The Camel Trail

Read the first few chapters

The first five chapters set the scene in The Camel Trail. Read them here.

Chapter 1 begins with Anna in 1944. She finds a strange letter and a treasure that leads her to thinking about her grandfather David. His story of his boyhood begins in Chapter 3.

If you like what you read, you can continue to find out what happens by ordering the book from Amazon.co.uk or from Amazon.com price £10.99 (ISBN 978-0-9517220-2-2)

Exploring the past

How did The Camel Trail come to be published? The story of the Levy family is one of intrigue and mystery. There are indisputable facts, documented in newspapers and hand-written notebooks. There are a few letters but no-one is alive who remembers what happened to David Levy. What is certain is that the event of January 1st 1837 affected not only his life, but the lives of his wife, his daughter and his grand-daughter.

The idea of weaving fact with fiction came from a memory of my mother darning socks. Using a wooden ‘mushroom’ pushed inside each sock she used to darn the holes, covering them with a neat criss-cross of fine woollen threads. (People don’t darn socks any more. They try to match up those that haven’t got swallowed up by the washing machine and throw away any with holes in them. Then they go and buy another pair from Marks & Spencer for the same price as a sandwich.) My mother never talked much about her grandfather except to tell me one extraordinary thing about his life. I started to piece together the events, starting in 1837, tracing journeys through the Middle East and Southern Europe. When I started to write the story I realized I would have to do some ‘darning’ to fill in the gaps.

The family settled in London and lived as English Jews. They brought with them a treasure which was passed on through five generations. This treasure - the ‘camel teapot‘ - ended up in Boston where the narrative ends.

I have taken the true story, changed the names and woven in many threads by adding the thoughts and emotions that no archive could provide. For the detail I relied on a single newspaper cutting and a few letters and documents. The extracts at the beginning of the chapters come from authentic journals and books. The recipes reflect a great interest in food that started with my great grandfather. Cooking was not just a necessity. It was an expression of a spirit of generosity; feeding people meant gathering together and celebrating any event important enough to merit more than an ordinary weekday meal.

So here is the story. The research took me to many countries and a picture emerged of the Levy family life in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. I have recounted the events as they happened.

More extracts from the book

David

‘In the remains of Safed there was no point in shedding tears. In every tent, someone had survived with only a memory of a soft cheek or a gentle touch.’

‘It is a matter of considerable sadness that on that fateful day I made the wrong decisions. I have lived with a feeling of guilt for all these years.’

Anna

‘If we’re to be married I need to ask you.... I have to know. Do you like onions?’

‘...but for Anna it was a disaster, what she always referred to as the ‘fiasco of my wedding day.’

Rachel

‘I couldn’t take my eyes off the lapels and the buttons as I was trying so hard not to look at his face. My frock had a close fitting bodice. It was fastened by hooks and eyes at the back.’

‘I looked up at him. His eyes were sparkling and he was so clearly happy at the thought of this grand event that I felt an immense rush of pity and guilt sweeping over me. I remembered what he had said when he asked me to marry him: “We’ll have a better life together”.

Laurent

'But how can you stay with him, when your heart feels like this for me?’

Nathan

‘Clothes don’t matter. Shoes are what people look at. Educated people don’t have dirty shoes.’

‘Nathan was following a train of thought that would lead him to explain why he never wanted to go to Bournemouth.’

‘It was only after his marriage that Nathan had felt able to talk about his sister’s disappearance. He relived that morning in 1910 and then he never spoke of it again.’

Dina

‘They only make one kind of pastry, called pasteis de nata. They are the most delicious things I have ever eaten. Three or four aren’t quite enough but five are just too much’.

‘I opened the telegram slowly and read each word several times. It dropped from my hand and I collapsed on the floor.’

‘I believed that if enough tears drained from my body, there would be nothing left and I would die too.’

‘In some moments I feel that I have always lived on the periphery of life. The good things always seemed to be happening to someone else.’

‘I blame myself for never coming to terms with my loss. It affected the whole family.’

The narrator

’Immediately after a death, close relatives are obliged to perform Keri’a, the rending of a garment.’

‘An object - like the silver teapot - can be handed from one generation to another. We have no control over the genes that we pass on, but we have the power to nurture an inclination towards sadness or happiness.’

‘Memories deceive us: in our mind an event may seem real - but how much of it is embellished with the telling, diminished by shame or embarrassment, or even overheard in conversation and accepted as true?’

Cooking and eating in the 19th century

Middle class families in England would advertise for a 'Plain Cook'. Jewish food was never plain: full of savoury tastes, spices and a flavour that often came from long slow cooking.

The fried fish in the British speciality fish and chips came originally from Spain. Though it is served hot in restaurants or take-aways, the Jewish version is usually cold. This comes as a surprise to those who are not familiar with it, but the idea (which came from not cooking on the Sabbath) actually improves the taste of the fish.

Some of the oldest recipes in the book are based on Portuguese cakes and desserts. By any standards they are extremely sweet. It has been said that you can halve the amount of sugar in any recipe and it will still be too sweet! There are three ingredients which recur constantly: egg yolks, sugar and fresh vanilla. In The Camel Trail you'll find how to make yemma. If you try nothing else from the book, you should make this. Or, find a Portuguese bakery and buy pasteis de nata.

Searching for old recipes

Television chefs like Delia Smith and Jamie Oliver have produced some eye-catching food. Part of their appeal is to make the presentation and serving look easy. Yet many of their dishes are based on classic recipes. The food may be similar to what was eaten in the past but the way it is brought to the table couldn't be more different.

The Rare Books room at the British Library has a wonderful collection of old cookery books and a surprising number of facts. Mrs. Beeton, for example, wasn't an elderly lady - she died at the age of 28 and compiled her famous book of household management while living in a large house with servants in Hatch End, Middlesex.

'The Dinner Question' or 'How to Dine Well and Economically' was written in 1860 by Tabitha Tickletooth. The author was, in fact, an actor called Charles Selby. The esteemed Alan Davidson who compiled The Oxford Companion to Food said the book 'combined a talent for wit with practicality in the kitchen, a scientific approach to cooking and prowess as a scholar.'

Sex scenes in the book

Or why there aren't any

There are no explicit sex scenes in The Camel Trail. Why not? Elizabeth Benedict, in her book The Joy of Writing Sex says: "The most important things in our intimate lives can't be discussed with strangers, except in books." So why haven't I included powerful erotic scenes? The first reason is maternal modesty. I have four sons and twelve grandchildren - I need say no more. Then, I have read enough bad sex scenes to know that it is hard to create good ones. Finally, I was encouraged by writers like Flaubert. His attention to all the senses is so exact and exquisite, he can write a powerful erotic scene with no physical contact. It helps that he is a genius.

Book group discussion guidelines

Discussion points

1. The novel spans nearly 150 years and covers four generations. Which of those did you find most compelling and why?

2. Some of the characters' actions have long-term, far reaching ramifications. Which single decision had the most impact on the story?

3. David's story begins in 1834. Could you imagine an entirely different life if he had:

(a) become a doctor
(b) stayed in Gibraltar

4. Put yourself in Rachel's shoes.  Did she make the right decision in giving up Laurent? Would it have been possible for her to continue the secret relationship? What might have happened if she had left David?

5. Do you have sympathy with Dina? Do you think she was strong or selfish?

6. Anna is the link between the generations. Are you sympathetic to her feelings of resentment?
Should she have acted differently, for example when her mother forbade her to travel, when she finally discovered the will?

7. Who do you think are the stronger characters, the men or the women? In their religious observance who was most influential in passing on their beliefs and practices?

8. How do you think that food affected the characters? (for example David and Rachel had such different views on entertaining, as did Anna and Nathan). Do you think the recipes and entries from the notebooks hide or heighten what is happening in the characters' lives?

9. What effect do external experiences have on characters, for example the earthquake on David, the war on Anna and Nathan? Did their experiences make them stronger or less able to deal with friction in their lives?

10. What difference would it have made, if David had not hidden his secret?