Idiopathy

Idiopathy

Sam Byers

This bitterly humorous debut is a novel of love, narcissism, and ailing cattle.

Katherine has given up trying to be happy. Her cynical wit repels the people she wants to attract, and attracts the people she knows she should repel. Her ex Daniel, meanwhile, isn’t sure that he loves his new girlfriend. But somehow not telling her he loves her has become synonymous with telling her that he doesn’t love her, meaning that he has to tell her he loves her just to maintain the status quo.

When their former friend Nathan returns from a stint in a psychiatric ward to find that his mother has transformed herself into bestselling author and Twitter sensation ‘Mother Courage’ – Katherine, Daniel and Nathan decide to meet to heal old wounds. But will a reunion end well? Almost certainly not.

Both scathing invective on a self-obsessed generation and moving account of love and loneliness, ‘Idiopathy’ skewers everything from militant environmentalists to self-help quackery and announces the arrival of a savagely funny talent.

Idiopathy - In the press

“Sam Byers never thought his debut novel Idiopathy would be a success, yet he is now being compared t...

Idiopathy - Reviews

“The most biting book of the year”

For the full review

Dor Babayoff, nrg

“A scalding book about relationships gone sour.”

For the full review

Eric Glassner, Yakum Tarbut

“A lot has been written about this book… which provides interesting insights about cynicism, sexual relations and love in the life of young people in the post-post-modern era.”

For the full review

Nissim Catz, Yakum Tarbut

“… Impossible to put down.”

For the full review

Galit Hatan, Lady Globes

“It was a sad realization that the end of this novel was close; not a frequent occruance when reading and a major indicator of a book’s quality. To summarize, I found this satirical nov...

For the full review

Arik Glessner, Yedioth Aharonot

“Sam Byers never thought his debut novel Idiopathy would be a success, yet he is now being compared to Jonathan Franzen. Now, with the publication of its Hebrew translation, he reveals why he...

For the full review

Maya Sela, Ha'artez

“Relationships, self perception, bourgeoisie and capitalism are some of the topics reflected in Sam Byers’ protagonists. His debut novel might prove to be an important voice of his gene...

For the full review

Neta Halperin, Israel Hayom

“Idiopathy is wonderful and weird novel, whose neurotic heroes create a human salad spiced with antagonism and sexual tension… You asked for a perfect author, the English answer to Jona...

For the full review

Ran Bin Noon, Yedioth Aharonot