Death Of A Monk
(Alon Hilu)
Death of A Monk is a historic novel based on the 1840 Damascus Affair. It should be noted that a great part of the book is a mixture of facts and fantasy, as the author himself admits at the end of the book (the imaginary issues are specified in the epilogue). In reality, male members of two of the most prominent Jewish families in Damascus were arrested and accused of murdering Thomas, a Franciscan friar, and his Greek servant, both of whom had mysteriously disappeared, and using their blood for a religious ritual. Their ensuing condemnation was maintained by the false testimony recounted by Aslan Farhi, a young member of one of the two families, who testified that he had witnessed the alleged murder. His declaration was apparently forced out of him under torture. Word of the trial and accusation reached Europe and finally, following the intercession of Sir Moses Haim Montefiore, Adolphe Cremieux(French Jewish diplomat, amongthe founders of the Alliance Israelite Universelle (Kol Yisrael Haverim)organization) and other notaries, all the men except one who had committed suicide were completely exculpated. According to Hilu?s novel, the monk died in the course of an especially vigorous homosexual act with Aslan, who then dismembered the monk?s corpse and threw it into the river. Aslan maligned his family in revenge for their mistreatment and ostracism because of his homosexuality. All these sexual issues are the author?s fabrication, not based on any known facts. The book is exceptionally well written, and the plot absorbs the reader. However, sensitive readers might abhor the detailed sexual descriptions that appear in abundance in the book,and the description of how the monk?s body was carved into pieces. To all others I highly recommend the book.A Hebrew review of the original Hebrew book an be found at http://he.shvoong.com/books/475952-???-?????/
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