Happy New Years
Happy New Years by Maya Arad, published by New Vessel Press on August 5, 2025, is a 376-page work of fiction that explores the complexities of identity and personal narrative. The story follows Leah, who, after emigrating to the United States in the mid-1960s, maintains her connection to Israel through annual letters written to her old friends from a women’s teaching college. These letters span five decades and reveal Leah’s high hopes and deep disappointments as she navigates various life challenges, including relationships, marriage, and single motherhood.
Readers will find an intricate portrayal of Leah’s life as her letters evolve from expressions of relentless optimism to more introspective reflections. The novel invites readers to delve into the subtext of Leah’s seemingly cheerful correspondence, uncovering the secrets and shame that shape her experiences. As the narrative unfolds, it offers profound insights into the complexities of her self-constructed identity, making it a compelling exploration of psychological and feminist themes within the context of Jewish and Middle Eastern literature.
Official synopsis Publisher
“Maya Arad is the smart, tart, and heartbroken sibyl of exile, who is remaking expectations of Hebrew literature book by book.”–Joshua Cohen, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Netanyahus
After emigrating to the United States in the mid-1960s, Leah maintains her connection to Israel by writing an annual letter on the Jewish new year to her old friends from a women’s teaching college. Comprising five decades of correspondence, the novel skillfully weaves together Leah’s high hopes and deep disappointments as she navigates relationships, marriage, divorce, single motherhood, financial struggles, and professional ups and downs. Leah’s relentless optimism and cheerfulness conceal disturbing truths behind her carefully crafted words. As her letters turn increasingly introspective, the secrets and shame that shaped her trajectory unravel. This is the epistolary novel at its best, inviting the reader to play detective and probe between the lines of Leah’s insistently rosy portrayal of her life. Gradually piecing together her true circumstances, we are charmed into forgiving her minor deceptions and richly rewarded with the profound insights that Leah’s self-constructed narrative reveals.
Reading group guide to Happy New Years is available for download free of charge at newvesselpress.com.
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