Ben Bastomski, a Southern California native and Israel Defense Forces veteran, moved to Santa Monica, CA to practice law after graduating from Harvard Law School in 2015. In the years since, Ben has become an accomplished civil litigator, while pursuing a parallel career as a fashion model with a Los Angeles talent agency. He has recently returned to live in Israel and is now based in Jerusalem. Ben was raised in a Jewish home with a love of furry and feathered animals, creation myths, and the outdoors. Among his most beloved childhood memories were the signings he attended at his favorite local bookstore, Chaucer's Books. As Figs in Autumn is his début book.
"""Elegant prose elevates even moments of absurdity... a lyrical and elegiac portrait of a young man coming-of-age as he learns the art of war."" ""Elegiac passages mourn armed combat in a land replete with both beauty and history."" "". . .this glimpse into this alternate universe is what makes the book most compelling. . . a chronicle of character, trust, patriotism, and unity. It exudes love of the land, of the Jewish state, of the Jewish people, and of humanity. All of that makes As Figs in Autumn a timeless celebration of Zionism and Israeliness at their best."""