Where Wild Strawberries Grow

While the drama in this short story draws on real events that unfolded between two school children, the plot is fictionalized. The story features 13-year-old Marion who is lonely, but precocious. Her family is Jewish, observing Shabbat every Friday night, which makes her different from her classmates. One day, there is a new girl, Rosa who is Roma, at school. Her hair is even darker than Marion’s, but her eyes are the same brown. Marion feels an affinity with Rosa and they become friends. As a token of their special friendship, Marion takes Rosa to the secret spot in the forest where wild strawberries grow. But after a prank, their parents learn about their friendship, and stop them from seeing each other, referring to their different backgrounds. Growing up to become an anthropologist, Marion does research on Roma people and publishes a book, but it is contested by her key interlocutor whom she had thought of as a friend. Once more, friendship is at stake for Marion. This time in the form of the fragility of friendship in the field.