A Bliss Case
A novel by Michael Aaron Rockland

1989 New York Times Notable Book

"A Bliss Case is a fictional update of the affair between East and West, with all the attendant self-deception, sentimentality, greed, and muddle displayed with an irreverent wit that makes the sadness and seriousness of the theme strike home with greater force than they would in a more solemn book. . . . Mr. Rockland . . . Has a light touch and a near-perfect ear for humbug. There is a good joke in almost every line, but the humor is not strained in the telling, and the pace never lets up." - The New York Times

"Absolutely gorgeous stuff. This book’s inherent pull virtually yanked me from page to page. Its unorthodox narrative power got me so hooked, I put aside my own work and finished it in a day." - Fletcher Knebel, author of Seven Days in Mayzi

This marvelously funny novel was such a success with critics and bookstores that it went into a second printing after only three weeks. Publishers Weekly describes it: "Middle-aged Sidney Kantor, a tenured professor of English in New Jersey, abandons his family, friends, and career to enter a flourishing religious cult in India. However, Kantor remains offstage; his escapades are relayed by the testimonies of his long-suffering Jewish mother, his ex-wife, his daughter and an envious former colleague. . . . This first novel is distinguished by its unblinking scrutiny of both the suburban culture that Kantor rejects and the cult that claims him, as Rockland shuns easy stereotyping in favor of keenly witty and original satire."

Michael Aaron Rockland’s distinguished career as academic and diplomat has won him four Fulbrights among his many awards and honors.