Synopsis
A scion of the great 19th Century biblical scholar Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsh, Samson Raphael Levy is an active bibliophile living a quiet, ordered life in his beloved Jerusalem. But his life was not always quiet and ordered. Samson was in the RAF during the Great War and was present during the pivotal days of Jewish independence in 1948 and onward.
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About the Author
Samson Raphael Levy is the great-grandson of the illustrious 19th Century biblical scholar, Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch. Like his namesake, Levy has assiduously sought to defend his religious beliefs both in his writings and by personal example. In this memoir, which takes us from 1918 through today, Samson has recorded many of the great moments of the 20th Century, especially those that led to the creation of "The State of Israel.
Samson was in the Royal Army Service Corps during WWII and, because of his knowledge of German, spent time working at a Prisoner-of-War Documentation Center, where he learned, first hand, what the Nazis had done to many in his family. He was posted with the Western Desert Forces to Egypt, and from there was able to travel frequently to Tel-Aviv and Jerusalem.
Keeping kosher in the army and maintaining a Jewish lifestyle was a full time job for Samson, beyond the 70 hours a week he spent soldiering. Yet, through perseverance and amazing good "luck," Samson manages to keep the Jewish precepts and commands he was brought up with.
As an active bibliophile, Samson studies in the morning and spends the rest of his day writing and living the full, rewarding life of a man who has come home to find that much of what he remembered about his home -- much of what he dreamed about Jerusalem -- is true.
Yet Samson has also seen much change in this City of Gold. He has borne witness to the conflicts and struggles that made 1948 the year of Israel's independence, and 1967 the year that Jerusalem returned to Jewish hands. He has been an eyewitness to every major war and peace, every important event, associated with the State of Israel, not as a politician or a general, but as a man of the nation.
This is the story of Samson's life as it continues to unfold. His dignity and humanity -- even in the midst of war and disaster -- is a tribute to his illustrious great-grandfather.
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Search results for There's No Place Like Jerusalem
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There's No Place Like Jerusalem
Published by
Devora Publishing, 2001
ISBN 10: 1930143303
ISBN 13: 9781930143302
Used
Hardcover
First Edition
Seller: killarneybooks, Inagh, CLARE, Ireland
Seller rating 5 out of 5 stars
Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. 1st Edition. Scarce hardcover, 168 pages, NOT ex-library. Little minor wear. Book is clean and bright with unmarked text, free of inscriptions and stamps, firmly bound. Issued without a dust jacket. -- There's No Place Like Jerusalem is a memoir by Samson Raphael Levy, a scion of the renowned 19th-century biblical scholar Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch. Through this rich narrative, Levy recounts his journey from serving in the Royal Army Service Corps during World War II to his life in Jerusalem, where he has witnessed some of the most pivotal moments in modern Jewish history. Drawing on his meticulously kept diaries, Levy offers readers an intimate view of his experiences, from the challenges of maintaining a Jewish lifestyle in the military to witnessing the creation of the State of Israel in 1948 and the reunification of Jerusalem in 1967. Written in a clear, concise style reminiscent of Hemingway, the memoir is both historical and personal. Levy's reflections are infused with understated wit and a deep love for Jerusalem, where he now lives a quiet, fulfilling life as a bibliophile. His love of books and Jewish scholarship, inherited from his illustrious great-grandfather, is central to his story, as are his accounts of the changes he has seen in Jerusalem over the decades. Through his eyes, we glimpse not only the personal challenges of war and peace but also the broader cultural and political shifts that shaped modern Israel. -- Contents: Introduction - Family Background; "Papa"; Southend- Brückenau - Fulda; London - Maids and Others; Friends and Guests; Owen's School - Gilbert and Sullivan; Switzerland - Yeshiva - The City; "Before The War"; The Army - Blandford-Dunfermline; Jerusalem - Cairo - Ramleh; The Western Desert - Back to Cairo - Mark; Aqir - I Make a Momentous Decision; Cairo Again - Alexandria - Tripoli - "L'affaire Rabinowitz"; Sicily - Italy; "Python" - Brussels; Demobbed at Last - Oxford; Cambridge - Teaching Practice; Aliya - Jerusalem, My Home; Hanna - Engagement and Marriage; My Working Career - I Become a Librarian; The Children - Katamon to Kiriath Sh'muel - Operation Cousins I-II; Alas; The Children Get Married; Trips Abroad; Conclusion; Postscript; Photographs -- "Levy has written a fascinating memoir covering more than 80 years of modern Jewish history. Born in England and raised in the traditions of the "Torah im Derech Eretz" movement, the author later served in the Royal Army Service Corps during World War II, working first at a Prisoner of War Documentation Center and later in the Middle East. From this vantage point, Levy offers a firsthand account of both the horrors of the Shoah and the exhilaration surrounding the establishment of the State of Israel.". Seller Inventory # 010776