The Garden

Darleen R. Golke is a high-school teacher-librarian in Winnipeg,
Manitoba.

In this sequel to After the War, Carol Matas continues the story of Ruth
Mendenberg, a 16-year-old survivor of the concentration camp at
Buchenwald. Now living on Kibbutz David in the soon-to-be-established
state of Israel, Ruth finds beauty, peace, and comfort in her assigned
duties as gardener. However, the period from November 1947 to April 1948
is not a peaceful time for the fledging state. The United Nations’
vote for partition triggers Arab rioting and violence, which forces Ruth
into active duty. Ruth, who desires only peace and serenity, finds
herself in the Palmach engaged in activities with her fellow escapees
from Europe. She shares with the reader her hopes for a true home; her
memories of the horrors of the concentration camps; her fears for her
brother, who is engaged in terrorist activities; her concerns for the
safety of her comrades; and her reluctance to become part of the
escalating violence.

Matas uses Ruth’s first-person narrative to represent the conflict
between the Palmach’s “violence only in self-defense” philosophy
and the Irgun’s terrorist views. Ruth both hates and loves the Irgun
“for the violence and carnage they cause,” and the Haganah “for
their high principles, their desire always to do the right thing.” The
Garden offers readers some understanding of the complex issues that
contribute to the continuing conflict between Jews and Arabs. A two-page
glossary provides explanations of unfamiliar terms. Recommended.