Sandy Tolan's The Lemon Tree is a touching, emotional look at the age old Israeli and Palestinian conflict in the Middle East. The novel is a chain of mini-stories of individuals involved in one way or another with the conflict. There is very little dialog, and is mostly just narrated stories with small bits of dialog weaved in.
The Lemon Tree centers around the Israeli and Palestinian conflict, but from a very unique angle. Sandy Tolan does an excellent job portraying the human experience through this conflict. She does not come out and plainly say it in the text, but readers can grasp the true emotions of those involved in the conflict.
I saw the Lemon Tree as a metaphor for the conflict itself. The standing tree is the conflict, where each season of fruit that grows and is picked from the tree, are those who lived and have died during it. Each person is connected through it, just like the lemons on the tree.
The writing style of this novel, is not one that I liked. I would've prefered more dialog and a more consistant storyline throughout. At times it was confusing and choppy going from story to story. It paid of because it worked well for the Lemon Tree's theme, it's just not the style I enjoy. Dialog would've also helped. It would've painted a clearer picture and perhaps made the story transitions smoother.
However, I realy enjoyed the book overall. I liked Tolan's underlying message of peace and an end to the conflict. And even without much dialog there was still strong characterization. By actions alone, readers can really get to know the characters.
I enjoyed reading this book, and while I'm not sure if I would pick it back up for a second read, I would encourage everyone to check it out. The Lemon Tree is a quality novel, and is a great fit for anyone interested in history or the Middle East.
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