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English translation available (for publishers only)

Do Not Strike the Wall

Do Not Strike the Wall is a story about love and its essence. The novel investigates the enslaving power of love, and the ability to ultimately gain freedom and discover substitutes. Yiska, the heroine, grew up in a religious agricultural town in the Lower Galilee. While still a child she falls in love with her neighbor Elisha; it is an adolescent crush which ripens and grows as she matures. But Yiska cannot compete with the memory of Alma, Elisha’s late wife who died in childbirth. In vain, Yiska strives to decipher the secret of the dead Alma’s hold on the man of her dreams, a bewitching hold which prevents him from falling in love with another. Yiska decides to trace the mysterious character of Alma, and in the process uncovers a dark secret from her past. Yiska now possesses proof of Alma’s betrayal of Elisha. This proof is her trump card, which she will reveal if she decides to punish Elisha. She moves to Jerusalem, where she is able to realize her femininity and creativity. There, she gradually succeeds in becoming an independent woman capable of taking her future in her own hands. In her ties with Alma’s gynaecologist, Scheinfeld, there is no room for love; lust and passion prevail. A different sort of bond is formed between Yiska and the jeweller Eliyahu who falls in love with her. Now, when Elisha professes his love for her, she does not reciprocate.

Languages
German
Title Do Not Strike the Wall
Writer's Last Name Magen
Writer's First Name Mira
Genre Fiction
Publisher (Hebrew) Hakibbutz Hameuchad
No. Pages 223pp.
Book title - Hebrew (phonetic) Al Takeh Ba-Kir
  • “ This novel is brimming with the scent of oranges and date palms. Magen has a great aptitude for telling a story...Her novels' distant beauty is the source of their attraction. ”

    Neues Deutschland
  • “ What is so impressive is the eloquence of her images, which endows the novel with a unique poetry. Unfamiliar storytelling traditions, metaphors which arise from the heat of the Middle East sun, present us with an unusual rhythm, to be occasionally interrupted by witty, intelligent observations.”

    Freie Presse
  • “ You should read this book yourself. It is well beyond a thrilling love story. It is a psychological study, very descriptive and convincing. An exhilarating novel. ”