Israeli literary giant Meir Shalev died, his family announced on Tuesday. He was 74.
The author, known for a whole host of Israeli classics that defined many in his generation, had been battling cancer for many years.
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His books, including "Roman Rusi – A Russian Novel" and "A Pigeon and a Boy: A Novel" – won him international acclaim. Many of his works were also translated and adapted for theater and cinema, totaling more than 20 languages.
Born in 1948 in the Jezreel Valley's Nahalal agricultural co-op, his family eventually moved to Jerusalem in 1952. He took part in the Six-Day War as a soldier in the Golani Brigade and was injured in the War of Attrition that followed with Egypt, having come under friendly fire and struck by several bullets.
President Isaac Herzog eulogized the acclaimed author, writing on Twitter: "So sad that we will no longer feel the anticipation for another book by Meir Shalev that would come out and transform our reality and make our lives that much richer and wholesome. So sad that we won't be able to celebrate our 75th Independence Day with him, as a member of the generation that was born with Israel's founding."
