The storytelling here blends the universal—young people seeking connection with each other, the world, and their culture and ancestors—with the particular concerns and challenges facing American Jews in Israel. Living for three weeks with a family in Jerusalem, Isaac concludes that Uri, a young Israeli soon headed into the IDF, thinks of him as “a child, spoiled with too many toys, like a car and a terror-free future.”

With touchingly open minds, the young people discuss the roots of Middle Eastern conflict, whether one can be Jewish without being religious (Isaac, who has not had a bar mitzvah, notes that when a Hitler targets Jews “you best run, escape, fight back” regardless “what your self-perception is”), how best they can contribute to the security of the nation, and so much more. Schulman (author of The Writer's Story) never settles for easy answers, and his young people find their own paths, through these colloquies and through life itself, with persuasive realism. A romantic subplot dominates the first chapter, as Isaac vows, tackily, “I must have her” while marveling at how comely Ahava’s face “relinquish[es] all need for makeup.” Their connection proves bittersweet and touchingly complex, though the novella proves more of a coming-of-age travelogue than a love story.

Takeaway: Thoughtful novel of teens’ touching self-discovery on a tour of Israel.

Comparable Titles: Leonard Saxe and Barry Chazan’s Ten Days of Birthright Israel, Haley Neil’s Once More with Chutzpah.

Production grades
Cover: B+
Design and typography: A-
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A-
Marketing copy: A-