai Richler (1931-2001) produced screenplays, novels, children's literature, and essays. At the time of his death, he was acknowledged as Canada's leadi... Read more

In the following essay, Brenner compares Richler's dualistic representation of the Jewish response to the Holocaust in his fiction and nonfiction with the works of A. M. Klein, Irving Layton, L... Read more

In the following review, Marin commends Richler's wit and cynicism in Oh Canada! Oh Quebec!: Requiem for a Divided Country. I met my first Québecois language Nazi at a French immersio... Read more

In the following review, Delany contends that Oh Canada! Oh Quebec!: Requiem for a Divided Country presents several important insights but notes that “the case for Quebec nationalism needs to b... Read more

In the following review, Cooper argues that Oh Canada! Oh Quebec! is a useful study of Quebec nationalism and recent Canadian politics, commenting that Richler's criticisms are the “only... Read more

In the following review, Rieff commends Richler's complex and poignant characterizations in This Year in Jerusalem but faults the work for its excessive political commentary and cursory travel ... Read more

In the following review, Alexander offers a negative assessment of Richler's “lazy” intellectual tone in This Year in Jerusalem. Mordecai Richler first came to prominence by vi... Read more

In the following review, Ravvin contrasts the portrayals of Jerusalem in This Year in Jerusalem and Bronwyn Drainie's My Jerusalem, commenting that Drainie's work is the more journalisti... Read more

In the following review, King offers a mixed assessment of Barney's Version, arguing that “for all its defects, this unruly book about a thoroughly unruly life contains not a page withou... Read more

In the following review, Schechner praises Richler for creating “a delectable, side-splitting comedy of humiliation” in Barney's Version. At his wedding—his secondȁ... Read more

In the following review, Lichtenstein discusses Richler's body of work and asserts that only the final section of Barney's Version lives up to the legacy of the author's oeuvre. ... Read more

In the following review, Edwards explores the role of memory and truth in Barney's Version. “I dislike most people I have ever met,” says the leading character of the latest of... Read more

In the following interview, Richler discusses Canadian politics and culture, the differences between Toronto and Montreal, and the main thematic concerns of Barney's Version. [Gillam]: Barne... Read more

In the following review, Gorjup contends that Barney's Version is “Richler's most remarkable accomplishment to date, the work of a great master who has come to understand the pitf... Read more

In the following essay, Wilson-Smith offers a brief memorial overview of Richler's life and career. Say this, among many nice things, about Mordecai Richler: he knew how to have things both ... Read more

In the following essay, Steyn characterizes Richler as a politically incorrect writer, placing him within the context of Canadian and Jewish authors. Mordecai Richler died on July 3, and within min... Read more

Critical Essay by G. David Sheps In their themes and motifs, Mordecai Richler's novels return regularly to a constant set of preoccupations. Despite this consistency, however, his career as a ... Read more

Critical Essay by Margot Northey Mordecai Richler's novel, Cocksure, illustrates [a] satiric double focus on grotesque fantasy and morality. In attempting analysis, one can usefully distinguis... Read more

Critical Essay by Thomas R. Edwards In a volume of his essays, Mordecai Richler once quoted with relish a question he was asked after lecturing to a Jewish audience in his native Canada: "Why ... Read more