FICTION

Suddenly, Love

by Aharon Appelfeld
Schocken. May 2014. 240p. tr. from Hebrew by Jeffrey M. Green. ISBN 9780805242959. $25; ebk. ISBN 9780805243154. F
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In his latest novel, prominent Israeli writer Appelfeld (All Whom I Have Loved; Blooms of Darkness) explores how two people form a devoted bond despite themselves. Irena, the sheltered daughter of Holocaust survivors (Appelfeld is himself a survivor), serves as caretaker for the brusk and determined Ernst, a 70-year-old Red Army veteran, since his surgery two years before. Ernst battles loneliness and depression as he struggles to come to terms with his communist past and write his memoirs. Appelfeld creates an interesting contrast between the unbending, youthful Ernst and the warmer man of the present, who is willing both to consider and to value views other than his own. While devoted, calm Irena increasingly becomes essential to Ernst; the two grow to love each other.
VERDICT A quiet, contemplative story about empathy, connection, and finding love when you least expect it. Readers of Amos Oz and A.B. Yehoshua will enjoy Appelfeld's modern style of storytelling. [See Prepub Alert, 12/7/13.]
Reviewed by Gwen Vredevoogd, Marymount Univ. Libs., Arlington, VA , Mar 01, 2014
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