First The Raven
America House May 2002 An encounter with a strange, bearded man on a motorcycle foretells a journey of redemption for Amir, an Israeli ex-paratrooper who is a veteran of two Middle East wars and the Intifada. His marriage and his relationship with his troubled daughter both fraying, he secretly longs to parachute again, but worries that his life in Los Angeles has made him go soft, too weak to return to the skies. One rainy afternoon, he finds respite in a restaurant run by expatriate Israelis. There he finds an unlikely friend in Rosenberg, an elderly Holocaust survivor who makes his living conducting funerals. Estranged from his own family, Rosenberg makes the rounds of convalescent homes and mortuaries, picking up lonely strangers like wounded birds. When Amir's daughter is implicated in a shooting, Rosenberg becomes Amir's spiritual compass as the two come to terms with devastating events long buried in their pasts. Excerpt: Amir was driving fast up Whitsett when a tiny stone flew up, and sank into his windshield like a pockmark. Just his luck. It was only a tiny fracture, but the entire glass would have to be replaced. A familiar feeling began to nag at him again, almost a pecking in his head,but it had nothing to do with the windshield or even Whitsett. The avenue started off nice, green and wide at the mouth of Ventura Boulevard, sitting on the southern tip of the San Fernando Valley. A row of giant golf balls sat atop twenty-foot tees at the sleepy, nine-hole golf course and driving range. But as the street made its way north, the landscape began to change, lose its charm. The pretty homes gave way to dreary blocks of apartment buildings, rows of gas meters. Critics Praise "Leora G. Krygier’s first novel, FIRST THE RAVEN, soars. From the opening sentence: ‘Amir was driving fast up Whitsett when a tiny stone flew up, sank into his windshield like a pockmark,’ the reader is captivated by the linguistic spell Krygier casts. Krygier’s poetic prose makes reading FIRST THE RAVEN a sensory delight. She has demonstrated beautifully how deeply connected we all are; how despite our theological differences and external trappings, we are indeed very alike." – Cleveland Jewish News "FIRST THE RAVEN tells of an Israeli family – father, mother and teenage daughter who have lived in the Los Angeles area for 10 years, and now find themselves drifting apart. No longer quite home in Israel, yet not fully Americanized either, this new type of Diaspora Jew, who often feels more Israeli than Jewish, is learning how to redefine itself, and the process can be a painful one. Krygier tells an engaging story of struggle and reconciliation that rings true and that can provide insight into the dilemmas faced by the Israelis living among us." – Chicago Jewish Star "The relationship between Rosenberg and Amir is welded by an understanding that transcends politics and the external trappings of religion. Rosenberg becomes Amir’s spiritual guide, helping the younger man to get beyond the traumas of his past. Amir in turn helps Rosenberg exorcise the ghosts that have haunted him for over half a century. The novel possesses clarity and credibility –the Israeli-run café in L.A. in which Amir and Rosenberg regularly meet is so authentic readers can taste the tehina. Rosenberg’s character is compelling and beautifully drawn. He is a rabbi worth knowing, just as FIRST THE RAVEN, a fine, sensitively written debut novel, is worth reading." – Washington Jewish Week "FIRST THE RAVEN is a first novel by Leora Krygier, but you would have not guessed it as the sheer warmth, freshness and mastery of narrative suggest firm familiarity and ease in portraying complex, yet engrossing and captivating characters who spring right from the printed page. The chance encounter between the secular, rough-edge Sabra and the kind Rabbi, with deep roots in Eastern Europe and the Holocaust opens the gate to worlds long gone or forgotten. A spiritual and moving piece." - John Bernstein, PHD, Professor of Film, Boston University "Leora Krygier has written a vivid, compelling story set in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles, where a family tries to come to grips with the legacy of the Holocaust and the realities of Israel." "There are times when I stumble, by chance or destiny, across a gem. In cases like this, I cannot contain myself and I must share it. Leora Krygier and her powerful novel FIRST THE RAVEN is just such a gem." - Jamie Ramirez, Barnes and Noble, Encino, CA "Authors of fiction rarely choose to tell a story because it is timely and that it is especially true of fine literary fiction. Somehow, FIRST THE RAVEN appears in print just when interest in its subject matter is high, precisely when its message is needed. Krygier tells this story with sensitivity and with a command of language not seen in many mainstream novels. It is the kind of story that gives us something to take away with us once we have turned its last page." -Carolyn Howard-Johnson, Heritage Florida Jewish News "Like out of Chekhov’s THREE SISTERS, the way they look back to Moscow, {the immigrants in this story} look back to Jerusalem. A terrific novel, a slow melody." - Connie Martinson of "Connie Martinson Talks Books" Other reviews and interviews available on Blether.com, MyShelf.com, CompulsiveReader.com, Bookreviewcafe.com, SubtleTea.com, CopperfieldReview.com, and WordMuseum.com. Buy the book |