Whakakihia te rerenga e whai ake nei: I whanau a Ervin Appelfeld i Jadova Commune, Storojineț County, i te rohe o Bukovina o te Basileia o Romania, inaianei ko Ukraine. I roto i tētahi uiuinga ki te kairangahau pukapuka, a Nili Gold, i te tau 2011, i mahara ia ki tōna taone kāinga i tēnei rohe, a Czernowitz, he wāhi "tino ataahua", ki tonu i ngā kura, me ngā whare hākinakina Latina e rua, e rima tekau ki te ono tekau ōrau o te taupori he Hurai. I te tau 1941, i te iwa o ona tau, ka riro anō i te ope taua o Romania tōna tāone i muri i te
kotahi tau o te noho a te Soviet, a ka patua tona whaea. I whakahekea a Appelfeld me tona papa ki tetahi puni mahi takoha i roto i te mana Romanian-a-Rumania. I mawhiti ia, i huna hoki mō ngā tau e toru i mua i tana whakauru atu ki te ope Soviet hei tunu kai. Whai muri i te Pakanga Tuarua o te Ao, i noho a Appelfeld i etahi marama i roto i te puni rerenga i Itari i mua i tana heke ki Palestine i te 1946, e rua tau i mua o te mana motuhake o Iharaira. I hui tahi ia me tona papa i muri i te kitenga o tona ingoa i runga i te rarangi o te Tari Hurai i te tau 1960. (I whakaarohia e ia kua mate tona papa, a i whakaarohia e tona papa kua mate ano a Aharon i te Holocaust. I haere takitahi rāua ki Īharaira i muri i te pakanga.) I tukuna te papa ki te "ma'abara" (whare rerenga) i Be'er Tuvia. I tino pāngia te hui, ā, kāore anō a Appelfeld kia taea te tuhi kōrero mō taua hui.