Hadaras small Israeli village has one of everything: one grocer, one nurse, and one junk dealer. Hadaras only distinction is that shes the only child without a mother. She decides that its time to make a name for herself and escape her loneliness. Monsieur Maurice, the village shoemaker, sparks Hadaras imagination by telling her about Jews in his homeland who could fly. Hadara cajoles him into giving her flying lessons. But as her lessons go on, Hadara learns that she cant escape from the loneliness of not having a mother. Flying Lessons is a poignant coming-of-age story that explores the importance of dreams and reality, and the delicate balance between them.
Nava Semel was an acclaimed Israeli author who published more than twenty works of fiction, poetry, and memoir. She was the winner of the American National Jewish Book Award for Literature (1990), the Women Writers of the Mediterranean Award (1994), the Prime Minister's Prize (1996), and Tel Aviv's Literary Woman of the Year (2007). Her books were translated into many languages and published in Germany, France, Italy, China, Poland, and the US.