Abraham Mapu was born in 1808 near Kaunas, today in Lithuania. He worked as a teacher and later joined the Jewish enlightenment movement. In 1853 he published his first book, Love of Zion, which has been regarded as the first secular novel written in biblical Hebrew. It takes place at the time of the First Temple covering love stories of Yoram, his wives and his children. The book had a profound influence on Jewish youth in Eastern Europe at the time of the emergent Zionist movement. (Summary by Omri Lernau)
