Die Entdeckung der Liebe

by Judith Katzir

Die bewegende Liebesgeschichte zweier Frauen aus Israel. Die 38-jährige Schriftstellerin Rivi fährt zum Begräbnis ihrer Freundin Michaela in ihre Heimatstadt Haifa. Dort entdeckt sie ihre alten Tagebücher und taucht beim Lesen ein in eine längst vergessene Welt: ihre Schulzeit, die politische Lage Israels Anfang der 70er, die Entdeckung der Literatur und die immer stärker werdende Zuneigung zu Michaela, ihrer Lehrerin. Zwischen den Frauen entwickelt sich eine heimliche Liebesgeschichte, die ihr Leben für immer verändert…

Genres: Fiction, LGBT, Jewish, Lesbian, Historical Fiction, Israel, Gay

381 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2003

About the author

Born in Haifa in 1963, Judith Katzir (Hebrew: יהודית קציר) studied literature and cinema at Tel Aviv University. At present, she is an editor at Hakibbutz Hameuchad/ Siman Kriah Publishing House and teaches creative writing. Katzir, a bestselling author in Israel, has published collections of stories and novellas, novels and children's books. In addition to literary prizes for individual stories, Katzir has received the Book Publishers Association's Gold and Platinum Book Prizes (1995; 1996; 1999; 2004), the Prime Minister's Prize twice (1996; 2007), the French WIZO Prize for Matisse Has the Sun in His Belly (2004) and the Culture Minister's Zionism Prize for Tzilla (2014). Her work has been translated in 11 languages.

Reviews

[Alan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a little conflicted about how to review this boo. On one hand, it's well-written and provocative and it does present a beautifully-observed time capsule of Israel in the late 1970s when the country's youth was freeing itself from the strictures of classic Zionism and opening itself to the world of hedonistic sexual liberation.
On the other hand, there's something very nasty, rotten and vile at the center of the book that the author only half-acknowledges -- an affair between a 14-year-old girl and her 28-year-old English teacher.
The fact that this is a lesbian affair didn't bother me. The fact that such blatant child-abuse is presented as something beautiful and precious did.
The book is cast in the form of a diary written by 14-year-old Rivi Shenhav. Inspired by Anne Frank who wrote her diary to an imaginary friend she called "Kitty", Rivi writes her diary to Anne and signs her entries Kitty. Some suggested this device is disrespectful to the Holocaust and the memory of its victims. I don't agree. Rivi and Anne share many characteristics, not least a literary talent and poetic sensibility. Rivi gets to grow up and experience life and love and disillunionment in a way Anne was never able to.
Rivi is bruised by her parents' divorce and her father's inexplicable decision to shun her. She hero-worships her literature teacher Mihaela, a married women with flaming hair. Soon, a love affair develops between them, which persists for almost two years. Is this realistic? Possibly. We've seen several of these kinds of affairs in our own tabloids.
Mihaela is the pivotal character of the book. She deceives her husband to carry on with this child -- but we later learn she is also capable of betraying Rivi. In one revolting scene, she lures Rivi to a tryst with a 50-year-old sculptor; the two of them get the girl drunk and drugged and try to engage in a threesome. As an adult, Rivi confronts her former teacher and asks, "How could you have done what you did?" Mihaela responds that she did it for love. And yet, it is Mihaela and not Rivi who seems most damaged by the affair.
The gay and lesbian community in Israel rejected this book -- and one can see why. Lesbianism is presented as a choice (the older Rivi has affairs with men, marries and has two daughters of her own) and is also conflated with the very touchy issue of pedophilia.
I too found the messages problematic. Rivi reverts to hetrosexuality and traditional motherhood and is rewarded by "happiness" while Mihaela continues to prey on younger female student, develops cancer and dies in her fifties.
There are many complex strands here, which is what makes the book interesting and worth reading. But the message ultimately seems not just subversive but perverse.

[Yvette Verwer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Holymoly, dat was heftig!
Wat een mooi en verwarrend boek.
De vorm van het dagboek is perfect, omdat het daardoor in real time overkomt, zonder voorkennis en met de blik van het meisje van 13 (en daarna 14 en 15).
Het is een prachtige liefdesgeschiedenis met een dramatisch einde (moest er flink bij huilen net), maar tegelijkertijd is het best problematisch.
Het duffe is dat ik doordat ik het boek vanuit haar tot me kreeg en ze nergens twijfel geeft, of zich als ondergeschikt presenteert, integendeel ze presenteert het alsof zij de initiator is en het maar al te graag wil, ik het toch veel minder als problematisch ervaarde.
Maar het grootse probleem in mezelf is dat ik het als veel minder grensoverschrijdend zie, omdat het twee vrouwen zijn.
Als Michaëla een man was geweest, zou ik het echt als misbruik hebben gezien (ze waren tenslotte geen 17 en 26, maar 13 en 26, en zij was haar lerares, toen het begon), maar nu voel ik dat dus niet zo en dat verward.

[Korey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book. First off, the writing was really beautiful and poetic. This does not read like a translated book at all. The command of language is so great I find it hard to believe this wasn't written in English. In addition to the glorious prose, the characters are complicated and fascinating. Rivi herself is a great narrator with an incredibly rich inner life (even if her precocity occasionally seemed inauthentic) and the damaged adults that surround her are similarly compelling, even though we only see them through Rivi's eyes they feel like well rounded characters. This book covers a lot of the staples of the coming of age novel in a perceptive and sensitive way, while also feeling fresh and original. The historical setting (late 1970's Israel) was also very interesting, and framing device was great. Having Rivi write her diary to Anne Frank, and the continual allusions to her life, was also an inspired move.

I could definitely see people having moral qualms with this book, because to some extent it does seem to morally excuse teacher/student sexual relationships and some of the many sex scenes are very explicit. I appreciate the need for an artist to push boundaries and explore controversial topics in unconventional ways, but I completely understand that many people would not want to read a book that portrays the sexual exploitation of a young teenager by an adult portrayed in anything but a wholly negative light.

For me, despite some quibbles at how unrealistic the brazenness of Rivi and Michaela's relationship was at times (these two have hours of unsupervised time together virtually every day for a good chunk of their affair, which I guess is explained away on Rivi's end because of the parental neglect she suffers but it still strained my suspension of disbelief) I had enough insight into why the relationship was happening and what drew these characters to each other to really appreciate this story.

This is a smart, complex book that will definitely challenge your perceptions and pull your thoughts and feelings in a lot of different directions. I am really glad I read it.

[Wouter Zwemmer · Rating 4 out of 5]

“ Het tragische is tenslotte niet dat we ouder worden, maar dat we jong blijven.”

Een boek om dóór te lezen, want het mooiste zit in de staart.

(In mijn samenvatting staan spoilers)

Rivi is een veertienjarig meisje. Haar ouders zijn gescheiden. Vader heeft een nieuw leven met een andere vrouw en een nieuw kind en kijkt niet naar Rivi om. Moeder is mooi maar egocentrisch: ze gaat veel uit met een getrouwde man die ze niet aan Rivi voorstelt, en maakt ruzie met Rivi’s broertjes. Rivi voedt zichzelf op. Ze heeft één vriendin, Racheli, en wordt verliefd op haar getrouwde lerares literatuur Michaela van 27. De verliefdheid wordt een affaire, die zelfs standhoudt tot nadat Mikaela een kind heeft gekregen. Rivi houdt een dagboek bij over de affaire in de vorm van brieven aan Anne Frank die ze ondertekent met ‘je Kitty’ - dat is het boek dat we lezen. Het verhaal wordt verteld in twee tijden: korte stukken in het nu naar aanleiding van de begrafenis van Michaela, en lange flashbacks van de dagboeken. Rivi’s moeder vindt een schrift en ontdekt zo de affaire; de dames ontsnappen te nauwernood aan de politie door het schrift af te doen als fantasie en literatuur. En dat is het in het echt natuurlijk ook...

Toverberg
Rivi leest op aanraden van de docente De Toverberg van Thomas Mann; nogal uitzonderlijk voor een veertienjarige, maar goed. Zij raakt in de ban de personage Hans Castorp die verliefd is op een mevrouw die getrouwd is met een veel oudere man. Volgens haar omdat het onmogelijk is om niet te houden van iemand die zoveel van jou houdt. Desgevraagd zegt Michaela dat zij op het meisje verliefd werd om haar ziel, die ze vergelijkt met een zeldzame orchidee die moet worden gevoed en geliefd om tot bloei te komen. Ze doelt daarmee op het kunstzinnige talent van het meisje.

Onverschilligheid van de wereld
Rond de 30, vlak na het uitkomen van de affaire, verhuist Michaela met man en kind naar New York voor een goede baan voor hem. Als Rivi Michaela 9 jaar, en twee relaties met mannen later, opzoekt, blijkt zij alle gedichten van Rivi bij zich te dragen: “ ‘Ik heb ze altijd bij me,’ zei ze, ‘als een amulet, ze beschermen me tegen de onverschilligheid van de wereld.’ “ Michaela vraagt zich af: “(...) hoe kun je weten waar de grens loopt tussen liefde en lust, tussen geven en gebruiken?”, waarop Rivi antwoordt: “Dat kun je wel. De grens loopt daar waar de schuldgevoelens beginnen.” Hier ben ik het niet mee eens, want juist de gebruiker, degene die neemt, heeft geen schuldgevoelens, die bevredigt de eigen behoeftes. Rivi zegt: “Vanaf het moment dat je kinderen hebt, wordt angst blijkbaar je gids en kun je niet meer volkomen gelukkig zijn, zoals vroeger, in zalige onwetendheid, zelfs geen seconde, want hij ligt altijd op de loer, die angst, als een donkere schaduw.” Daar ben ik het dan weer wel mee eens... Volgens mij is dat ook het thema van dit boek: verlies van jeugd.

Prachtig slot
Aan het eind stijgt de roman boven zijn eigen gemiddelde uit. Terwijl de roman eerder kabbelde, wordt zij op het eind een diepe warme stroom. In een lange eindpassage beschrijft Katzir met veel gevoel de neergang van Michaela (een leeg huwelijk, een autistisch kind, onbevredigde lesbische gevoelens en borstkanker), de verwatering van de liefde tussen Rivi en Michaela en de desillusies van volwassen en ouder worden... de man van Michaela blijkt de affaire vanaf het begin door te hebben gehad; hij heeft de verhuizing naar New York geënsceneerd om Michaela en Rivi van elkaar te scheiden. Ons beeld van Michaela draait om naar dat van een artistiek getalenteerd en gepassioneerd meisje dat moeite heeft met invoegen in een burgerlijk fatsoenlijk bestaan en met ouder worden; haar affaires met jonge studentes worden geduid als pogingen om toegang te houden tot de kindversie van zichzelf. Het is het mooiste en meest invoelende deel van het boek; alle personages krijgen diepgang en warmte. Het boek eindigt tragisch: Michaela sterft aan kanker, het leven overwint zelfs alles overheersende liefde... Als Michaela op het eind te ziek is om nog te antwoorden, blijft Rivi haar mailen: “En ik, die nooit iets anders had leren doen, bleef met de ijver van een eeuwige scholiere mooie opstellen schrijven voor mijn lerares taalvaardigheid.”

Dubbele moraal
Wat ik wel een moeilijk idee van dit boek vind, is de dat de liefdesverhouding er één is tussen een zevenentwintigjarige docente en een minderjarige leerlinge, waarbij de leerlinge dertien is als ze verliefd wordt, en veertien als de dames voor het eerst seks hebben. Ik vind dit dubbel moeilijk: een relatie leraar - leerling vind ik niet kunnen door de autoriteitsverhouding, en de volwassene doet zich tegoed aan een minderjarig kind van veertien... ” ‘Jij bent immense liefde, die bij me is ingeslagen als de bliksem.’ ‘En ben je niet bang dat we ontdekt worden?’ ‘Ja, ik ben bang,’ zei ze zachtjes, ‘tenslotte zal mijn hele wereld instorten als het uitkomt. (...)’ “ “(...) en zo bedreven we de liefde in die ene ligstoel op het balkon. En toen mijn geliefde (de docente, red.) begon op te stijgen, hield ik (de leerlinge, red.) een hand voor haar mond om te voorkomen dat de buren haar hoorden schreeuwen, waarna de hemel zich boven ons uitspreidde als een groot huwelijksbaldakijn en alleen God ons zag.” Als de docente een docent was geweest, een man dus, dan was dit een zeer controversieel boek geweest en hadden Amos Oz, The New York Times, Le Monde en Der Spiegel misschien niet zo lyrisch op de omslag gestaan. Omdat het om een vrouw en een meisje gaat, zou het niet om pedofilie gaan, maar onschuldig zijn, mooi, verantwoord of zelfs door God zelf gezegend?? Dat wordt nog eens versterkt doordat het verhaal vanuit het meisje wordt verteld - alsof een kind van 14 een vrouw van 27 zou verleiden... Mij stuit die dubbele moraal eigenlijk nogal tegen de borst.

[SheReaders Book Club · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was hard to put down. I did not expect the erotic love story that I got - but I was happy to go along for the wild ride once I was in. I loved the ending most because it allowed each character to express their views of the girls' unusual relationship from each person's different perspective. It also added the variable of time and I thought Rivi's experience as seen through 14-year-old eyes and then again as viewed at different stages of adulthood was very accurately portrayed in how your mind changes as it matures. Your interpretation of the same event can be completely different depending on where you are at the time of interpreting. Is there a victim? Is there a rescuer? Is it a great love story or an abuse tale? Maybe it is all of these things. I really enjoyed reading it.

[Elevate Difference · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the novel, Dearest Anne, a young Israeli girl chronicles the tumultuous two years she spends in a clandestine relationship with her married literature teacher. Rivi is enamored of her beautiful teacher, Michaela, from the moment she sees her. In Rivi's eyes, Michaela is perfect and soon the feelings she has for her develop into something more powerful than just a student-teacher admiration. At first, Rivi harbors her secret crush, confiding only in her journal the confusing desire she feels for the older woman. However, what Rivi does not realize is that Michaela has also noticed her, singling her out in class as the brightest student with a passion for poetry beyond her fourteen years.

The relationship between the two women quickly explodes into a fiercely passionate love affair. For Rivi, this is her first time exploring the complex feelings of lust, love, and jealousy. Throughout the novel, Rivi reveals her innermost thoughts and feelings in the only way she knows how, through writing. She has a unique connection with Anne Frank, and addresses all of her diary entries to her. Dearest Anne is not your typical coming of age story; however throughout the novel the reader grows with Rivi as she struggles to find her own identity and defend her controversial first love.

The structure of Judith Katzir's novel is interesting because it begins with Rivi as an adult, looking back on her relationship with Michaela. After Rivi discovers her childhood journals, the novel commences through the narration of Rivi’s diary entries to Anne Frank. In these entries, Rivi takes on the persona of “Kitty," the imaginary best friend Anne writes to during her time in hiding. Katzir’s descriptions of Rivi and Michaela’s passion for each other is vivid and poetic, focusing on the love they shared rather than the social taboo surrounding their relationship.

This is not to say these issues are ignored in the novel. Throughout their time together, Michaela commonly refers to Rivi as “kiddo," and while her partner’s young age does not stop her, the nickname keeps the age difference between the women present in the reader’s mind. Also, readers may be put off by the strong graphic sexual scenes in the novel. Katzir does not pass judgment on the relationship in her descriptions; she simply tells a story of two women involved in a relationship unaccepted by others, but one that changes both of their lives forever.

Review by Samara Sousa

[CuriousLibrarian · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book drops you into the end of the story with no hints of where you are. For this reason, I had to try it twice before it took. And I'm glad that I did. The story picks up right around the time that Rivi finds her childhood diaries. So push on until there if you are unsure of this book, then decide.

Most of the book is Rivi's childhood diaries about her relationship with her female teacher. They don't read to me like an actual young girl writing, but if you ignore that, it actually works (this is less important in an adult work than work for children anyway).

I ran through many emotions in reading this book. I was absolutely disgusted with Michaela for starting a sexual relationship with a child. As one who works with children that is just repulsive to me. And yet, the whole relationship is described in undeniably erotic and earnest terms. And you can't help but fall into that. So you are pulled in so many directions by this book.

I would like to read this in the original Hebrew. I know I am missing many shades of meaning, especially where I can make some guesses as to the original prose. (There is even a line in the book somewhere about how one should try to read books in the original if possible.) Sadly, my reading Hebrew is terribly limited and certainly not up to modern Hebrew.

Absolutely worth reading.

[Leore Joanne Green · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book filled me with so many feelings. It felt odd to read a book about my city, the city I grew up in, the city my parents grew up in, especially since they were young adults at the end of the seventies, like the characters in the book. As I read, Katzir's words raised a ghostly image in front of my eyes, of a Haifa that I, as a nineties child, I have never known.

After finishing this book I feel odd for not having felt odd, reading a love story between a 14 year old girl and a 26 year old woman. At times I felt a bit ambiguous, criticizing Michaela, but I think Katzir's mastery was making this love affair feel so natural.
The love making scenes are described so delicately, and something about them made me feel that they were written by a woman. They were shameless, but not shaming. Again, somehow natural.

I think this book has some important lessons about letting go, about growing up, forgiving, and enjoying every single day. It is at once slightly optimistic, and very sad, with a tinge of darkness creeping around the edges, the slight doubt that sometimes resides in us, that perhaps there's more than this, and at the same time the fear that someday it will all be taken, unexpectedly and unexplainably, away.

[India Lavoyce · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a lesbian Israeli version of Lolita if I can sum it up. This is so well written that it flows like poetry. I read the English translation. I am not fluent enough in Hebrew to read a whole novel that way yet. This book will appeal to literature lovers, lgbtq, history lovers, & romance lovers. It can be called an epistolary novel. The main character writes in her diary a lot of things that bring us the details of her past while she is having present day interaction as well. I thoroughly enjoyed it and I was kinda sad to have it come to an end❣️

[Michael Milgrom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Because of the way this book is structured it is impossible to describe it without giving away most of the plot, of which there is little. The writing is very fine and the diary entries felt real.
This is the story of a love affair between a fourteen year old girl and her twenty-seven year old teacher (female), that lasts for over two years (and the emotional connection lasts long after the affair ends) and is told primarily through the diary entries of the girl.
In an interesting, and perhaps, controversial move, the girl pretends that she is writing to Anne Frank, who was the same age when she began her diary (and wrote to an imaginary friend). This works, on the whole. However, one major reason for the widespread appeal of Anne Frank’s diary is its universality - so much of what she writes about herself is the story of thirteen year old girls. So, while the stories have interesting similarities, this diary is quite a bit different. It is certainly not the diary of any teenage girl. Although it’s a young girl’s awakening to life it goes way beyond anything Anne Frank would have recognized or even imagined. It would be interesting to see how this novel would have worked out without the Anne Frank angle.
I definitely recommend this book because it is well-written and feels authentic but be prepared for a lot of eroticism, some of it quite explicit.

[Bryndís · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5 stars
Started off very moving. Nice contrast between distant mother and supportive teacher. Ending was too long, but good ending overall.
But not that I'm about the teacher's age: It's a little disturbing to think that someone in their twenties could fall for a 14 y/o girl. It's too icky now.

[Mel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although extremely explicit at times, i found this book to be beautiful. The writing style was fluid, poetic. The author's storytelling was gorgeous and complex...raw, even.

I don't have enough words in my vocabulary to describe this book or to express my sincere love for it, but i feel everyone should read this at some point.

[Anne · Rating 2 out of 5]

I stopped reading about half-way through, because I think I got the gist of it and it was too perverse for me to enjoy reading it. It was well-written though, and interesting too. I would rate this 2.5 stars if I could.

[Euni · Rating 5 out of 5]

There is something addictive about Katzir's writing - Beautiful, inspiring and sensual novel that will grab your attention to this beautiful love story which transforms a girl into a lady with confidence and a beautiful woman. Loved every minute of reading this book !

[Ariel Shoham · Rating 5 out of 5]

ריבי שנהב, אישה נשואה בת 38, מוצאת יומנים שכתבה בתיכון בתור קיטי, הנמענת הבדויה ביומנים של אנה פרנק. דרך קריאה ביומנים ריבי חוזרת לקשר עם המורה שלה לספרות בשנות התיכון. זה רומן חניכה לא שגרתי בעיקר כי ההתבגרות בו קורית במתח בין מין לבין המילה הכתובה.

[Diana Eberhardt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely writing, even in translation, of a romantic and complicated love between a girl and her teacher.

[Gabriela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautifully written!

[Elide Barbanti · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quando ho acquistato questo libro l'ho fatto perchè lo osservavo da giorni sullo scaffale più alto della libreria in cui ho svolto il mio tirocinio universitario. Ogni volta che alzavo gli occhi lo trovavo lì, intento quasi a "fissarmi". Così un giorno mi sono decisa a prenderlo e devo ammettere che in parte non me ne sono pentita. Il tema raccontato è sicuramente delicato, reso ancora più "tabù" dall'ambientazione in cui il tutto si svolge: "Carissima Anna" parla infatti dell'amore tra Rivi, studentessa quattordicenne con la passione per la scrittura, e Michaela, giovane professoressa di lettere da poco sposata che trova in Rivi una studentessa capace e attenta; in seguito, il rapporto prenderà una piega che sicuramente nessuna delle due poteva aspettarsi, considerando che le due inizieranno una lunga e travagliata storia d'amore. Il tutto viene ambientato nell'Israele della fine degli ani' 70 con il popolo ebraico ancora sconvolto dall'Olocausto: non a caso infatti, il diario di Rivi verrà scritto sotto forma di corrispondenza epistolare proprio ad Anna Frank, figura che influenza profondamente la protagonista che spesso si ritroverà a confrontarsi con lei e con quella che era la sua vita durante gli anni della guerra. Il tema centrale è dunque l'amore omosessuale tra queste due donne, separate dall'età, dai rispettivi ruoli che ricoprono nel contesto scolastico e famigliare e dai tempi non propriamente maturi per accettare un rapporto simile. Tuttavia, nonostante questo tema così importante, a tratti mi è quasi sembrato che questo venisse sviluppato in chiave leggermente infantile (anche se questo è in parte normale, considerando che il tutto viene raccontato sotto forma di diario dalla stessa Rivi); inoltre, anche il finale è stato al di sotto delle aspettative, considerando soprattutto gli spunti e i dialoghi tra le due dove si evince che questo amore è stato piuttosto lo specchio di disagi più profondi, quasi un rifugio dai veri problemi che le due protagoniste hanno affrontato nel corso degli anni (la mancanza di considerazione da parte dei genitori per Rivi, l'insoddisfazione nella vita matrimoniale di Michaela...). Dunque, consigliato, ma con qualche riserva, soprattutto per quanto riguarda la traduzione che, a mio modesto parere, è stata poco curata e lo dimostrano alcuni "orrori" grammaticali e i continui cambiamenti nella pronuncia dei nomi. Molto importanti, invece, i piccoli spaccati della vita del tempo e del clima politico di quegli anni, che di sicuro aiuta anche se in minima parte ad osservare altre prospettive storiche e sociali lontane dalle nostre.

[Aziza · Rating 5 out of 5]

As Hannah Hovnat-Tamir points out in the afterword, not only is Dearest Ann a bildungsroman but it is also a historical document rich in literary allusions and social contexts. That said, reader be aware that the novel addresses some of the most controversial taboos left in this day and age. Personally, the way the adulteress’ husband was neglected and lied to bothered me more than the fact that the book was about a lesbian relationship between an underage, but precocious student and her teacher.


The mechanism Katzir uses to tell this story of “impossible love” between Rivi Shenhar and her teacher, Michaela Berg, is very effective. Most of the story is presented in the form of Rivi’s diaries which she addresses to Anne Frank and signs as “Kitty” (the name Ann Frank gave her diary). This trope effectively convinces the reader of both Rivi’s intelligence and her vulnerability as well as the need to be loved for who she is as the neglected child of divorced parents. The book starts with the adult Rivi unearthing the diaries she had buried under a tree there as a teenager. Through Rivi’s reading her own diaries about the past and her thoughts in the more recent past in the shape of a monologue addressing the dead Michaela –and therefore the reader- as “you,” the reader starts sympathizing and possibly even empathizing with Michaela, whom most people before reading the novel would label a perverted pedophile fit for jail or at the very least a mental institution. From a lesbian adulteress preying on an innocent underage girl, Michaela turns into a complex, sensitive, interesting woman who suffered a lot. Katzir’s brilliance resides in making the appalling, the controversial, the taboo understandable, thereby enlarging the reader’s capacity for empathy and reducing if not erasing the readers’ preconceived notions.


Dearest Anne does everything literature is supposed to do; it entertains, it moves, it educates, but above all, it makes its readers wiser, more compassionate human beings. If Dearest Anne is any indication of what Judith Katzir’s other novels and stories are like, I can only hope that soon all her stories will be translated in English -and many other languages for that matter!

[pb · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book, a well written story about a 14 year old girl who falls in love with her literature teacher, a woman. Definitely a controversial subject, and you can't help but get caught up in their story. You feel their love and the mutual affection they share with each other. I found myself rooting for them, to continue their relationship without being found out. There are some great quotes throughout the book regarding life, love and happiness. There's also the connection to Anne Frank, to whom the main character relates her story to in her own diary. And just like with Anne Frank's story, we know this story is also leading to an inevitable, sad conclusion. We know this because it's foreshadowed in the opening pages, and also because it says so on the back on the book (thanks a lot there publishers). The book also touches on other subjects such as autism, cancer, loneliness and divorce. In the end there are consequences that could be interpreted in different ways. It takes a while to process the events and the aftermath, but what it comes down is just a tale of two people who fell in love in a non-conforming world.

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting novel about a young woman who has an affair with her literature teacher. The story is set in 1970s Carmel and various political and social issues In Israel crop up during the story. It is first person and includes the young girl's diaries where she fancied herself writing to Anne Frank - the ultimate diary keep for young Jewish girls of which I was one - as Kitty, the name Frank gave her diary.

The book was controversial in Israel, getting attacked by gay and lesbian critics because of the character of the older, perhaps 'predatory' lesbian and from conservatives because of the use of AF metaphor in a novel about a same-sex relationship. Can't quite get on board with either view - although I do think the ending is a little heavy handed.

The novel is almost a traditional bildingsroman or story of an artist as a young person. The way Rivi overlaps with Frank - the budding sexuality, the tension - was most interesting and in some ways, made Frank's death all the sadder . After all, who knows who Anne would have been had she been allowed to reach adulthood.

[Deborah Feingold · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautiful, albeit cautionary story of forbidden love (lesbian and teacher/student). I'm curious about the pairing as the latter, by definition unethical if not abusive, muddies the unadulterated passion and discovery of the former. Perhaps that's the point; nothing is only what it is and opportunities for transformation are elusive. Setting - at least time component - is all important as Rivi not only handicapped (or advantaged?) by youth but by lack of conceptual knowledge of lesbian love in the '70s. This leads to fascinating meta-conversation about sexual orientation and identity. Are the characters fundamentally lesbian? Bi-sexual? Or are these labels superfluous in this (and all) cases.

Mother-daughter relations paramount here as well. Both main characters have problems with neglectful or aloof mothers. Mothers seem to take a bit of s hit here, as does legitimacy of the passionate same-sex romance, when suggestion is made that had mothers been more available, their daughters may have made different decisions.

Ending is sobering and seems to preclude experimentation and self- actualization for adults who must settle in to harsh or banal realities of "maturity."

[Margaret Klein · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite frankly this was a great book. I am surprised by this. The topic is difficult. Impossible love is what the cover calls it. Not that it is lesbian. No, rather a 27 year old teacher and a 14 year old student. This relationship should not have happened. Even if the student had a crush on her teacher, it should not have progressed to where it did. This is a story about love and betrayal. It is by far and away the best prose I have read in a very long time. It reads like poetry. Kudos to the translator! And for me the literary device of the girl writing to Anne Frank as a diary worked. We read this book in our synagogue book group--and while I struggled with the topic I am glad I read it. Others felt that the voice was not believable. No 12 year old could write like that or sustain a love interest like that. I am not so sure. I think it was very plausible. And so four stars.

[Rachel Gluck · Rating 4 out of 5]

A heartbreaking, yet thinking, intellectual tale. A very in depth coming of age story that tests the limits of right and wrong within the context of what's acceptable in society. Both women are difficult characters to wrap one's mind around, and perhaps that's the point. In making them difficult to swallow, it's perhaps easier, in retrospect, to frame the whole story. Just a truly difficult piece of fiction to wrap my mind around. A very, very good read, though. Complicated.

[Amy Blue · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kein Wort, das die Großartigkeit dieses Buches wiedergeben kann - außer eben: großartig!
Voll wunderbarer Sätze, die man gar nicht alle behalten kann. Immer an der Grenze zum Kitsch, aber dann wird die Kurve doch noch haarscharf genommen und das ist genau das, was das Ganze so wundervoll macht.

Ich war und bin begeistert und kann einfach keine Rezension schreiben, die der Geschichte gerecht wird.

[Daniel]

I was born and raised in Haifa, the city the story takes place in (well, most of it) so from the beginning to the end I was overwhelmed by the sceneries and the setting. I felt like the characters could have been my neighbours. It's not for everyone though. Some may be appalled by the teacher/teenage student relationship going on.

[Reader · Rating 5 out of 5]

Disturbing, haunting, beautifully written.

[Neena · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you are an Israel-phile as I am, you'll enjoy this story of forbidden love set in Haifa during the era of free love.

[Jennifer Geller · Rating 2 out of 5]

well written but the story is a little odd so I found it distracting at times.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautiful and touching story.