Laish: A novel [Hardcover]

In his latest novel, Israeli author Aharon Appelfeld tells the story of a caravan of Jews on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. The story is told through the voice of Laish, a fifteen year-old orphan. The only home that Laish has ever known is the caravan; his only "family" is the ragtag group of pilgrims. Laish tells his caravan's story with the innocence, vagueness and acceptance of a child. The story is often hard to follow, due to Laish's childlike simplicity. However, it is precisely Laish's simple and childlike perspective which makes the novel effective and intriguing.

Although Appelfeld provides no dates or timeframe in the novel, I gather that the story is set in the late 19th Century around the time when a group of Ukrainian Jews founded Rishon Lezion, one of the earliest Zionist settlements in Palestine. The caravan of this novel is also Ukrainian, having been started in Lemberg by a rabbi whom Laish refers to only as the Holy Man. The Holy Man issues a directive that the group is to accept and look after the downtrodden, the sick and insane, and the widows and orphans. As a result, the caravan is composed of outcasts. The strongest members of the group are the wagon-drivers who are all ex-convicts, and the dealers who buy and sell merchandise along the way. In the words of one member, the caravan is "a rabble of . . . godforsaken Jews".

The Holy Man dies before Laish's narrative begins; the reader only hears about him indirectly through Laish's offhand recollections of his orders and admonitions. Without their leader to keep them in line, a constant tension develops between the dealers who keep delaying the progress of the pilgrimage in order to sell their wares and the other pilgrims who want to ascend to Jerusalem.

There are parallels in this novel to the biblical Exodus story. Like the biblical children of Israel, the caravan wanders, taking many years to travel a distance that normally could be crossed in a matter of days or weeks. Like the children of Israel, the group suffers hunger, pestilence, and persecution. Like the biblical children of Israel, many members get discouraged and leave the group, are banished or sicken and die. The Holy Man is the group's Moses, Old Avraham is their Aaron, Tzilla (a mute but nurturing old woman who silently works to keep everyone clothed and fed) is their Miriam, and Sruel (a ex-convict of great kindness, strength and faith) is their Joshua.

There is much sadness in this novel. The pilgrims behave like a dysfunctional family, at one point brutally beating Ephraim, a young man who is troubled by dreams and visions, then caring for him and carrying him through the rest of the journey. At another point, in violation of the Holy Man's directive, they banish Mamshe, a deranged young woman, then search for her in the marsh and the riverbank.

This is a story of hope, human frailty, despair and, ultimately, survival. Until reading this novel, I had no knowledge or understanding of early Zionism. Aharon Appelfeld's sparse and vague portrayal of this early aliyah has incited a desire on my part to learn more of the history of Zionism.

Appelfeld is a phenomenal writer.

In this novel he portrays in shockingly vivid hues the depravity and desperation of a group of Jewish pilgrims migrating across Europe with the vague intention of "going up" to Jerusalem.

The only honorable people are the elderly men, who devote all their time to prayer and Torah study. But even these people live in fear and suspicion of those who travel with them. Accusations of thievery and worse resound at all times.

The narrator is a young orphan, an decent soul, who seeks to make the best of a difficult situation.

I would say that this review is rather misleading:

"The narrative of these desperate pilgrims trying to reach the Holy Land is vintage Appelfeld: equal parts fable, folktale, Torah, and Kafka . . . rendered with the author's trademark precision. . . . In his growing body of fiction-a novelistic kaddish-Appelfeld employs the right words, the only words, to pass along the story that should never have been. Being labeled a Holocaust writer might irritate Appelfeld, but no living novelist--not Elie Wiesel, not Amos Oz--better chronicles the spiritual vacuum and extreme disorientation that ensued in the aftermath of Auschwitz. Whatever critics choose to call him, we require his witness."

Because this book is set in pre-WWII Europe. It has nothing to do with the Holocaust or Auschwitz, and the character flaws revealed by the author cannot be attributed to Naziism or anti-Semitism in any way. Indeed, they are purely of Jewish origin and seek a Jewish solution.

Ok that is not fair. The book is about a group of Jewish pilgrims on their way to Jerusalem. Appelfeld does not indicate the time frame but I would guess sometime before WWI. In response to the first reviewer, these are not concentration camp survivors (makes me wonder if he even read the story) these are pre WWI Jews traveling (by wagon) to Jerusalem. There are ups and downs on the journey, but for the most part downs. I'm sorry but I do not find Appelfelds prose beautiful; if anything it is unremarkable and non-descriptive. I hate to sound so negative but I would not recommend this story to anyone...unless that is you suffer from insomnia. If so then you will want to pick up a copy, for medicinal purposes only.

› Go to Amazon.com to see all 3 reviews  3.7 out of 5 stars