I am
David. “That looks interesting,” I thought after
reading the back cover. That’s one thing about shopping at an op shop where
books cost 20c each – you grab everything that looks interesting, because there
isn’t much to lose. I didn’t recognize the cover, but I realized later I’d read
up about I am David before, and marked
it as ‘to-read’.
I am
David is the story of a boy called David. (I know, surprise!) He grew up in a prison camp,
under the guard of them, and he
doesn’t know how, or why, he got there. He gleans pieces of information from
other prisoners who come and go, but he’s trained himself not to think. His
exposure though, means he can speak and understand several languages. One day,
David escapes, and begins a trek across countries, following directions given
to him. Along the way, he has some narrow escapes, and several adventures. All
the time though, he’s worried that they are
just behind him, and he works carefully to be as inconspicuous as possible. He
also tries to remember everything he can about life in the outside world,
wishing he had paid more attention to what the other prisoners talked about.
But he manages, and he learns fast. Along the way he also learns who he is, and
where he is going.
David is a deep thinker, and some of his
insights are quite profound. He often remembers statements someone called
Johannes told him, and he seeks to live by them. For example:
“But
Johannes had said, ‘Politeness is something you owe other people, because when
you show a little courtesy, everything becomes easier and better. But first and
foremost it’s something you owe yourself. You are David. And if you never allow
other people to influence what you’re really like, then you’ve something no one
can take from you – not even they. Never
mind what others are like – you must still be David. Do you understand what I
mean?’” p92
To me, that is a powerful sentence: “If you
never allow other people to influence what you’re really like, then you’ve
something no one can take from you.” David lives by that rule, and that’s why
he can say, I am David.
Because David has grown up in a dull prison
camp, he knows nothing else. Things we take for granted, he sees as wonderful,
and worth examining and exclaiming over. He’d never heard music before, he’d
never seen a bed before. And he couldn’t understand how children didn’t like
being clean or going to school, or appreciate the fine meals.
David’s relationship with his God of the
green pastures and still waters is so sweet. Part way along his journey, David decides
he needs a God. So he thinks about all the gods he’s heard about, and finally
settles on one another David had once mentioned – a God of the green pastures
and still waters. David talks to God, and asks for help when he runs into
trouble. Then David feels he ought to repay God for all the help He’s given, so
he does something for God. Along the
way, David learns more about His God.
I like the way it’s written too: every
paragraph contains so much; there are no fillers. I am David was actually originally translated from Danish. This
book was also good, because although it is set during the Second World War, and
although David has been in a prison camp, it doesn’t describe much of the
cruelty and violence. So it’s suitable for younger readers, or as an introduction
to holocaust stories. It’s a quick, easy read, and yet profound; I know I will
be reading it again. So, I recommend you try it out!
