The true story of a made-up Mossad operative

Yiftach Atir’s novel, The English Teacher, is newly appeared in English translation this year. Host Marcela Sulak reads some excerpts from the book, including Atir's opening note:

"The book you are holding in your hands is the true story of what never happened. This is the story of a Mossad operative. She and others like her operate alone for extended periods of time, deep in enemy countries. Unlike their front-line soldier counterparts, these secret soldiers are armed with nothing but a foreign passport, a fake identity, extensive training, and inexplicable courage."

Atir was born in 1949 on a kibbutz in the south of Israel. As a young military officer, he participated in Operation Entebbe as well as other, still-classified, military and intelligence operations. The English Teacher is the third of his four novels.

Text: The English Teacher by Yiftach Atir. Translated by Philip Simpson. Penguin Books, 2016.

Music: Rami Fortis - Shkiata Shel HaZricha Alberto Iglesias - "George Smiley" (from Tinker Taylor Soldier Spy OST) Dick Hyman - Theme from The Spy Who Came In From The Cold