by
Arieh Larkey
It was during the euphoric aftermath of Israel's victorious Six
Day War in 1967, that Yoram (Richie) Friedman uprooted his wife
and ten-year-old son from the “good life” in the States,
to settle on a picturesque border kibbutz in Northern Israel.
In October 1973, the reality of their seemingly idyllic new home
comes into sharp relief as Syrian war planes fly menacingly overhead,
signaling the beginning of Israel's next (and most costly) war
with its Arab neighbors – the Yom Kippur War.
The trauma of that horrific conflict somehow strengthens Yoram's
Zionist ideals of helping to rebuild the Jewish homeland, but
his wife and son reject his lofty principles and decide to return
to the States, resulting in a wrenching silence from both sides
of the ocean – lasting almost a quarter century.
Then one day, Yoram receives an unexpected letter from his twelve-year-old
grandson, a new Boy Scout and budding adventurer. Their ensuing
pen-pal relationship brings about a special bond between grandpa
and grandson, as adventures of the past intermingle with present
day events in a compelling and healing love story spanning the
generations.
Arieh (Richard) Larkey
was born in Newark, New Jersey, in 1935. At eighteen, he volunteered
to serve in the American army and was sent to occupied Germany
as part of the NATO forces. It was there that his sense of Jewish
identity intensified. Following the Six Day War in 1967, Arieh
once again experienced a heightened awareness of his Jewish heritage,
which eventually led to his aliya in 1971. After a 30 year architectural
career, Larkey closed his Jerusalem office and began to write.
His books include: A Townhouse in Jerusalem, Ruth Revisited
– A Survivor's Journey, and Landscape of Conflict.
The author divides his time between his home in the historical
town of Zichron Yaacov, on the Mediterranean coast, and Kibbutz
Misgav-Am in Northern Israel.
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