One More River

644 Words2 Pages

One More River
Can you imagine having to leave everything you have ever known to live in a country on the verge of war? Lesley Shelby, the main character in One More River by Lynn Reid Banks, knows exactly how it feels. This Jewish Canadian girl has to emigrate to Israel with her family. Through the determination and courage of one person we see how challenges, complications, and differences of the world are overcome.
In the story the most important character is Lesley. Lesley is a spoiled, pretty, Jewish, fourteen year old living in Canada. As the story progresses we see Lesley change to a caring and mature person by overcoming the differences in her new life. Two other important characters are Nat Shelby and Mustapha. Lesley’s father, Nat Shelby is the person who decided the family needed to live in Israel. Mr. Shelby decides he doesn’t want his daughter growing up as a spoiled uncaring princess. Mustapha, other important character, is an Arab boy who Lesley watches abuse his donkey across the Jordan River. All the Jews are not supposed to hate Arabs, but Lesley however comes in contact with Mustapha by the river and talks to him as a person not as an enemy. Mustapha made Lesley a more understanding person towards different kinds of people. The character I would most admire is Lesley for her ability to adapt to a new home, country and way of life.
Throughout the book there were many turning points. The war made Lesley really feel a part of Israel and the people. Another turning point was when Lesley was allowed to join the p’oola because she was finally excepted as one of them. The most important turning point is when Lesley, at the end of the book, takes the picture Mustapha threw at her and wrote “a peace between us and between our peoples'; in three languages and stuck it in the wall in Jerusalem. The major conflict in this story was moving to Israel because Lesley threw fits until she secretly visited Noah. (Lesley’s brother who was disowned because he married a catholic girl.) He told her to go and that’s when the conflict stopped. The plot enabled the characters to change. Lesley became excepting of life and the Arabs through events in the plot.
In 1966 the Shelbys lived in Canada and then moved to a center in Israel were they had to learn Hebrew.

Show More
Related

  • The Chosen By Chaim Potok Character Analysis

    619 Words  | 2 Pages

    Three main character that he shows compassion through in different ways are, Reuven, Mr. Malter and Reb Sanders. To begin with, Reuven shows great companion for other, even in his teenage years. He demonstrates throughout the book that he really cares for others and that he takes their burden upon himself. He shows how he actually suffers with others with their hardships and he never only thinks about himself. For example, when Reuven learns that his little friend Billy did not get his eye sight back, the book says, “I felt myself break out into cold sweat.

    Read More

  • Follow the River

    1053 Words  | 3 Pages

    Follow The River by James Alexander Thom is about Mary Ingles gruesome but yet courageous tale of her remarkable 1,000 mile journey home after she had escaped form the captivity of the Shawnee Indians. Through Mary Ingles hard work and determination she proved that all obstacles big and small can be overcome.

    Read More

  • Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin In The Sun

    759 Words  | 2 Pages

    The play depicts the feelings and thoughts of the people of their time. Their feelings are different then what we see today in our lives. The family had to deal with poverty and racism. Not having enough money and always being put down because of the color of their skin held them back from having a lot of self-respect and dignity. I think that Mama was the one who had the most pride and held the family together.

    Read More

  • Shall We Gather At The River Analysis

    481 Words  | 1 Pages

    The hymn, “Shall We Gather at the River” and “The Scarlet Ibis” have similar themes. One of the themes is, one day everything will end, so instead of wanting and wishing for more, appreciate what you have now. The song and short stories have similar themes and morals of stories.

    Read More

  • Symbolism In The River

    1002 Words  | 3 Pages

    To some this story might seem like a tragedy, but to Christians this is a beautiful story. Although young Harry dies at the end, he is accepted into the kingdom of God, which is far superior to anything on Earth. A non-religious family raises him and the first taste of Christianity he gets makes him want to pursue God. In Flannery O’Conner’s short story, The River, the allure of Gods grace and the repelling of sinful ways are shown heavily through Harry.

    Read More

  • On the Rainy River

    1075 Words  | 3 Pages

    Life can bring unexpected events that individuals might not be prepared to confront. This was the case of O’Brien in the story, “On the Rainy River” from the book The Things They Carried. As an author and character O’Brien describes his experiences about the Vietnam War. In the story, he faces the conflict of whether he should or should not go to war after being drafted. He could not imagine how tough fighting must be, without knowing how to fight, and the reason for such a war. In addition, O’Brien is terrified of the idea of leaving his family, friends and everything he loves behind. He decides to run away from his responsibility with the society. However, a feeling of shame and embarrassment makes him go to war. O’Brien considers himself a coward for doing something he does not agree with; on the other hand, thinking about the outcome of his decision makes him a brave man. Therefore, an individual that considers the consequences of his acts is nobler than a war hero.

    Read More

  • June Jordan Many Rivers To Cross Analysis

    622 Words  | 2 Pages

    In June Jordan's essay “Many Rivers to Cross,” Jordan explains how multiple events in her life, including her mother’s death, led her to realize that women should “stand up” and not allow men to control them. The title of the essay is very indicative of the process that she had to go through before she came to this epiphany. Jordan’s husband is a man who is a part of the patriarchy that disrespects women. Her father is another example of a man who doesn’t know better than to oppress women, while Mrs. Hazel Griffin is the antithesis to his misogynistic ideology. Mrs. Griffin is a strong, independent women who doesn't need a man to be happy or successful. Jordan believes that women should be strong, like Hazel Griffin, and not give up when they are being persecuted, rather than being weak and submitting to oppression, like Jordan’s mother.

    Read More

  • The Possibility of Evil by Shirley Jackson

    1090 Words  | 3 Pages

    The theme that has been attached to this story is directly relevant to it as depicted by the anonymous letters which the main character is busy writing secretly based on gossip and distributing them to the different houses. Considering that people have an impression of her being a good woman who is quiet and peaceful, it becomes completely unbecoming that she instead engages in very abnormal behavior. What makes it even more terrible is the fact that she uses gossip as the premise for her to propagate her hate messages not only in a single household but across the many different households in the estate where she stays.

    Read More

  • River God Summary

    959 Words  | 2 Pages

    The novel River God by Wilbur Smith is set in Ancient Egypt, during a time when the kingdoms were beginning to collapse and the Upper and Lower Egypt were separated between two rulers. The story is in the view-point of Taita, a highly multi-talented eunuch slave. At the beginning of the story, Taita belongs to Lord Intef and helps manage his estate along with caring for his beautiful daughter, Lostris. She is in love with Tanus, a fine solider and also Taita’s friend. Unfortunately, Lord Intef despises Tanus’s father, Lord Harrab, and Intef was actually the one who the cause of the fall of Harrab’s estate, unknowingly to Lostris and Tanus. Taita’s goal is to bring back Egypt to its former glory, but with so many bandits and invaders it would be a difficult task.

    Read More

  • The Hiding Place Quotes

    1676 Words  | 4 Pages

    In this book, there are two many conflicts. The first is, of course WWII and hiding the Jews from the Nazis which is an external conflict. There was no way that Bestie or Corrie could do anything about the war but they did everything they could for the Jews and their security. They even put a security system in their house and build a false wall that the Jews could hide behind. They were trusting one another with their lives. Second was an internal conflict, Corrie had to learn how to forgive the people that had done wrong to her. She had many people turn her in to the police, betray her, be externally rude,

    Read More

  • Devil's Arithmetic Book Report

    1410 Words  | 3 Pages

    First is the summary of the book and the movie. Hannah is a young Jewish girl. She was a brat and loathed going to family reunions because all her family talked about was the memory

    Read More

  • Men in The Sun, A Review

    748 Words  | 2 Pages

    The three men in this novel represent the people who abandoned their homeland in search for a better life. This is what happens to people who abandon their homeland, their death is a shameful and undignified death not like the people who die defending their country where they are honored and looked up to. Abul Khaizuran represents the leader who betrays his people by promising them to fulfill their dreams but instead he led them to their death and he only cared to fulfill his personal needs. The road represents the struggle of life the characters go through to reach their dreams and the desert represents the obstacles that keep them for achieving the dreams. The three men had to knock to be saved but the never knocked, the Palestinians need to raise their voice in order to be heard just like knocking on the tank.

    Read More

  • Karen Russell's St. Lucy's Home for Girls Raised By Wolves"

    1181 Words  | 3 Pages

    The story follows three girls- Jeanette, the oldest in the pack, Claudette, the narrator and middle child, and the youngest, Mirabella- as they go through the various stages of becoming civilized people. Each girl is an example of the different reactions to being placed in an unfamiliar environment and retrained. Jeanette adapts quickly, becoming the first in the pack to assimilate to the new way of life. She accepts her education and rejects her previous life with few relapses. Claudette understands the education being presented to her but resists adapting fully, her hatred turning into apathy as she quietly accepts her fate. Mirabella either does not comprehend her education, or fully ignores it, as she continually breaks the rules and boundaries set around her, eventually resulting in her removal from the school.

    Read More

  • Why Is Marsha Forchuk Skrypuch's Dance Of The Banished

    633 Words  | 2 Pages

    The two main characters, Ali and Zeynep, had a very hard life in Anatolia before arriving in Canada. Here, they made very little money, which would show students the reason to why so many immigrants come to Canada. In addition to that, the plot reveals how even when arriving in the new country it was still hard for immigrants. Ali came to Canada expecting to make a living, consequently he was forced to work and was paid very little. This part of the story would inform the students on how hard it was for immigrants during major wars around the world and communicate to them how even once arriving in Canada, it was still terribly difficult to maintain a wealthy life. Moreover, the book gives many points of views on how the conflict affected everyone around them. Evidence of this was shown as the Ali made allies with some of the people who worked for the leaders. It revealed their views on the conflict and what they honestly believed

    Read More

  • God Dies by the Nile, a Review and Summary

    849 Words  | 2 Pages

    This story is focused on one family in the town of Kafr El Teen, especially on the woman of the family. Zakeya and Kafrawi are Brother and sister and the oldest of the house. Karfrawi's daughters also live with them, Zeinab, and Nefissa's. Also at one point Galal, Zakeys son lived with them ( also Zeinabs husband ). This family is put through many struggles mostly placed upon them by the Mayor of the town, who has an obsession with the daughters of Karfawi.

    Read More

More about One More River

Open Document