ILIL ARBEL'S "THE LEMON TREE"
Photo:
Ilil Arbel's parents; Ida (Mother), Leibek (Father) and their son in Tel
Aviv, Israel.
"THE LEMON TREE" IS MORE THAN A BOOK OR A DIARY. IT IS A SYMBOL. THE SYMBOL OF SURVIVAL, FAMILY VALUES, THE GOODNESS OF THE EARTH AND THE NOBLE SOUL OF ALL THOSE WHO SPREAD LOVE AND BEAUTY AROUND US...
One could say, what is so special about a lemon tree story? A cold nose in Siberia? Or a tough trip to Israel? The answer is not as easy as the questions, for the message of "THE LEMON TREE" is bigger than life and larger than the immensity of the beauty and decadence of the human race! Yes, it is the chronicle of an ordinary Jewish Russian family who emigrated to Israel.
Photos
from left to right: #1.Hadassa (Ilil Arbel's Grandmother) as a young woman in
Siberia, Russia, frequently referred to her in "THE LEMON TREE" as Mama by Ida
Rosenfeld, Ilil's mother. #2. Ida in her thirties in Israel.
Yes, it is true, you will be reading about an ordinary and loving Siberian family who lost their child and promised to keep his soul alive through an ordinary lemon tree, should they succeed to plant it in an orchard in Israel. I would give my life for a lemon tree, for a cactus tree, even for the hell tree, if that tree would keep alive the soul, the fragile whispers, the bleeding memory, the loving face of a child I lost and loved so much! This tree is not a plant. In Arbel's book, as well as on the roads of life, Sasha's tree becomes a citadel, a temple, a cathedral, a shrine, a human chronicle, perhaps a human drama, and perhaps too, a guiding light...a strong shoulder...and the reflection of myriads of hope, perhaps? Thanks to the magnificent artistry of Ilil Arbel, the whispers of Ida, the jokes and stories of Papa, the silly but tasty cakes of Mama, we learned that the very simple day by day experience of ordinary but "real" people, the songs they sang, the stories they heard and told, the family bond that ties together, mother, father, grand mother, children and grandchildren, naive but funny jokes are more significant, meaningful , tender and mightier than all the swords of the Iliad and Herculean exploits. Get a copy of the book. Get more copies, if you have real friends. "THE LEMON TREE" is a masterpiece. One of the 10 best books of the year. A triumph of the pen and the human spirit. Two thumbs up.
THE LEMON TREE: Publication date: February 2005. Price: $11.95. Size: 6x9. ISBN: 0-595-33982-4. Pages: 104. Illustrated. Available from Ingram Book Group, Baker & Taylor, iUniverse, Inc., Amazon.com, Barnes&Noble.