2020/7 Final conclusions for Ayelet Gundar-Goshen's WAKING LIONS - Mod's Choice

[Jan]

Final conclusions and/or reviews go here. Spoilers okay, since members posting here are assumed to have read the book.

[debra]

Intriguing and worthwhile read- here's my previous review:
An excellent read. thought provoking, timely and periodically disturbing (as most true to life stories are). Characters are well developed and you get a very clear sense of their varying emotions as you're drawn into their unfolding stories. A tale of ethical struggles and complex relationships that keep your attention. Well written, though occasional parts where the language felt choppy or not in its usual flow, which may be a translation issue - assuming it was originally written in Hebrew.
I'd be interested to read more from this author.

[Stacey B]

debra luger wrote: "Intriguing and worthwhile read- here's my previous review:
An excellent read. thought provoking, timely and periodically disturbing (as most true to life stories are). Characters are well developed..."
Glad you enjoyed it.
Certainly is a clever premise.
She wrote "The Liar" which I read.
When finished, I almost gave it a knee jerk reaction rating, but something told me to wait. The book is thought provoking as is her other book.
I saw you had a grandchild. Congrats to you!!!
xo

[debra]

Stacey wrote: "debra luger wrote: "Intriguing and worthwhile read- here's my previous review:
An excellent read. thought provoking, timely and periodically disturbing (as most true to life stories are). Character..."
Thanks :)

[Shelley]

i loved this book. I run a synagogue book group and without exception people loved this book.
i read her other two books and especially the first one was so different that it was nearly impossible to believe the same person wrote them.
i will keep reading her books in hope there will be one that engages me as much as Waking Lions did. I recommend it to everyone.

[Stacey B]

Shelly- Great post!!
How good was this book! You wrote my exact thinking about her writing style(s).
I also would never guess it was the same author, which to me is an additional talent.
Story is unique and amazingly clever, if there is such a word.
It's not like some other books written about simply judging a Drs. moral oath.
I found nothing "simple" in this book.
There is so much more involved than what the synopsis eludes to. It grabbed my attention from the start and never let go, even after finishing it..

[Jonathan]

Debra's review is spot on. The book was so different then anything I read in a long time. You kept trying to guess the outcome and at the same time were given a view of the African refugee situation in Israel. I really like the way Ayelet Gundar portrayed the attributes of the main characters their positive and negative traits. Spoiler here the ending kind of reminded of the ending in the DeNiro movie, Taxi Driver.

[Stacey B]

Another great review from you Jonathan.
Told you that you would like it! :)

[Jonathan]

You were right- great pick.

[Stacey B]

:)

[debra]

Jonathan wrote: "You were right- great pick."
Yes, nice that the moderators can choose a book that might not have made the "popular" vote. I nominated this book for one of the first polls as I'd found it very worthwhile. ( It didn't make the top -so was happy to see it get more exposure)

[Stacey B]

Thank you.
Every once in awhile - we choose a good one. :) :)

[Hahtoolah]

I love this book. It is the best book I have read this year. I loved the characters. The author really made them come alive. I loved how we learned how Sirket decided to get Eitan to treat the Eritrean immigrants. This is a novel of motives and secrets that we keep from ourselves and from others.

[Stacey B]

Hahtoolah-
Again, I am with you on this one.
Love the last line you wrote in your review.
The book is filled with hidden agenda's , pre-existing issues, and includes the topics you mention.
This book still resonates with me. What would happen if someone chose to react differently in this situation.
Really, it isn't only one situation - we don't recognize it until we watch from the sidelines.
One action led to two, two led to five, and ends up all melded together.
It's a story which tests our selective moral standards.

[Henry]

This is, first of all, a superbly written and engrossing book. Green's predicament grabbed me right away and the narrative held my interest to the point that I kept reading even when I had other things that needed doing. The novel also poses important moral questions: Green has killed a man by hit and run, but how many are killing Africans by failing to support their needs, by neglect and stinginess? How can one be a mere bystander in the face of others' suffering? Finally, it provides some not very comfortable insights into contemporary Israeli society. It depicts what is probably widespread racism among Israelis. Reading about Israeli police racism toward Arabs is eerily reminiscent of all the stories of police racism against African Americans.

[Stacey B]

Henry- you make some wonderful points regarding this book.
Its hard to do the right thing, and Green did just that when he took his medical oath. I'm not so sure that he wasn't set up-though he wouldn't know that at the time of his hit and run. What do you think?? Very hard for me not to make this into a spoiler. :)
Human suffering isn't limited to neglect and stinginess. You are kind when you use those words. So much more to than failing to support your own. There are more countries I could name that
turned their people into second class citizens, who then watch their heads of state keep the almighty dollar to make everyone suffer and they cant get out.cant get out. It is sickening to watch.
Regarding your comment on uncomfortable insights in Israeli society, Im not sure what you refer to. So many topics addressed in this book, all of which are contemporary.
I go to Israel quite a bit, which means nothing except for what I see with my own eyes. I don't feel there are racial similarities between Israeli police and African police you refer to, especially when you compare to whats happening with our police in the U.S.
I am happy you read and loved the book, but happier that you shared your comments and reviews on our site.
Thank you.
Don't be shy :)
-S

[Henry]

Stacey wrote: "Henry- you make some wonderful points regarding this book.
Its hard to do the right thing, and Green did just that when he took his medical oath. I'm not so sure that he wasn't set up-though he wou..."

Thanks for your comments, Stacey. I hope I didn't ruffle too many feathers with my comments on racism in Israel. I have never been there as you have, so all of my impressions are necessarily second hand. I was referring in the last sentence not to African police but to US police in relation to African Americans in this country. All I can say with any authority is that the treatment of Arabs by Israeli police as depicted in this book does seem to parallel the treatment of Black people by US police. To what extent that is in fact the case, I can't say from any first-hand experience.