I Am David - Anne Holm
First published in Danish, 1963. Translated by LW Kingsland.
This is a book that was recommended by a friend on Facebook after I published one of my end-of-year lists. Seeing it on a library shelf at school gave me the opportunity to finally check it out, and I can see why it was recommended.
The story is a fairly straightforward one, but interesting. David has grown up in a concentration camp, but is helped to escape by one of the guards, for reasons David doesn't understand. He flees the unnamed country where the camp has been, travels by ship to Italy, and then begins making his way north towards Denmark, following the guard's instructions.
David is - understandably - very wary of anybody he meets. He is always assuming that 'they' are after him, and anyone who acts suspiciously becomes a 'them' in his eyes. If David considers someone 'evil' he is likely to react strongly and antagonistically towards them. He also has to learn about everything in the outside world for the first time, at one point experiencing his first orange in amazement.
Although this might seem as though David is a bit ignorant, he has been taught a lot back in the concentration camp, particularly by his friend Johannes. Johannes was interested a lot in David's character, and teaches him important life lessons such as: "Politeness is something you owe other people, because when you show a little courtesy, everything becomes easier and better. But first and foremost it's something you owe yourself. You are David. And if you never allow other people to influence what you're really like, then you've something no one can take from you - not even they. Never mind what others are like - you must still be David. Do you understand what I mean?" (page 92). Along with these character-building lessons, David has learned multiple languages fluently, which helps him immensely as he crosses from country to country, although he speaks so well that in fact this makes him suspicious on occasion.
An element of the story that I didn't expect is David's faith journey. Early on, he comes across a church, and although he is too nervous to enter it, he decides he needs a god of his own and begins to pray to "God of the green pastures and running waters." It is a sweet and growing faith journey - at times David feels he needs to 'earn' the support of God, while at other times he asks God not to intervene when he feels he needs to do something for himself.
A number of encounters with people - both good and bad - dress the story up a little, allowing David to face both joy and tragedy on his journey. The ending may seem a little 'convenient', but in some ways this is the point - David has journeyed largely by faith, and has ended up right where he is supposed to be.
A very enjoyable book.
Completed 19 February 2024.
Previous Book ~ Next Book
Comments
Post a Comment