My Russian Grandmother and Her American Vacuum Cleaner: A Family Memoir

Warm, amusing, lyrical. Shalev loves his family and it comes through in this gentle and meandering memoir of his visits to his grandparent's moshav in the early pioneering days of Israel's birth as a nation.His grandmother receives a vacuum cleaner as a present from a brother in America. It is a monumental present and one that cannot be taken lightly. The gift is central to Shalev's story and he weaves his memories around the effect that it has on his grandmother and her obsession with keeping her house spotless.Magical and fanciful to the end - I smiled all the way through!

This was a fun memoir, nominally about Shalev's somewhat larger than life grandmother, who emigrated to Palestine in 1923, and her lifelong struggle with frontier dust. But more than just her grandmother, it's a story about what it meant to build a farm, living through all the trials and tribulations of being an immigrant pioneer before and after the founding of the modern Israeli state. It's also a true family memoir, detailing Shalev's upbringing, and the characters (including livestock) that make up his extended family. And even though the timeline includes the founding of Israel and the many wars, this memoir clearly deliberately stays away from all the wars and the politics that surrounded them.

The plot of the novel takes place in the 20ies of the last century in Palestine. A young Russian Jewish settler, her complete aversion to any home of dirt and dust, and intricate procedures that she developed to uphold cleanliness in the house, are depicted by Meir Shalev, a famous Israeli writer, her grandson. Place, where the Jewish pioneers "moshavniki" lived, is all clay and marshland; however, the Zionist spirit took precedence over neurosis inhereted by immigrants from Europe. The heroine Tonya Ben-Barak and her never-ending battle against dirt, has been heartily and humorously described in this novel. In this fascinating chronicle, along with competing and sometimes apocryphal family legends, history and fiction have joined together. The book, "My Russian Grandmother and her American Vacuum Cleaner " is a fascinating English translation from Hebrew, representing a masterpiece by itself. In further reading, Tonya accepted the pioneer spirit and contributed to the flourishing of the Jewish homeland. She is a disciplined worker who expects from everyone else living on the farm, including animals, such an effort. Chicken, which puts too few eggs, is risking to appear in the menu for Saturday dinner. Tony's life could have been very different if she had emigrated to America as her husband's brother Aaron, Yeshayahu, did. Alas, this did not happen: Tonya remains committed to the Jewish dream; and, as any stubborn personality needs an enemy, her enemy is the dirt. Tonya's own house, where the everyday life is intertwined with the fighting dirt and dust, and where even her family aren't allowed , a mythical object is hidden in backrooms. The object remains a mystery even for her children for many years. The General Electric Vacuum Cleaner that had been shipped from Los Angeles by a brother of her husband, a successful American businesman, represents a core, around which the main intrigue is revolving. Sequentially opening the secret of the vacuum cleaner, the author takes the reader along, describing the characters and events in elaborate, full of irony language. The story of Grandma Tonia and her "swipper" is written in the genre of a family detective, where all are to stay alive.

I enjoyed every word of this brilliant book. It is so human, so real. Meir Shalev always shows humour in his work but this book had me laughing our loud. And I loved the insight into the history of moshavim like Nahalal - the refusal to take money from a rich uncle and the uncle`s hilarious revenge; the gossip and the way the horse led the cart with the vacuum cleaner the long way round the circle of houses so that everyone would see and hear it. And also the pathos, the conflicts. I would recommend this book to everyone who who has a sense of humour and particularly those who have forgotten those pioneers who were the salt of the earth

The author is a good story teller and comes from a family of good story tellers but it is hard to relate to the story and it is not particularly amusingto read about this mean Grandmother.

I loved this book and enjoyed reading something that made me chuckle and uplifted. Having lived in Israel for many years, I could relate to the trials and tribulations that occurred in building a thriving community. The war against dirt is hilarious and brought back memories. I loved hearing about Meir Shalev's family and history. His reflections on family stories, what is "truth", points of view, family dynamics still linger with me. After reading this book, I spoke to my oldest grandchild about what he knew about me, his grandmother. I encouraged him to ask questions, so that he could be the future story teller in our family and keep memories alive for the five other grandchildren. The translator of this book should receive kudos. This book read like poetry.

Loved the quirky but realistic family dynamics with all the characters and it took me back to those days years ago full of layered relationships in my own family across four generations. Great book for a Jewish themed book club. Our book club loved the book. Easy read and many themes to pick up and discuss.

I really enjoyed this book. The grandmother is a complex character: likable at times and an obsessive neurotic grandmother in other times. The story described how tough life was for the farmers who lived on the Moshav. They worked all the time and struggled to provide for their families. At the same time the family bonds describe a loving family that helps and nurtures each other. There is a continuum. Through the stories and the unique expressions, the memory of family members are preserved and gets passed to the next generation. The stories, the family, and time, all come together and create a unique but also universal tale. I highly recommend this book.

Very touching, loving, and funny memoir about the author’s grandmother, early pioneer in pre-1948 Israel. It gives one a taste of early immigrants’ families, the traditions they brought with them, the courage required, and the love for each other.

A terrific easy read. I really enjoyed every moment I spent on it. I recommend it to all those who are into memoirs.

I love Meir Shalev and this is my first time reading his book in English (usually reading in Hebrew) - very good translation, sentimental funny heart warming book, which takes me back to my childhood in Israel. I have recommended this book to my Mother , who can easily pass as a "Savta Tonia" in her own special way.

Was ok and slow. Expected more

I was rather disappointed with this book. It would make a good short story. I just wanted the author to stop rambling and get on with the tale.