Panther in the Basement [Paperback]

The state of Israel created in 1948 has given birth to new warriors, to young men and women who refuse to entertain the annihilation suffered by their relatives led to slaughter. The land is in flux, anxiously preparing for the end of the British Occupation.

Proffi lives in a time of epiphany, the fears and caution of his childhood soon to turn into self-reliance and pride. Proffi's summer is pivotal, the simplicity of childhood but a chapter in his life, a boy who already registers the nuances, the many facets of human behavior, even in the British occupiers.

Surrounded by history, Proffi lives in an environment that venerates the written word, the accumulation of knowledge; his father's bookshelves reach to the ceiling, smelling of must and old paper, a most heady perfume. A solitary child, Proffi daily recreates great military battles, using whatever is handy to plan each new siege once his parents have left for the day. And every day, an hour later, Proffi's two friends, Ben Hur and Chita Reznik arrive to assist in strategizing campaigns and plan forays aimed at the British Occupation, the boys members of a secret organization, FOD, Freedom or Death.

Life is good, Proffi's world defined by sundry battles and a newly awakened curiosity about the female sex, until he discovers an accusation painted on the wall: traitor. Required to appear before the FOD the next afternoon, Proffi must answer the serious charge. "Instead of a panther in the basement, they saw me as a knife in the back." Indeed, the boy is guilty of fraternizing with the enemy, one hapless and friendly Sergeant Dunlop. Proffi and the soldier have been meeting at a local cafe, each learning the language of the other, a secret and innocent pleasure.

This is a coming-of-age story set in the fulcrum of history, as a young boy navigates the mysteries of life in a world defined by the Holocaust and the reverberations felt around the globe from that infamous event. Proffi is confronted with the challenges of friendship in a new context, one that requires a different perspective, leaving childhood behind and ushering in a future defined by personal choices and a new-found sense of self.

This small novel is a gem, the brilliant analysis of a pivotal moment in a boy's life caught on the cusp of past and future. The author's descriptions are lyrical and visual, both the emotional journey undertaken by Proffi, the familiarity of a home filled with row upon row of treasured books and a family who understands the impermanence of time. Life awaits, but childhood still beckons seductively. Luan Gaines/2004.

Seeing himself as a "panther in the basement," much like Tyrone Power in a favorite old film, Proffi, the 12-year-old son of activist parents in Jerusalem in 1947, is a member of an "underground cell" which he and two friends have formed. Their objective, like that of their parents, is the ouster of the British, who have been mandated by the UN to set up a Jewish homeland. Though the children enjoy "spying" and see themselves as glorious heroes, their plans of attack are distinctly childish.

When Proffi finds himself drawn to Sgt. Stephen Dunlop, a gentle, shy British soldier from Canterbury, who wants to learn Hebrew and to teach Proffi English, Proffi justifies this friendship as his chance to probe for information for his own "secret DOD agency." Declared by his friends Ben Hur and Chita Reznik to be a "lowdown traitor" when this relationship is discovered, Proffi feels isolated, at a crossroads in his life.

Jerusalem is under constant curfews, the British are searching houses for weapons, his parents are involved in an underground movement, and he himself is beginning to become interested in girls--at least in Yardena, the nineteen-year-old sister of Ben Hur. As we come to know her, the people of the neighborhood, and the people important to Proffi, such as Mr. Gihon, his teacher, we see Proffi's knowledge and insights to be those of a twelve-year-old child whose belief in a bright future is absolute.

The powerful, often poetic language of this coming-of-age novel, along with its lively humor and warm understanding of human nature, make this an unforgettable novel of great universality. Told by an adult narrator who accurately captures Proffi's youthful viewpoint, the novel paints a picture of a loving, scholarly family seeking peace and knowledge, even as they actively try to expel "perfidious Albion." As we watch their interchanges with each other, with Proffi, and with British soldiers, we see them as decent people who want to be left in peace in a homeland of their own, to recover from the traumas of the Holocaust.

Filled with gorgeous sense impressions and images (the description of the father's library is stunning), the novel draws in the reader with its contagious warmth and good humor. Written by one of Israel's most highly regarded novelists, this short novel is an eloquent and elegant testament to enduring values. Mary Whipple