By Pete Hamill
Here is a story that examines prejudice from a number of perspectives. Set in the 1940s after the war, 11-year-old Michael Devlin has lost his father in the Battle of the Bulge. He and his mom live in an apartment in Brooklyn where they scrape by. Early in the story, Michael witnesses a brutal attack on a Jewish shopkeeper. Although he doesn't squeal on the perpetrator, he is treated as though he had. Michael gets to learn new perspectives on the Jewish faith when a local rabbi asks Michael to be his shabbos goy, a gentile who performs tasks (like turning on a light switch) for a Jew on the sabbath. Rabbi Judah Hirsch is Polish, and also comes to speak better English as he spends time with Michael. He, in turn, shares some stories of the faith and teaches Michael some Yiddish words. The two also share an interest in baseball, especially in the Dodgers. Like their baseball hero Jackie Robinson, Michael and the rabbi also fall victim to prejudice, actually resulting in violence. It is still a beautiful story with a mystical ending (perhaps kind of a copout) featuring a golem, a kind of Jewish hero figure.
This story takes place just after WW2, after the freeing of the Jewish concentration camp survivors, and about 15 years before the American civil rights movement. While I have seen improvements in racial and religious freedom in the last 50 years, we still have a long way to go - as local politics and news attest - and I appreciate a story that helps us see our need to do better. Michael is a good role model.
No comments:
Post a Comment