Visiting Speaker - Yaara Lahav Gregory, author of Night Swimming in the Jordan

Yaara Lahav Gregory – author of Night Swimming in the Jordan(published October 20^th, 2023)

Wednesday 15th November 5.30-7pm LT2, IAIS Building

Linking Devon with the Middle East, Night Swimming in the Jordan is new novel by Exeter alum, local author Yaara Lahav Gregory. The story is about Abbie, a young Israeli girl growing up in a gated Kibbutz community, where the dream is to build a Utopian society, guided by socialism and secular Zionism. Abbie is idealistic, proud of her community and of the young Jewish State. But as she grows older, her childhood ideals become compromised by family disfunction, sexual exploitation and war, especially the onset of the 1982 Israeli war in Lebanon. 

On the eve of her wedding Abbie leaves for England and the contrasting world of Dartmoor. Decades later, in Devon, her daughter Yasmin begins to discover the devastating effects of Abbie's childhood in a social experiment that rejected individual needs in favour of the collective. 

This coming-of-age story focuses on everyday lives, exploring love, loss and the impact of conflict across generations. It also attempts to shed some light on an area which is frequently in the news, yet often difficult for casual observers to understand.

Like Abbie, Yaara grew up on a Kibbutz in Israel, and in her 20’s moved to Devon where she still lives. She has a passion for outdoor swimming, a deep connection with water which she also gave to both Abbie and to her daughter. Yaara will be talking about the novel and how her own experiences helped bring it to fruition.