The Language of Angels : A Story About the Reinvention of Hebrew

 It isn't easy being the child of a visionary. Ben-Zion's father is Eliezer Ben-Yehuda, a man determined to revive Hebrew as a living, everyday language—even though most of his fellow Jews in 19th-century Jerusalem accuse him of sacrilege and are content speaking Yiddish or the languages of their native lands. Eliezer insists on raising Ben-Zion as the first native speaker of modern Hebrew, which makes for tense family moments and a lonely childhood. But gradually, father and son persuade other children that speaking Hebrew might not be such a bad idea, and that they can have a hand in building the language "word by word." Gudeon (Grandma's Wedding Album) turns Hebrew letters and words into graphic elements that dance across the pages and frame the text, although it's not enough to counter the wooden feel of her vignettes. But Michelson (Fascinating: The Life of Leonard Nimoy) knows how to turn a complex story into both a brain tickler (how do you invent a word for "ice cream" or "bicycle"?) and a compelling emotional journey. Endnotes provide additional context, including where Michelson's story diverges from the historical record.
—Publishers Weekly


The ancient Hebrew language enters the modern world. In 1885 Jerusalem, a young boy named Ben-Zion cannot converse with the polyglot children of his age because his father has decreed that he speak only Hebrew, "the first child in more than two thousand years" to do so. The father, Eliezer Ben-Yehuda, is a Zionist immigrant to Palestine and fervently believes that Jews from every country, speaking so many different languages, should return to the language of their ancestors and of Jewish Scripture. Ben-Zion is not popular in the neighborhood; some consider Hebrew a holy tongue to be used only in prayer. The father persists and finds that he needs to invent words to modernize the ancient language. Thus, by combining the Hebrew words for "wheel" and for "a pair of" he creates a word for bicycle. Ben-Yehuda's work leads to a network of schools, a dictionary, and the eventual designation of Hebrew in 1948 as the national language of Israel. Michelson's account, based on history, is presented as a story with invented dialogue, which he addresses in his author's note. Gudeon's digitized watercolor illustrations, full of children, are lively and feature Hebrew words and letters as part of the page design. A lively introduction to the work of a Hebrew language scholar and lover—and his family. - Kirkus Reviews