Zmira and the police officers wander through the impoverished neighborhoods of Holon during those days, encountering tough characters trying to make a living and survive. Some have fallen into a life of crime, while others managed to escape the neighborhood. Miri and Zmira are childhood friends from the kindergarten, where they celebrated their birthdays together, marking the last time anyone celebrated their birthdays. They grew up and stayed in the neighborhood, facing all the difficulties and challenges.
Gradually, we discover what they have been through: a father who left home, an unwanted pregnancy, parental neglect, leaving school to work, and more. All of this is happening against the backdrop of war: sirens and running to shelters, relentless news updates, uncertainty, and worry about the soldiers in combat.
Many police officers are recruited to the IDF, and Zmira and Dalia, station clerks, cope with a flood of volunteers who come to help and assist those in need, working around the clock without a break.
Beyond the simple and thrilling plot, Shelach successfully recreates the period and atmosphere. We have already forgotten that there were no mobile phones or even phones at home, only public phones and phones in businesses through which contact could be made and updates received. This kind of communication is so critical in times of emergency and changes how everyone operates.
There is still no television in the country, and certainly no internet. Those who want to stay updated must buy a transistor radio or settle for reading newspapers, a pace of updates that we wouldn't survive with today.
Shelach succeeds very well in immersing us in the atmosphere of those days and introducing us to the characters, their worlds, and their struggles back in the year 1967, far removed from the reality of our days. In doing so, she provides us with proportions and a different perspective on our lives today.
Without giving any spoilers, I will just say that the mystery is solved, and Zmira is the one who unravels it. This is another book that is hard to put down once you start reading it, a highly recommended escapism during these very hot (in every sense) days we are experiencing.
"Don't Call Me Umm Kulthum" by Yochi Shelach, 297 pages, published by "Am Oved."
