Tanzania, Timber and Torah: A Journey in Search of Religious Belonging

Immerse yourself in a life and legacy unlike any other.

Ayalah Caspi journeyed from country to country and home to home, from Tanganyika to England, and finally to Jerusalem. With family roots extending from France, Russia, Finland, Belgium, Latvia, Scotland, and Northern Ireland, she draws in readers with her honest and idealistic search for meaning in a tumultuous postwar world.

Interwoven in her personal journey are the stories and histories of her family — tales of their lives, cultures, and ethos that transport readers to a faraway land and time. While her grandfather and great-grandfather traded in timber in Russia, and her father planted trees in colonial East Africa, she forged her own path and discovered the true tree of life, joyfully finding her religious identity within the Jewish faith — as an Orthodox Jew living in Jerusalem.