Exodus: A Novel of Israel (1958) by Leon Uris is a sweeping historical epic that chronicles the founding of modern Israel through the intertwined lives of Jewish refugees and fighters. The novel follows Ari Ben Canaan, a Haganah commander, as he orchestrates the daring 1947 voyage of the refugee ship Exodus to breach the British blockade of Palestine. From the ashes of the Holocaust to the battles for independence, Uris blends real events (the Acre prison break, the siege of Jerusalem) with fictional drama, including a poignant romance between Ari and American nurse Kitty Fremont.
Uris’s muscular prose and meticulous research—though criticized for pro-Israeli bias—capture the era’s idealism and sacrifice. A cultural phenomenon that shaped global sympathy for Israel.
