In June 1941 the German army invaded Lithuania, driving back the Soviet forces. In the village of Mishkine, the Lithuanian partisans seized control and turned on the Jewish population.
Grigory Kanovich Books
Grigorijus Kanovičius was a Soviet prose writer, poet, and dramatist whose works, written in Russian and Lithuanian, often focused on the life of Lithuanian Jews. His prose, particularly his novel trilogy and a cycle of novels dedicated to life in Eastern European shtetls, explores the moral quest, spirituality, and ethical dilemmas of the Jewish people. Kanovičius masterfully depicts the traditional world and mindset of his characters, often through the eyes of a young protagonist, unflinchingly addressing vast historical events like the Holocaust. His style, resembling a lyrical diary and infused with Talmudic dialectics, resonated with readers through profound philosophical reflections on national identity and responsibility.
In Shtetl Love Song Grigory Kanovich writes about his mother and in doing so peels back the surface of the rich community that lived in pre-war Lithuania. It is a requiem for the pre-war Jewish shtetl, for a people and a way of life that was destroyed.