הנה ביקורת נהדרת על ספרי "כשהמתים חזרו," שפרסם עדי שטמברגר בג'רוזלם פוסט:
When the Dead Returned
by Ilan Sheinfeld, Kinneret, Zmora-Bitan –
This is simply one of the best books I have read so far this
year. Sheinfeld uses rich and inventive language to tell the
story of a Jewish family from Eastern Europe, which is also
the story of Zionism, East European Judaism in general,
and in particul
ar, its messianic aspirations. The historical
background is accurate and true-to-life, the characters
fascinating and the plot moves quickly and grabs you from
the first page. But that is not all. In this almost-perfect novel,
food serves an important role as the glue that keeps people
together – sons and daughters to their parents, grooms to their
brides, sisters and brothers to each other. Food, even more
than religion or common fate is what binds the whole Jewish
community together and serves as common ground between
Jews, even from very faraway places across the globe. And
if, like me, you’re of Eastern European origin, you will
instantly be filled with tearful memories and longings at the
descriptions of that wonderful comfort food our grandmothers
used to make for us – the krupnik soup, the stuffed helseleh,
the brown and fragrant cholent ( ןימח) and the fruit compote. I
can smell them all right now.
