The small corner in the center of Carmel, with stacks of books up to the ceiling ○ Chapter 16 in the book 'Bat Number 4' • Lili Milat

Candy for Saturday • Chapter 16 from the book 'Daughter Number 4' ○ Lili Milat

humor. English humor in particular, is something I have connected with since childhood. Those who share a yearbook with me must remember 'Yes Mr. Prime Minister', or 'Somebody's Taking Care of You' with Captain Peacock, Mrs. Slocombe and Mr. Humphreys. They still make me laugh, even after the gap of years. There is a London uncle in our family, if he says something and I don't laugh, I know I just didn't understand something. Not a muscle in the face moved and not even a mischievous twinkle in the eyes was revealed. Then I continue the conversation and stop. Wait, what did you say? And it's always but always funny.

That's how I like Jerome K. Jerome's humor 'three in one boat', but I warn you, not many of my friends laughed at it as much as I did, and yet, in my opinion, it's worth a try. If so, it is not impossible that a mention of this book found its way into my book. So are the poems of Keats, whose house I had the privilege of visiting in London. I admit that no less than my love for such unique places that tell a magical story, I love the museum shops - this is the best place to find unusual souvenirs. In Keats's house there were 'Poet' and 'Writer' pins. I left the songwriting to Keats and as a budding author, I allowed myself the appropriate pin.

And from London back to Haifa, to one of my favorite literary pearls in the city of Carmel. BChapter 16, Hila shares with John her love of English literature. John decides to look for a book for her and arrives at Shmuel's boutique in the center of Carmel. He is surprised to find that even in young Israel one can find a selection of writings in his mother tongue. 

For those who haven't visited, I highly recommend coming to this little corner, which has rare and other books, but most of all, Shmuel is there, and chatting with him is one of my hobbies when I come to the area. In the year in which our story takes place, 1972, Shmuel worked with his late father, Yehoshua, in the same Hamed corner and you will immediately meet them in the chapter ahead of you.
Pleasant reading.

Chapter 16

"You don't just know English. It's unusual how well you speak." Hila felt as if she had been given the most exciting compliment in the world. She didn't master the language that much, but she definitely studied and made an effort. It was important to her. Even in the past, when she wanted to read the books she loved so much, she made sure to read them in the original language. Jane Austen, of course. 'Three in one boat', Kipling, only with Keats and his poetry was difficult for her. She struggled with every word, believing that the original language of a work is dozens of times better than a translation, even if it was a good translation. How can you translate the English caress. magical language She also knew Spanish at home, but it was a language she wanted to forget.

“You're exaggerating, Dr. Bell, but thank you. I still have a lot to learn."
"Are you studying? English?" He immediately regretted the question. She obviously isn't studying now, idiot. 
"Yes, I learned. Um, when I liked a certain book I wanted to read it the way it was written, in the original language, like 'three in one boat.' To sit in front of a close-up dictionary and understand the nuances of the English language. Unfortunately, I don't think I was able to understand everything. Nor did I have anyone to ask. English in school in Israel is not that high."
"You can ask me, anything." He smiled at her, but her smile was already erased.

In the small shop in the center of Carmel, John was looking for a suitable book. It wasn't really a store, more like the stand that sells falafel, only instead of falafel it offered books. The seller's name was Yehoshua, and he liked books and liked to talk about books. He introduced John to his son, Shmuel, whose English was surprisingly good. When John told them he was looking for books in English Shmuel began to climb the ladder, it is not clear how a ladder fit into such a small shed. He had books up to the ceiling. Stacks, stacks of books. Someone from the side would think they were just lying there, but Shmuel and his father knew very well what book was in their bag, and where it was located. John asked him for reading books and poetry, not expecting too much, after all he was in Israel. If he was in London there would be no problem in getting what he wanted. However, there was something magical about searching for one's roots in a distant land.

Sometimes he thought how far he was from home. Israel is fundamentally different from London. I mean, Haifa was different, after all he didn't know other places. Surprisingly, even though the British ruled this country, it is not evident that there are any signs of English culture left here. On the contrary, the young country, younger than his twenty-eight years, already had its own character. Dozens of mixed languages. People of all kinds of colors and customs, like a beautiful colorful painting, and yet, they already had something in common. This land and the Hebrew language that everyone insisted on speaking, each with their own accent.

When he found what he was looking for he smiled broadly. Old edition of Keats, John Keats. Sometimes he wondered why people with the same name as him were meaningful to him. John Keats, John Lennon. And maybe John is just too common a name in England. He flipped through the pages and came to the poem 'Ode on a Greek Urn' and the line he always remembered: "An audible melody will be sweet, the unheard will be sweet from it"(1). How much power is there in such a short sentence. He was impatiently waiting to discuss this with Hila.

He thanked Joshua and Shmuel and paid for the book, not familiar with shekels compared to sterling, but managed. They didn't seem to him like the hawkers on Hatzamtu Street, who you should be careful of and not show the bills in your wallet. John was about to say hello and leave when he saw 'three in one boat' in the pile that Shmuel had taken down from the upper shelves. After Labet bought it too, optimistic that days will indeed come when Hila will be less difficult and you will be able to enjoy this book again. Even though she didn't say it explicitly, he understood that even if she tells him about the past, she still prefers to leave everything that was, there, in the past.

• (1) From "Ode on a Greek Urn" - "Kohav Zohar: A Selection of Poems", John Keats, translated by Eliezra Ig-Zakov, Keshav Leshira Publishing House, 2013.