Original language:
Hebrew Translated from: Hebrew
Authors: B. Yehoshua, Abraham
Translated by: Gudelytė, Kristina
ISBN: 978-609-444-249-0
Published in: Vilnius
Published on: 2018
Publisher: Sofoklis
“Mr. Mani” is a novel about six generations of Mani family. The action takes place from the middle of 18th century until the end of 20th century. However, the timeline of events is not chronologically consistent. The author Abraham B. Yehoshua not only talks about the historical events of that time, but also reveals the inside world of a person who has appeared in the middle of political disagreements, repressions and cruelty.
The book is remarkable because of its story telling. The novel includes five conversations between two speakers. However, the layout of dialogs is distinct. Conversations are one-sided when only one speaker‘s speech is written. In this way, the author allows readers to use their imagination and think what could the speakers say or even become a part of conversation themselves. The stories reveal various events that include one of the Mani family members. These stories take place in various countries such as Greece, Poland, British occupied Palestine as well as German occupied Crete. The author reveals a view towards Jewish people of various nations at different historical periods. In addition, A. Yehoshua by following the story of the Mani family reflects upon the history of Israel and hurtful experiences of Jewish people such as long disagreements with Palestine and Jewish genocide during the World War II. The experiences of characters reflect struggles of the nation and allow the reader to look at the history more personally. Love, war, death and the purpose of existence are a few of the subjects that are analysed in the novel. They help to draw in the reader to the journey of “Mr. Mani”.
Abraham B. Yehoshua is one of the most popular Israeli authors. A huge recognition of his novel “Mr. Mani” led to a creation of its screening – a five part TV series with the same title.