Piece Comment

Review of The Lemon Tree


One of the best pieces on PRX. Why? It does not take sides, it does not preach, it does not stir up muddy waters, and it does not try and differentiate between right and wrong. It simply tells the story of a home, a tree, and two people who're attached to the place's past and future. But, wait, that's not why I think it's one of the best pieces on PRX. Its greatness comes in the way it unfolds the story, and the narrative smoothness and tone that it possesses. A great piece makes a native out of a foreigner. Don't ask me what that means, and to use Louis Armstrong's words when asked about Jazz, I'll only say, 'Man, if you have to ask, you'll never know." If a piece can put me next to the people it's portraying, as if I were actually there, or as if I felt their happiness and pain, then it's a success in my book. And I'm sticking to it.