The Review of Contemporary Fiction

Returning Lost Loves by Yehoshua Kenaz
Leslie Cohen

Yehoshua Kenaz. Returning Lost Loves. Steerforth, 2001. 263 pp. Paper: $14.00.

Alienation runs like a wild animal through Kenaz’s apartment-jungle in Tel Aviv. Each character lives beside rather than with his or her partner, and, just as parallel lines never meet, there is no possibility of a meeting of the minds. Relationships that the reader expects to be based on mutual understanding, such as those of husband and wife, lovers, friends, father and son, or business partners, are totally devoid of intimacy or trust. In sharp contrast, several characters have strong emotional bonds with their dogs: one young woman “can hear the neighbor talking to his dog, she can’t hear what he’s saying but his voice is the voice of a lover.” At first, it seems as if the people in Returning Lost Loves are only superficially related to each other, in that they are co-tenants in the same apartment building. About halfway through the book, it becomes clear that a mysterious criminal act is being planned and that a hidden link connects all of the neighbors, who are of diverse ages, social groups, and backgrounds, and who do not particularly like each other. In the end, alienation proves to be the strongest player. It motivates the book’s dramatic climax, as it has motivated all of the other actions of the principal characters. In his very thorough exploration of alienation, Kenaz has created many poignant verbal portraits, depicting the subject in evocative language. The translation is good, allowing the reader to comprehend the imprisonment of each of the characters in his or her own private hell. The story turns out to be far more complex and thought-provoking than this reader had anticipated. [Leslie Cohen]