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Lesley Hazleton

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Lesley Hazleton
Born(1945-09-20)September 20, 1945
Reading, Berkshire, England
DiedApril 29, 2024(2024-04-29) (aged 78)
Seattle, Washington, U.S.
Occupation
  • Author
  • columnist
Alma mater
Period1966–2016

Lesley Adele Hazleton (September 20, 1945 – April 29, 2024) was a British-American author and journalist. Born in Reading, Berkshire, she began her career as a correspondent in Israel before moving to the United States in 1979. She wrote about a variety of subjects, including automobiles, history, politics, and religion. She wrote for Time, The Jerusalem Post, and The New York Times, among other publications, and authored several books.

Background and education

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Lesley Adele Hazleton was born to an Orthodox Jewish family in Reading, Berkshire, England, in 1945.[1] She had two degrees in psychology (B.A. Manchester University, M.A. Hebrew University of Jerusalem).[2]

Career

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Hazleton was based in Jerusalem from 1966 to 1979 and in New York City from 1979 to 1992.[1] She later became a U.S. citizen. She reported from Jerusalem for Time and The Jerusalem Post, and wrote about the Middle East for numerous publications including The New York Times, The New York Review of Books, Harper's, The Nation, and The New Republic.[3] She wrote about automobiles for the Detroit Free Press.[1]

Hazleton described herself as "a Jew who once seriously considered becoming a rabbi, a former convent schoolgirl who daydreamed about being a nun, an agnostic with a deep sense of religious mystery though no affinity for organized religion".[4] "Everything is paradox," she said. "The danger is one-dimensional thinking".[5]

In April 2010, she launched The Accidental Theologist,[6] a blog casting "an agnostic eye on religion, politics, and existence."[7] In September 2011, she received The Stranger's Genius Award in Literature [8] and in fall 2012, she was the Inaugural Scholar-in-Residence at Town Hall Seattle.[9] She wrote books about figures in multiple major religions.[1]

Her last book, Agnostic: A Spirited Manifesto, was a Publishers Weekly most-anticipated book of spring 2016.[1][10][11] It was praised by The New York Times as "vital and mischievous" and as "wide-ranging... yet intimately grounded in our human, day-to-day life."[12]

Personal life and death

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In 1992, Hazleton moved to Seattle, where she lived on a floating home.[1] Diagnosed with terminal kidney cancer, she exercised her right to not pursue treatment, and died via MAiD (medical aid in dying) at her home on April 29, 2024, at the age of 78.[1][13]

Books

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On religion and politics:

  • Agnostic: A Spirited Manifesto [14] 2016 (New York Times Editors' Choice)
  • The First Muslim: The Story of Muhammad (2013) [15] (New York Times Editors' Choice)
  • After the Prophet: The Epic Story of the Shia-Sunni Split (2009) [16] (Finalist: 2010 PEN-USA book award.)[17]
  • Jezebel: The Untold Story of the Bible's Harlot Queen (2007) [18] (Finalist: 2008 Washington Book Award.)[19]
  • Mary: A Flesh-and-Blood Biography (2004) [20] (Winner: 2005 Washington Book Award.)[21]
  • Jerusalem, Jerusalem: A Memoir of War and Peace, Passion and Politics [22] (Winner: 1987 American Jewish Committee/Present Tense Book Award).[23]
  • Where Mountains Roar: a Personal Report from the Sinai [24]
  • Israeli Women: The Reality Behind the Myths [25]

Her other books include:

  • England, Bloody England: An Expatriate's Return [26]
  • Confessions of a Fast Woman (1986) [27]
  • Driving to Detroit: An Automotive Odyssey [28]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g Green, Penelope (May 7, 2024). "Lesley Hazleton, Writer Who Tackled Religion and Fast Cars, Dies at 78". The New York Times. Retrieved May 7, 2024.
  2. ^ "About the author." 'After the Prophet.' 2009.<http://www.aftertheprophet.com Archived December 17, 2021, at the Wayback Machine>
  3. ^ "The first Muslim". ww38.thefirstmuslim.com. Retrieved April 11, 2023.
  4. ^ Seattle Times 10/26/07
  5. ^ Publishers Weekly 5/21/07
  6. ^ Hazleton, Lesley. "The Accidental Theologist". Retrieved January 13, 2011.
  7. ^ The Accidental Theologist/Who Is the AT?<http://accidentaltheologist.com/about/>
  8. ^ Constant, Paul. "Lesley Hazleton". The Stranger.
  9. ^ "Search for "Lesley hazleton "". Town Hall Seattle.
  10. ^ "The Most Anticipated Books of Spring 2016". PublishersWeekly.com. Retrieved April 11, 2023.
  11. ^ "Religion Book Review: Agnostic: A Spirited Manifesto by Lesley Hazleton. Riverhead, $25.95 (224p) ISBN 978-1-59463-413-0". April 5, 2016.
  12. ^ Wilensky-Lanford, Brook (July 15, 2016). "Religion". The New York Times.
  13. ^ "Seattle-Based Author Lesley Hazelton Says Goodbye to the World". The Stranger. May 3, 2024. Retrieved May 9, 2024.
  14. ^ "Agnostic by Lesley Hazleton | PenguinRandomHouse.com". Archived from the original on March 4, 2016.
  15. ^ Nonfiction Book Review: The First Muslim: The Story of Muhammad by Lesley Hazleton. Riverhead. 2013. ISBN 978-1-59448-728-6.
  16. ^ Hazleton, Lesley (2009). After the Prophet: The Epic Story of the Shia-Sunni Split. Doubleday. pp. 256. ISBN 978-0-385-52393-6.
  17. ^ PEN-USA<http://www.penusa.org/node/149 Archived May 10, 2011, at the Wayback Machine>
  18. ^ Hazleton, Lesley (2007). Jezebel: The Untold Story of the Bible's Harlot Queen. Doubleday. pp. 272. ISBN 978-0-385-51614-3.
  19. ^ Seattle Public Library<"The Seattle Public Library: Washington Center for the Book at the Seattle Public Library". Archived from the original on September 13, 2010. Retrieved October 21, 2010.>
  20. ^ Hazleton, Lesley (2004). Mary: A Flesh-and-Blood Biography of the Virgin Mother. Bloomsbury. pp. 256. ISBN 978-1-58234-236-8.
  21. ^ Seattle Public Library<"The Seattle Public Library: Washington Center for the Book at the Seattle Public Library". Archived from the original on September 13, 2010. Retrieved October 21, 2010.>
  22. ^ Hazleton, Lesley (1986). Jerusalem, Jerusalem: A Memoir of War and Peace, Passion and Politics. Atlantic Monthly Press. p. 256. ISBN 978-0-14-010244-4.
  23. ^ "Awards for Books With Jewish Themes". The New York Times. March 11, 1987. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  24. ^ Hazleton, Lesley (1980). Where Mountains Roar: a Personal Report from the Sinai. Holt Rinehart and Winston. pp. 223. ISBN 978-0-03-045321-2.
  25. ^ Hazleton, Lesley (1979). Israeli Women: The Reality Behind the Myths. Simon and Schuster. pp. 235. ISBN 978-0-671-22531-5.
  26. ^ Hazleton, Lesley (1990). England, Bloody England: An Expatriate's Return. Atlantic Monthly Press. pp. 205. ISBN 978-0-87113-329-8.
  27. ^ Hazleton, Lesley (1990). Confessions of a Fast Woman. Addison Wesley Publishing Company. p. 200. ISBN 978-0-201-63204-0.
  28. ^ Hazleton, Lesley (1998). Driving to Detroit : An Automotive Odyssey. Free Press. pp. 320. ISBN 978-0-684-83987-5.
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