Ten Thousand Lovers

I was absolutely blown away but this, the first in Edeet Ravel's Tel Aviv-trilogy - a series about war and its effect on people who fall in love in its midst. Ten Thousand Lovers is told through sections, a few pages devoted to each section. Some sections are about young Lily, a Canadian immigrant to Israel, some are about an older Lily, now living in London writing her memoirs, and the remaining sections are about language - the various meanings of words and the connection between Hebrew and Arabic and the various connotations that come out when languages intermix. The order in which the sections are presented is what gives the story its urgency, because the reader is sometimes presented with an outcome of an event, but the actual event has not yet been told. The stakes are very high for the reader and you just want to read on to find out how the things that happened happen. To call a non-thriller book a "page-turned" is rare, but this is truly it. I absolutely loved spending time with Lily and Ami and to follow how the progression of their love story and to see how they overcome the obstacles they face. The language sections are an intricate part of the equation in that they explain a lot of political and cultural issues which are part of Lily and Ami's life (in addition to being just plain interesting). This is one of my favorite reads so far this year and I know I will reread this more than once.

BASICS: I really loved this book and read it in a day. Ten Thousand Lovers provides everything an excellent novel should: laughter, insight, accessible characters with depth and life, beautiful language, and finally a window into another world. Ami and Lily are wonderful and you fall in love with them as they fall in love with each other. After finishing the novel I just sat for awhile and the feeling of fragile life and tragic beauty that Ten Thousand Lovers gave me stayed throughout the evening; it seemed almost wrong to return to everyday life. THE WRITING: Ravel did a wonderful job of intertwining Ami and Lily's love story with Hebrew and Arabic etymology and I think it greatly enhanced and deepened the story. Her writing is both poetic ("'... people are too emotional. There are seven hundred Greek tragedies taking place inside everyone. And another three hundred stories by Kafka.'") and starkly honest ("'People are very simple in some ways. We want simple things. Food, shelter, love, respect, fun. A flag. An apology. A sense of accomplishment.'"). Through Ravel's writing, Israel itself becomes a living and breathing character and Ravel describes it with such beauty and an aching sense of nostalgia and sorrow. Though Ten Thousand Lovers deals with very heavy subjects - love, nationality and identity, tragic loss and suffering, all set amid the Israeli-Palestinian conflict - she approaches these issues and her characters with both humor ("Before we sat down to eat Bracha turned on the television for the news. 'Let's see whether we still exist,' she said. Israelis never tired of saying that before they tuned in to the news.") and tremendous insight ("'People aren't good or bad. They just do good and bad things. Your only hope is to know which is which.'"). SUMMARY: (from the back cover) "Israel, 1970s. Lily, a young emigrant student exploring the wonders and terrors of her new land, finds the man of her dreams - Ami, a former actor. Handsome, intelligent, and exciting, but like his beautiful, disintegrating country, Ami has a terrible flaw - he is an army interrogator. As Ami and Lily's unexpected passion grows, so too does the shadow that hangs over them. They must face the unspeakable horrors of Ami's work and their uncertain future. While set in the `70s, "Ten Thousand Lovers" is a brilliant and terrifyingly contemporary tale of passion, suffering, and the transcending power of love." P.S.: The summary above is, in my opinion, slightly misleading, as though there is conflict that arises from Ami's profession and his work, its effect on those around him, and resulting occurrences greatly shape the story, I don't think that the summary gives an accurate impression. RESPONSE TO OTHER REVIEWS: I disagree with those who felt that either the love story was lost amidst the backdrop of the political scene or vice versa. I also don't think that this is political commentary passing itself off as fiction. The complete tragedy of this situation is

Excellent view of the Israeli-Palestinian ConflictThe book was an excellent representation of Israel in the 70's. Ravel brought historical events into the books tapestry -covering both Intifadas, the October War of 1973 and several others. She was able to give the reader a real view of how life could have been for both Israelis and their Palestinian counterparts. She drew the reader into the book, and made sure you did not want to stop reading. You develop attachments to the characters very quickly. Ravel did an awesome job, you will not want the book to be over when you are done.

In 1980, Israeli poet Yehuda Amichai noted in a lecture that I attended the responsibility of the writer to help their reader understand the nuance of language. Language, he argued, was being appropriated by pundits and politicians in a manner that was systematically degrading the value of the "word".Edeet Ravel's first novel, a finalist for the Canadian Governor General's Award for literature is a lovely blend exploring language, love, and the rich contradictions of Israeli society in the late 1970s. While the novel has yet to appear in hebrew (I think), Ten Thousand Lovers is among the very first novels to explore the nuances and growing turmoil of Israeli society in the late 1970s. The novel also takes the reader on several insightful excursions on the meaning of hebrew and arabic words informing the dialogue and backdrop in the narrative.As someone who lived in Israel through much of the period, I found myself swept back to those days from the hitchhiking experiences (which have largely disappeared), to the carefree night life in Tel Aviv (which is still very real), to the confusing conversations over identity between Israelis, Israeli-Arabs, American and Candian Jews, Georgians, Yeminites, and Ethiopians. The politics of of an emerging occupation culture, which everyone who lived through those days fully appreciates, is wonderfully shared through the love relationship between Ami and Lily.In the past year or two a number of novels have explored the messy vitality of Israeli society (both jewish and arab) in the post 60's era. While not as rich and mature as A.B. Yehoshua's The Liberated Bride, or Open Heart, Ravel's first novel, is an amazing read for its female-centered characters, its insights and glimpses into the invisible realities of Israeli life. I hope she has another manuscript in the works. I can't wait to read it.

This book was wonderful -- beautifully written, an engrossing read, and a nuanced portrait of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Speaking from the vantage point of living in Israel (for the past 38 years), I thought this book wonderfully captures our reality in the Mideast. It also holds out a place where right meets left among Israeli Jews. What a relief! If you believe that only you own the truth, it may be hard to see the strands of integrity in both positions that are depicted here. Thank you, Edeet Ravel, for writing a beautiful and hopeful portrait of Israel. May your pen be fruitful and multiply.