 |
| Book cover. |
Jane Yolen's young adult fiction novel The Devil's Arithmetic chronicles the story of 12 year old Hannah Stern in a flashback plot. The novel begins in modern America at the dinner table of Hannah's relatives, where they are celebrating the Jewish custom of Seder (the dinner marking the beginning of Passover). During the dinner, Hannah is chosen to open the door to welcome the prophet Elijah (another Jewish custom). As she opens the door, the sees not the hallway of the apartment building she and her family are in, but turns around to find unfamiliar surroundings and people she doesn't know. The majority of the remainder of the story is set during the 1940s in Europe, where Hannah, now known as Chaya, struggles between her future and the "present" past in which she finds herself. Hannah gets swept into the action of her new surroundings, being taken to the wedding of her uncle Schmuel with her aunt Gitl. She soon makes new friends on the journey to the wedding, which is in a neighboring village. However, upon arriving in the village, Hannah and the group of wedding guests are taken captive in Nazi trucks, and ultimately arrive at a concentration camp. Although no specific setting is identified, the integral setting of 1940s Nazi occupied Europe is easily distinguished. Hannah then strives to survive in the concentration camp as more and more of her new friends and family die. Ultimately, she realizes the importance of remembering, the key theme of not only the book, but of the holiday she and her family had been celebrating at the story's start.
Clearly, with a strong focus on Jewish culture and traditions as well as the Yiddish language, The Devil's Arithmetic makes for an eye-opening multicultural selection. Even the main character of Hannah is surprised to find that she can absorb what should be unfamiliar language and customs as part of the magic of her time-traveling experience. Because of the presentation of much Yiddish language, the book would make for an excellent presentation on teaching students to be aware of jargon and cultural influences on texts.
The Devil's Arithmetic has received numerous awards. Among numerous others, the book received the Sydney Taylor Award from the Association of Jewish Libraries, the Jewish Book Council Award, and the National Jewish Book Award for Children's Literature in 1989. The book was also made into a film version. Although the content contains some indications of the violence typical of of discussions pertaining to the Holocaust, it is a work that would be powerful for pre-teen and early teen audiences.
No comments:
Post a Comment