The Return (Mass Market Paperback)

by Sonia Levitin (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Levitin's book is a glorious, heartrending account of Operation Moses, the airlift of Ethiopian Jews from the Sudan into Israel, as seen through the eyes of Desta, 12. Desta's family belongs to a small community of Jews in dire poverty, isolated in the mountains and terrorized by Ethiopia's communist regime. A dream foretells the arrival of other Jews promising freedom in Israel; subsequently Desta's older brother, along with her betrothed, Dan, and his family, are chosen to travel to the Sudan, where they will be flown to Israel. The journey becomes a nightmare for them all. This book will remind readers that there are thousands of children in the world who spend each day in jeopardy. The story ends with Desta and Almaz healing in Jerusalem, but there is a last note that the airlift was stopped, and that many Jews remain trapped in Ethiopia. Ages 10-up.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal
Grade 7 Up Between November, 1984, and January, 1985, a secret airlift dubbed ``Operation Moses'' flew hundreds of refugee Ethiopian Jews to Israel. Levitin's novel tells of how increased religious persecution, forced conscription, and an unwanted arranged marriage drove two young people and their nine-year-old sister to undertake the hazardous journey from their Ethiopian village to an overcrowded refugee camp in Sudan for a chance at a new life in Israel. It is an old-fashioned survival story narrated by a contemporary heroine who is torn between her love for her country and family and the knowledge that home means fear, deprivation, and maybe an early death for her older brother. Tragedy and triumph are interwoven in this rather formally told and sometimes brutally realistic tale that focuses on a people and a culture that is rapidly disappearing. Unfamiliar Amharic and Hebrew terms are made clear in context. A one-page bibliography of adult material is provided for motivated readers. The adventure of the exodus is totally absorbing, and the emotional impact is strong. Amy Kellman, Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Mass Market Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Fawcett (July 12, 1988)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0449702804
• ISBN-13: 978-0449702802
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.3 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (42 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #86,352 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Return. Amanda Matson MSJA August 2, 2002, August 2, 2002

By	Amanda (Allston MA) - See all my reviews

The Return by Sonia Levitin was a very good book. It was a little bit hard to get into, but if you continued to read then you would find that it got more interesting. It is about a girl named Desta who lives in a small village on top of a mountain in Ethiopia. She is a Jew, and in her country that is not a good thing because they are often blamed for things, beaten, or killed. She lives with her Aunt and Uncle (because her parents are dead) her older brother Joas, and her younger sister Almaz.

Desta and her family live a quiet life, until one day when word of a dream that Weizero Channa (an old wise woman from another village) travels to their village. In her dream a "ram" leads his "sheep" to Jerusalem. They believe it, but would not go because of all the dangers they would face traveling because they are Jews. Joas, however, does want to leave and starts saving his money so that he can make the trip. When he talks to Desta of the trip she says there is no real reason why they should go and does not want to have anything to do with it.

Her sign that they should indeed leave soon comes. There is word from another village that men are coming to take the boys and force them to join the army. It is decided that they have to go now to save themselves from bad things or even death. With a group from another village (Kess, Weizero Channa, Dan, who is supposed to marry Desta, and a few others) they start on their hard journey to their freedom, in Jerusalem.

To make it through this journey, they need all the strength and faith they have to make it through all of the hardships. The story is very inspirational. I liked it so much I could not put it down. I recommend this book to anyone who likes to read or has much faith in his or her religion because this story can teach you how your faith can help you through the worst of times.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Return - MSJA, August 26, 2001, August 31, 2001

By	Kathryn Enrici (West Roxbury, MA USA) - See all my reviews

The Return by Sonia Levitin was a really good book. At first I did not want to read it but then as I read it, the book got better and better. It was very interesting to read how Desta lived.
The Return was about a young girl Desta who lived in a high mountain in Ethiopia. She lived with her aunt, uncle, her brother Joas, and her sister Almaz. Desta was Jewish and in Ethiopia the Ethiopians did not like the Jews. They wanted to keep the Jews away from them because they believed that Desta and her people were cursed and wherever they went they would bring bad luck. In Desta's village their soil was not that good so they did not have many crops. They also did not have much money. A lot of the people in Desta's village were leaving the village to go to Jerusalem "the promised land" where they would be free to do as they pleased. In Desta's village they were forbidden to leave and they were not free to do, as they wanted. Guards who made sure that they did not try to leave or get into trouble watched them. At night when no one was looking, some of the people took their families and their belongings and left to go on a long hike to Jerusalem. Desta's brother Joas wanted to leave their village and go to Jerusalem with Desta, Almaz and another group that was leaving. He asked Desta if she would come with him but she was not sure if she wanted to leave her aunt and uncle. She knew her aunt and uncle depended on her to help out but she also knew that they would not be able to come because they would not be able to make the long journey. After thinking for a long time however, she decided to go on the journey.
Weeks past and some strange people came to the village. Nobody knew who they were or what they were doing. Everyone got nervous. Instead of leaving the next day to meet the others in the next village like they planed, Desta's aunt told them to leave right away. So they left and they went as far as they could. They went to the village to meet with the others and the guide who would show them where to go. When they got there, they could not find the others. A lady told them that they already left because they heard that strangers were going to come and nobody knew who they were. The others left because they thought that if they waited for Desta and her family they would not be able to leave without getting caught. Joas told them that if they could walk really fast and not rest that maybe they could catch up. So they left.
After days of walking they thought that they saw the others. Joas told them to stay and not to move till he got back to see who was making a fire. So Almaz and Desta waited for him. After a couple of hours they saw a figure in the moonlight. It was Joas. He had been shot and was bleeding really badly. Desta tried to help but it was no use. Joas died. Desta could not stay there so she buried her brother and left to go on their long journey without him.
They were walking for days when they found a market. They needed food so they stopped and saw some of their friends Dan, Kess Haim, Melake and Weizero Channa from the group that they were supposed to have gone with. Desta and Almaz went with them and after more walking they finally reached the boarder. At the boarder they had to make a run for it because if they were caught they would be imprisoned and killed. They were going to make a run for it but then one of the guards came out. Dan ran and went right in front of the guard to distract him while everyone else ran. Dan was captured and the others made it to the other side. When Desta and everyone else stopped to take a rest, they realized what had happened and what Dan had done for them and their safety. They were really saddened by the loss of their friend but they went on. They found the camp that they were to go to where they would get shelter and food. They were there for weeks. After a while, a little boy told them about an airplane that would take them to Jerusalem. On the night that the plane was to come, Desta made sure that Almaz, Dan's grandmother and herself were first in line. They made it and got to Jerusalem. They stayed in a nice hotel and were well taken care of. They finally could start their new life were they would be free.
I thought that this book was really good, especially if you like books about the Jews and the struggles they went through

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars MSJA- The Return, September 6, 2000

By	Chrysten Fahey (Medford, MA United States) - See all my reviews

The Return was about a Ethiopian Jewish girl who left Ethiopia with her brother and sister so they could start a new life in Jerusalem. The book was good but at some parts it was too detailed and became less interesting. I learned the differences in their customs, like their holidays and how Desta was betrothed to Dan when they were first born. The book in some parts was very sad, for example, when Joas was shot and Desta and Almaz were left alone in the mountains to search for the others, when Dan risked his life so they could cross the border into Sudan, and when the author described the condition of the refugee camp in Sudan and the people in it. Desta was lucky because they got out; some of the other people there had no hope of everleaving. Desta, Joas, and Dan were very brave risking escaping with not only themselves but carrying Weizero Channa and Almaz. I was happy at the end when they reached Jerusalem safly and started going to school, making new friends, and learning new customs and language. It was also good when they met Dan again when he reached Jerusalem. The end was sad again when they found out that the operation that was getting the people out of Ethiopia and Sudan was stopped. The other Jews would not be able to escape.