David Schearl arrives in New York in his mother's arms to begin his new life as an immigrant in the 'Golden Land'. David is hated by his father - an angry, violent man unable to find his niche in the New World - but is fiercely loved and protected by his Yiddish-speaking mother. An innovative, multi-lingual novel, Call It Sleep subtly interweaves the overwhelming love between a mother and son with the terrors and anxieties David experiences, as he seeks to find his own identity amidst the cultural disarray of early twentieth-century America.

About the Author

Henry Roth (1906-1995) was born in the Austro-Hungarian province of Galitzia. He probably landed on Elis Island in 1909, and began his life in New York on the Lower East Side, in the slums where Call It Sleep is set. He is the author as well of Shifting Landscapes, a collection of essays, and the Mercy of a Rude Stream tetralogy.


Alfred Kazin (1915-98), was an American critic. His first book, On Native Grounds (1942), is a critical study of American prose literature from Howells to Faulkner. Later essay collections include The Inmost Leaf (1955), Contemporaries (1962), Bright Book of Life (1973), An American Procession (1984), Writing Was Everything (1995), and God & the American Writer (1997).

Book Information
ISBN 9780141188652
Author Henry Roth
Format Paperback
Page Count 464
Imprint Penguin Classics
Publisher Penguin Books Ltd
Weight(grams) 337g
Dimensions(mm) 198mm * 129mm * 26mm