By
– November 7, 2011
You may or not come to like Daniel Gordis upon reading If a Place Can Make You Cry, but you cannot help becoming engaged by the narrative that unfolds in this diary of a family that moves to Israel in the hopeful glow of Oslo, yet winds up in the unforgiving flames of the 2nd Intifada. There is more than enough here to trouble readers of every political stripe and to shake even the most certain of ideologues, but it is done with little anger, and more than a little poetry. The history is compelling and immediate, and Gordis’ perspective is exquisitely placed. Like literature’s great diarists, the times have made a writer’s opportunity, and Gordis rises to the task.
We are long used to the upbeat tales of the Ingathering of the Exiles, where the worlds’ unfortunate Jews find freedom and faith in the land of their ancestors. This, however, is not your father’s Zionistic tale. This is the story of well-off somewhat spoiled denizens of the West who leave comfort, liberal democracy and diverse Judaisms and trade them for a narrow and violent Middle East. And though there is some admitted longing for their six-bedroom home on a tree-lined street in Los Angeles, there is no flinching for the Gordis family. They have willingly and emphatically traded all that for a place at the table of those who make history.
But the transition from American to Israeli coincided with one of the most remarkable periods in the remarkable history of the Jewish State. At the beginning of the book, the reader senses the almost giddy nature of Israel in the years when peace seemed close at hand; when Israel was gaining in acceptance in Europe and the world. The Gordis family revels in the freedom and solidarity of living a fully Jewish life at a time when it seems as if their own children will not really need to fight any more wars. And then, it all comes crashing down. Gordis and his wife are committed to staying put, but their joy at watching their kids become Israeli turns to doubt about the rightness of their course, and the effect it will inevitably have on them.
The book is epistolary in form, and owes much of its poignancy to the temporary nature of e‑mail. One can imagine the late night or early morning stillness in which Gordis types these reflections on the moment, and the sense that the violence of his emotions is sincere. These missives to family and friends contain touching details of family life. It is fascinating to eavesdrop as they confront the grand questions of ideology as they are really formed — from a thousand disposable details.
These internal debates reflect many struggles. What does it mean to be a Jew today in the Diaspora? What do the Left and the Right do now that their core beliefs have been crushed by the reality of Palestinian hatred? What decisions do parents have the right to make for their children? What is the rightful place of Diaspora Jews in the ongoing question of war and peace in Israel? And where will the future lead?
This is not a feel good book. Most readers will come away with at least part of their firmly held beliefs shaken. Many American Jews will wonder how they can stay here. Some will wonder how anyone can stay there. But as the great American pamphleteer Thomas Paine put it during a similar period of American History: “These are times that try men’s souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman.” At least for now, Daniel Gordis has shown us how one newly Israeli patriot faces his times.
We are long used to the upbeat tales of the Ingathering of the Exiles, where the worlds’ unfortunate Jews find freedom and faith in the land of their ancestors. This, however, is not your father’s Zionistic tale. This is the story of well-off somewhat spoiled denizens of the West who leave comfort, liberal democracy and diverse Judaisms and trade them for a narrow and violent Middle East. And though there is some admitted longing for their six-bedroom home on a tree-lined street in Los Angeles, there is no flinching for the Gordis family. They have willingly and emphatically traded all that for a place at the table of those who make history.
But the transition from American to Israeli coincided with one of the most remarkable periods in the remarkable history of the Jewish State. At the beginning of the book, the reader senses the almost giddy nature of Israel in the years when peace seemed close at hand; when Israel was gaining in acceptance in Europe and the world. The Gordis family revels in the freedom and solidarity of living a fully Jewish life at a time when it seems as if their own children will not really need to fight any more wars. And then, it all comes crashing down. Gordis and his wife are committed to staying put, but their joy at watching their kids become Israeli turns to doubt about the rightness of their course, and the effect it will inevitably have on them.
The book is epistolary in form, and owes much of its poignancy to the temporary nature of e‑mail. One can imagine the late night or early morning stillness in which Gordis types these reflections on the moment, and the sense that the violence of his emotions is sincere. These missives to family and friends contain touching details of family life. It is fascinating to eavesdrop as they confront the grand questions of ideology as they are really formed — from a thousand disposable details.
These internal debates reflect many struggles. What does it mean to be a Jew today in the Diaspora? What do the Left and the Right do now that their core beliefs have been crushed by the reality of Palestinian hatred? What decisions do parents have the right to make for their children? What is the rightful place of Diaspora Jews in the ongoing question of war and peace in Israel? And where will the future lead?
This is not a feel good book. Most readers will come away with at least part of their firmly held beliefs shaken. Many American Jews will wonder how they can stay here. Some will wonder how anyone can stay there. But as the great American pamphleteer Thomas Paine put it during a similar period of American History: “These are times that try men’s souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman.” At least for now, Daniel Gordis has shown us how one newly Israeli patriot faces his times.
Jeff Bogursky reads a lot, writes a little and talks quite a bit. He is a media executive and expert in digital media.
