Presenting "Matches", by Alan Kaufman, Back Bay Books, Little, Brown &
Co., New York & Boston, 2005.

Alan Kaufman's story XXX appeared in Offcourse Issue #YYY in date.  He
has also written a novel, "Jew Boy" [provide info], and is the
co-editor of "The Outlaw Bible of American Poetry" and "The Outlaw
Bible of American Literature."


"Matches", Mr. Kaufman's latest novel is largely autobiographical. It
describes the life of Israeli soldiers on duty in the occupied
territories (the Gaza strip.)  The narrator is an American Jew who has
dual American/Israeli citizenship, and has chosen to serve in the
Israeli armed forces.  He explains his reasons for this choice in the
afterword to the novel, and also in reported conversations with fellow
soldiers in the body of the novel.  The title of the book, Matches, is
explained:

	"In the Israeli army, a unit commander reporting from the
	field will refer to the soldiers under his command as
	'Matches'.  The term, taken from Hannah Shenesh's poem
	'Blessed is the Match'-- a hymn to valor -- is the IDF
	(Israeli Defense Forces) code word for a soldier. Among the
	troops, it has come to mean someone who strikes, burns and
	dies."

"Matches" should be read for the disturbing questions it raises about
the conflict and its effects on Israel, and for the even more
disturbing questions it poses about our own allegiances and values.