THE STONE OF PEACE

Moroccan born David's first experiences on kibbutz Daroma located far in the Negev of Israel left him with a strange feeling of inferiority. In the confusion of a dining room fire he sees the opportunity for escape and, after an insufferable hike in the hot sun, he winds up in the camp of a Bedouin tribe where he meets and befriends Ahmed, a young Arab boy. When David is finally retrieved by the kibbutz calvarium he is able to indicate the real thieves who have been harassing the kibbutz and to inspire his Israeli friends to make peace with their Arab neighbors. How the children of the settlement subsequently show the way toward friendly relations with Ahmed and the Bedouins, climaxed by a thrilling hunt into the mountains, brace an ostensibly exciting adventure tale with a vital moral undertone. H. R. Kousbroek's translation from the Dutch communicates the author's understanding of the kibbutz, its problems and people, of the Arabs who wander across the land, their customs and beliefs, in a provocative story for both a male and female audience.