In his third collection, Tammuz’s need
to respond to historical events becomes clear, and the relationships between
characters reflect the conflicts between nations. These are stories based on
ideas, depicting the country’s urbanization and modernization, a new Israel
built on the ruins of the authentic, rural Jewish-Arab country that it was during
the early Zionist colonization. “The Swimming Race” is a response to the
Israeli-Arab conflict, with the competition between a Jewish boy and an Arab
boy becoming a metaphor for the struggle between the two peoples in which there
are no winners, only losers. In “The Tale of the Olive Tree” Tammuz deplores
the obtuseness of part of Israeli society towards cultural values, and their
lack of historical awareness, compared to Arab society’s awareness of these
values. The olive tree, a symbol of this country, also represents the stability
and abundance of nature which are not affected by the vicissitudes of time. But
the way the Jews chop down the olive tree shows their lack of rootedness in, and
ties to the landscapes of the country to which they have returned.
PARTIAL ENGLISH TRANSLATION AVAILABLE.
I have a
liking for Tammuz’s writing, you can always feel the artist in it – especially
when he portrays episodes from his childhood, because they are so delicately
and sensitively [crafted]… "Angioxyl, a Rare Cure" is
a model story, have rarely come across anything like it … in modern Hebrew
literature … In the excellent story “The Swimming Race” the past, illuminated
by the eyes of a child, takes on an idyllic dimension.
Moshe Dor
[M. Bar-Yaakov], Maariv, 21.2.64
Concentrated,
excellent stories … Tammuz’s language is economical, unadorned … On deeper
reading, [I find] tones of poetry, subtle humor, true sadness, and spot-on
descriptions … This book is without doubt an outstanding contribution to truly
modern Hebrew literature, without any artificial melancholy or intentional
nostalgia. A contribution that restores the basic significance of words: the
truth.
Moshe
Ben-Shaul, Moznaim, June 1964