Tale
Le Bestiaire du Ghetto
Not translated into English
Ryvel · 1934
Synopsis
Thirty-eight tales, most of them very short, about what the Jews of Tunis say of animals and of their relations with men, placed under the patronage of King Solomon, who understood their language. The donkey and the louse, the owl that brings bad luck, the fish that brings good luck, the horse and the fly each have their story, and Djéha moves among them. A tale of the nights of Selihoth brings in the Œubeïta, a creature born of the blood of a violent death, which takes on the appearance of the synagogue beadle.
Context
The collection appeared in Tunis in 1934 from the éditions de la Kahéna, in ninety-four pages, with two compositions by the painter Jules Lellouche. It continues the collaboration of uncle and nephew begun five years earlier. The texts are not signed individually: one of them, the tale of the Œubeïta, had appeared as early as 1930 under the name Ryvel. A digitised copy can be consulted online.
Who it is for
A collection of short tales, easily accessible, which assumes at least a knowledge of the existence of the Hara.
Prizes and reception
Studied in work on Judeo-Tunisian letters in French, it remains a first-hand source on this urban folklore.
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The pages consulted to check this page.