By
– January 9, 2012
“Next year in Jerusalem,” the traditional phrase that concludes the Passover seder, takes unique form and shape in Aharon Appelfeld’s newest novel, Laish, and in that way, identifies this novel as a radical departure from all that Appelfeld has written until now.
Laish is a travel narrative told in the voice and through the lens of a fifteen-year-old orphaned boy. It is the story of a group of Jewish pilgrims who, in a caravan of six wagons, make their way to Jerusalem — an everchanging collection of people who must take desperate measures in desperate times. Still, it speaks far more of the realities — the trials and tribulations of the journey — than it does about the realization of the destination.
In what appears to be an intentional reference to the “Next year in Jerusalem” motif, Appelfeld is deliberate in his continual mention of the River Prut. Just as Psalm 137 speaks of the “rivers of Babylon” and reminds the Jews to always remember Jerusalem, Appelfeld repeatedly identifies the River Prut as the caravan’s guiding force: directionally, it serves as their path; intellectually, it is their reminder of the ultimate goal.
Those familiar with the genre of travel writing will immediately recognize Appelfeld’s attention to its parameters, for in this novel, as in most travel writing, the reader is made aware of place, distance, social hierarchies, and politico- social environments. What makes this novel different is that it is about a Jewish journey, populated by Jewish people who, individually and collectively, remember that “if I forget you, O Jerusalem, let my right hand wither.”
Malvina D. Engelberg, an independent scholar, has taught composition and literature at the university level for the past fifteen years. She is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Miami.
