The aim of our Midrasha Book-Club is to meet different Israeli authors wherever they take us, explore their unique literary styles and learn about Israeli society with all its complexity. We will introduce as many different voices as possible within the boundaries of this short reading exposure. Second in our Book Club series, we will be delving into major Israeli voice, A.B. Yehoshua (z”l), who has just sadly, recently passed away. We will explore family dramas, issues of Israeli identity and dealing with loss, while looking at two very different families against very different Israeli and African scenarios.

Book Club #2 will be reading:

A.B. Yehoshua: The Tunnel (2019)

Yet again, still writing well into his eighties, A.B. Yehoshua takes us into the tunnels of southern Israel and through the tunnels of our memory.  He weaves a story about a long-lasting marriage between an aging engineer suffering from dementia and his resourceful wife. Yehoshua does not spare the reader his social and political criticism.  In this very uniquely Israeli yet universal book, we will explore Yehoshua’s sense of acceptance, humour and hope.

A.B Yehoshua: Friendly Fire (2006)

In this earlier book by Yehoshua we take a glimpse into the lives of Israelis haunted by loss. The plot takes us to Jerusalem and Tanzania exploring emotional aspects of Israeli reality. We will explore Yehoshua’s views on Israelis, the military, Jewishness and the diaspora. The writer puts the following words in one of his main characters (Yirmiyahu, no less):

“Here there are no ancient graves and no floor tiles from a destroyed synagogue; no museum with a fragment of a burnt Torah; no testimonies about pogroms and the Holocaust. There are no exiles here, no diaspora. …”