可借阅:*
图书馆 | 资料类型 | 排架号 | 子计数 | 书架位置 | 状态 | 图书预约 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
正在检索... Central | Juvenile Book | YA MATAS C. | 1 | Juvenile Collection | 正在检索... 未知 | 正在检索... 不可借阅 |
正在检索... Midlands | Book | YA MAT | 1 | Juvenile Fiction | 正在检索... 未知 | 正在检索... 不可借阅 |
正在检索... South | Juvenile Book | YA FIC MAT | 1 | Juvenile Fiction | 正在检索... 未知 | 正在检索... 不可借阅 |
正在检索... West | Paperback | PB TEEN MATAS | 1 | Stacks | 正在检索... 未知 | 正在检索... 不可借阅 |
链接这些题名
已订购
摘要
摘要
Aaron and Zev have been protected from serving in the Czar's army for very different reasons--Aaron's father has always paid to keep his scholarly son free. Zev takes the job of khapper, kidnapping other poor, young Jewish boys to fulfill the czar's army quotas. Zev's jealousy of Aaron turns to hate when he discovers that the girl he loves is to marry Aaron. When Zev decides to rid himself of Aaron forever, he kidnaps him and turns him over to serve in the army. He knows Aaron's fate is sealed--few survive the forced labor. A trick of fate, however, pits the boys against each other face-to-face. Sworn enemies, they must endure the cruel captivity together. Will they join forces to survive or will they destroy each other? From the Paperback edition.
评论 (5)
《学校图书馆杂志》(School Library Journal)书评
Gr 5-9-- Set in Czarist Russia in 1851, this novel addresses the issue of forced conscription into the army. According to the introduction, Jewish children were recruited at the age of 12 in preparation for military service, but conversion to Christianity was the primary goal; this was accomplished by both physical and emotional torture. In alternating chapters, Aaron and Zev (the ``sworn enemies'' of the title) offer their first-person narrations. Aaron, a brilliant Yeshiva student, is captured by Zev, who is working to fulfill the town's military quota. Through a series of quirks and mishaps, Zev ends up in the same battalion. The two escape from the army in a manner that strains credibility; they remain enemies to the end. In this historical adventure, the one-dimensional characters are entirely predictable in actions and thoughts. A good deal of melodramatic soul-searching takes place; unanswerable questions are posed and pondered. Average readers are unlikely to understand the nuances of Orthodox Jewish belief and observance described, making this book more suitable for those with some familiarity with such customs. --Susan Kaminow, Arlington County Public Library, VA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
出版社周刊评论
PW called this tale of young Jewish boys conscripted into the czar's army ``a gripping novel out of an overlooked chapter of history.'' Ages 12-up. (Mar.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
《儿童读物杂志》(Horn Book)书评
Narrated in alternate chapters by Aaron, a young yeshiva scholar, and Lev, a bitter rival who takes revenge by kidnapping Aaron for the czar's army, the plot turns too much on events driven by their extremely coincidental meetings at crucial times. The harsh conditions and a daring escape are vividly described, but the characters' thoughts tend to slow down the pace. From HORN BOOK 1993, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus评论
The author of Lisa's War (1989) turns to a another grim chapter in Jewish history: the kidnapping and forced conversion of Jewish boys by the Russian Czar's army in the 19th century. Her carefully researched story is told, in alternation, by two young men. Aaron, 16, the highly respected best student at Odessa's yeshiva, is soon to be married; though carefully observant, and knowing it's forbidden, he is secretly meeting his betrothed (innocently--they debate subjects like Job). After one tryst, he is kidnapped by Zev, a vengeful former classmate who's jealous of Aaron's brilliance and prospects. Zev is also observant, but he's been brutalized by abuse; without a qualm, he sends Aaron into the horror--and almost certain death--of the army. Starved, beaten, humiliated, and driven without respite, Aaron is one of the few survivors in his original group, but- -after careful reasoning about God's commands--submits to baptism to save his life. Zev, too, is caught; ironically, he contrives to avoid conversion. With two friends, Aaron plots escape, only to be caught by Zev, who ends by coming with them--and betraying Aaron yet again. Vicious and unrepentant, Zev is more than a foil for Aaron's moral struggle against a hatred that can only destroy him too; he is chillingly believable. To her credit, Matas offers them no reconciliation; and conscientious Aaron knows that he also bears some guilt for what has passed between them. A harrowing, thought-provoking, skillfully written novel about a past whose evil legacy persists. (Fiction. YA)
《书目》(Booklist)书评
Gr. 7-10. The enemies in Matas' story, set in czarist Russia, are Aaron, a young Jewish scholar, and Zev, a Khapper, hired to kidnap his fellow Jews to fulfill military quotas. Told alternately from the perspectives of Aaron and Zev, this describes the hardships that Jews suffered once they were conscripted into the army--one goal was to have them convert--as well as the antipathy the young men have toward one another. Zev kidnaps Aaron because he is so jealous of Aaron's life and especially of the young woman to whom Aaron is betrothed, but a twist of fate finds Zev ordered into the army, too, where he must come face to face with the young man he has tried to destroy. For his part, Aaron, the pious Jew, has to deal with the murderous rage he feels toward Zev. Although philosophical questions are posed--Where is God? and What does he require of us?--they get lost in the action. Too bad, because the book obviously aims to be provocative. Still, there's plenty here to interest readers, especially those with a taste for the historical or the psychological. ~--Ilene Cooper