In her spirited memoir, A. E. Hayoun paints an eye-opening portrait of immigrating to Israel and building a new life in Israel’s beautiful, controversial, and sometimes hostile Negev desert.
At once a vulnerable narrative of personal experience, The Camel in the Forest is also a remarkable, brief history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. A. E. Hayoun’s first-hand account of life in Israel that takes place a few years before and during Operation Guardian of the Walls; the 12-day war that came as the result of Hamas and the Islamic Jihad breaking the permanent ceasefire between Israel and Gaza in 2021.
This courageous collection of true stories brings to life the Jewish homeland of rich history, complex politics, and intricate relationships between cultures that are an unavoidable part of everyday life in Israel and the Middle East.
In the style of Yehuda Amichai and the spirit of Noa Tishby, The Camel in the Forest is inspired by ancient Judaic texts, the unique beauty of the Negev desert, and the reality of war that plagues Israeli society and speaks in the voice of a new generation of Israelis and will forever change your understanding of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict.
In her spirited memoir, A. E. Hayoun paints an eye-opening portrait of immigrating to Israel and building a new life in Israel’s beautiful, controversial, and sometimes hostile Negev desert.
At once a vulnerable narrative of personal experience, The Camel in the Forest is also a remarkable, brief history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. A. E. Hayoun’s first-hand account of life in Israel that takes place a few years before and during Operation Guardian of the Walls; the 12-day war that came as the result of Hamas and the Islamic Jihad breaking the permanent ceasefire between Israel and Gaza in 2021.
This courageous collection of true stories brings to life the Jewish homeland of rich history, complex politics, and intricate relationships between cultures that are an unavoidable part of everyday life in Israel and the Middle East.
In the style of Yehuda Amichai and the spirit of Noa Tishby, The Camel in the Forest is inspired by ancient Judaic texts, the unique beauty of the Negev desert, and the reality of war that plagues Israeli society and speaks in the voice of a new generation of Israelis and will forever change your understanding of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict.
Standing in the desert, facing the forest.
Behind me Hiran, before me, a vision as clear as the sky.
They came one by one
From burrow and den, nest and cave.
Camel and mole, orvani and jackal.
Even the tinshemet abandoned her sleep
To shimmer before me in the blazing desert sun.
The ibex from the south, the hidden caracal,
An ostrich, and the hedgehog stood before me.
The hyena I feared, an ayala from the Arava,
A bat and the hyrax, and a serious desert hare were present.
The fearful horned viper slithered to my feet.
The iridescent tzufit flitted before my eyes.
Even those lost to time joined the animals all.
The Syrian bear and wild leopard sat on furry haunches.
I waited, watching the assembly
Of all Negev creatures, beasts of land and sky.
And when they had gathered,
A shaking in the Negev reverberated up my feet
But none of the animals fled.
The sands shifted; the sun blinked,
But the assembly remained gathered before me.
A violent shaking rumbled deep in the Earth
Shattering winds and scattering sands.
The winds quieted; the sun blazed again,
And all had returned to a peaceful stillness.
But the sands had already shifted.
Something had changed
And the Negev would never be the same.
Animal and insect, reptile and bird
Looked pointedly at me and I heard their voices saying,
There are rumblings from Yerushalayim in Heled
First the tinshemet spread her wings and took flight.
The caracal left on padded foot.
The small tzufit disappeared into the sun.
They slithered and flew, crawled and stalked,
They left me unhurriedly to stand alone in the desert...
I am a follower of Christ and have not made a visit to Israel something that I have been able to accomplish, but I enjoy reading about the life there. While most folks read about historical life in Israel, I am intrigued at life in the country now. While it has never been peaceful, I have come to realize life there is more difficult than the western world thinks. Hayoun takes us on a riveting journey of her experience immigrating to Israel and establishing a life there while the nation is embroiled in conflict.
One of the best parts of this memoir is that she wrote it while the events were still relatively fresh on her mind. So often people wait until decades have past before putting their memories out in a published form and I cannot help but question the accuracy of those works. It is not because I believe those authors would intentionally misguide someone, but rather my own memories have become embellished or hazy through the years I know others experience the same thing.
Hayoun's writing is clear and easy to understand. I adore the way she structured the deposits of the memoir into small, easily digestable chapters. The chapters are easy to read as you have a few moments of down time if you are unable to set aside large spans of time for reading the work. Through every chapter I felt like I understood both the author and the setting in greater detail. She far exceeded the goal of making the story connect and resonate.
Overall, if you are like me, I would highly recommend this account of recent events regarding Hamas and Israel. I know both of those words can trigger some folks, but as we move into 2025 we should strive to listen to people more than we cut them off simply due to their word choice. I found Hayoun presented the accounts as unbiased as possible for someone directly in the midst of turmoil. I am sure you will love this memoir as well.