4 out of 4 stars
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Sketches of a Life by Enrique Kuperman is a non-fiction story. The author narrates his life in three different worlds. He shares his life as a Jew in a Christian country. He describes his life as a stranger in his nation. He shares how he spends the last chapter of his life as a migrant in the land of milk and honey. This book keeps you awake the whole night not because it is scary but because you are compelled to finish it. The topsy-turvy journey of Kuperman leads us to places unknown, to pains and hurts unimagined and ideas unfathomable.
“Growing up Jewish in Chile” is his opening chapter. Growing up in a place with different culture brings confusion, envy, and suffering to the author and his family. He describes how his family reached the place and how the family copes with differences in culture. Everybody can relate to this because every family encounters different kinds of challenges.
“Closing the Circle” chapter tells us about the travel of the author with his lovely wife. The couple suffered from many types of corruption while treading the path to nationalism. Despite the negative encounters with his comrades, he still sees the joy of being a Jew. This reminds me of the saying, “We must learn how to deal with people we don’t like because most of the people we meet are the people we dislike.”
“Kibbutz” chapter brings us to Israeli communities. I learned from a book that the kibbutz is very symbolic to Israelis. The kibbutz illuminates unity, love, and peace. The author has his share of troubles with kibbutz. Nothing is perfect in this world.
“Melting Pot” chapter gives us an idea how Kuperman and his family struggled as they searched for a friendlier environment. He said that immigration is the engine of progress in many societies but the price of immigration is only for those who have courage. I agree to this because countries are facing migration crisis.
“Open Wounds” chapter gives us a glimpse of the unimagined practice of human trafficking. It also focuses our attention on the story of Ruben, the firstborn of Mr. Rabinovitz who joined the revolutionary movement. His brother Efrain was captured in exchange of him.
The last three chapters give us the inspiring message that courage, perseverance, and faith pay a lot. Kuperman’s family surpassed unimaginable challenges brought by the cruelty of the world. It takes generations to heal the wounds. Efforts from both the Palestinians and the Jews are needed to attain peace.
I rate Sketches of a Life by Enrique Kuperman 4 out of 4 stars because of its richness. What I admire in this book is its intent of retelling the story of the past not to destroy other cultures or brainwash the future Israelis but to educate them about what causes hatred and war.
This book serves as the nexus between past, present and future generations. I recommend this book to students, academicians, freedom fighters and to those who wanted to know what happened to the survivors of unending war in the Promised Land. I just want to warn the readers because the author sometimes jumps from one incident to the other which may confuse them.
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Sketches of a Life
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