The book contains two novellas:
Third Wind
Adam Kaminski was busy painting one of his dreary landscapes, when a knock on the door interrupted him. Lonely and bitter, Adam caged himself in his house on the top of a hill in Rosh Pina, disconnected from society. No-one in Rosh Pina has spoken to the crazy old man for over twenty years. That's why he was puzzled by the knocking. Who dared interrupting his desolate life routine?
At the door stood Daniel, a lively and energetic seventeen-year-old, who claimed to be his grandson. Their lives intersected and nothing remained the same. Daniel's contagious energy affected the old man in surprising ways. It opened him up to re-engage with life and acquire a new wind that would propel him forward and drive him to dig deep into his past.
Delicately told through thoughtful conversations, the story unfolds, and we learn about Adam's life story and the background to his sourness.
This intimate story portrays the intersection of three generations and three different life perspectives: A Holocaust survivor, a post-war generation, and a third generation born into a free world. While discussing life values, they influence each other, discover their differences and similarities, and find a third wind together.
Three Oceans Away - Synopsis
On her sixtieth birthday, Leonora decided to leave everything behind and move to the other side of the world, as far away as she could from her source of pain. Seeking to forget the past and restart her life, she traveled to Cooktown, at the tropical far north of Australia. There she could enjoy the rewards of the aquamarine waters, the slow pace of life, and again practice her art.
At the public library, where she usually went to read the recent newspaper, she met Mori, a regular library visitor, who she sat next to without saying a word for many months. When one day Mori did not show up, her curiosity overcame her fear. "Hello Sir... I noticed that you were not here for a few weeks..."
This short, reluctant conversation turned into a long and deep friendship. Or possibly a love story?
As the story unfolds, we discover Leonora and Mori's life stories, their source of attraction and the background to their pain. As we follow their lives, we move between Krakow, Los Angeles, Buenos Aires, Brisbane, Melbourne, and Cooktown.
This intimate story portrays the intersection of two lives, so different and conflicting, that they would otherwise be unlikely to connect. It provides two different perspectives on life and on historical events, allowing the characters to learn and change through their shared trauma.
