1948 (, Tasha"h) is a 2010 fictionalized autobiographical novel by Israeli writer Yoram Kaniuk. In 2012 it was translated into English by Anthony Berris.1948 by Yoram Kaniuk, translated from the Hebrew by Anthony Berris1948 / Yoram Kaniuk, The Israeli Institute for Hebrew Literature It is based on author's teenage experience of a Palmach fighter in the Harel Brigade during the 1948 Palestine war, known as the War of Independence in Israel.
It was described as "the coming-of-age story that blurs the boundaries between heroism and futility, historical injustice and historical justice."
This hard to read book does not attempt to give a historical narrative, rather the personal experiences of the war, sometimes against its official portrayal. For example, Kaniuk describes how they shot an Arab child after they found their fellow soldier hanged on a tree. Or another, an anticlimactic episode when to a group of soldiers tired to death lying shivering of cold by a dead body came a Palmach "politruk" who told them about the establishment of the state of Israel, and forced them to dance., "תש"ח" מאת יורם קניוק | פוגת המוות, Haaretz, July 9, 2010
In 2011 it was adapted for stage at the Haifa Theatre by ., "תש"ח" של יורם קניוק יעובד למחזה, Haaretz, April 04, 2011
Awards Awards the book earned for the author include: 2011, the Sapir Prize for Literature. 2011: officer of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, Franceעיטור צרפתי יוקרתי הוענק ליורם קניוק על ספרו "תש"ח"
Notes
References