The Apple of Her Eye

By Jill Duff-Hoppes

When local author Yvonne David weaves the threads of her stories together, she’s like a Jewish baker making bread.

Illustration by Lyn Rodden, Yvonne David’s late sister

“I’m braiding them like challah,” says Yvonne, author of the Apple Tree Series for young readers.

Out of the Apple Orchard, the first book in Yvonne’s historical fiction series, has been adapted into a play that will make its New York City premiere with an Off-Broadway production in September. Her second book, The Night Sky Lined with Silver, will have an early release to coincide with the staging of the play. The book’s official release date is October 3. Three main components are intertwined in Yvonne’s series: Jewish holidays, the fictional Bieman family, and the importance of New York’s Catskill Mountains in the Jewish-American immigration experience.

“I want to make a difference in the world through creative expression with books that contain history as well as life lessons,” she says

The Literary Linguist

Yvonne was raised there and in London, England. Her diploma qualifications included interpreter/translator in French and English. Yvonne used her language skills in every position she held before immigrating to the United States with her American husband. The couple has resided in the Orlando area since December 1981.

“I’m a linguist at heart,” says Yvonne, who lives in Altamonte Springs.

She earned a degree in English and organizational communication at Rollins College in Winter Park and began her writing career by penning articles for newspapers and magazines.

Yvonne credits her son, Austin, and his bar mitzvah teacher at the Congregation of Reform Judaism with putting her on a more literary path. One day, Austin offhandedly remarked to the teacher that his mother was a writer, and the instructor then suggested Yvonne write a book for young readers about the High Holidays. Yvonne dismissed the idea at first, but not long after, a vivid image popped into her head – that of a boy who was taking apples from an orchard and wearing knickerbockers and a cap two sizes too big.

Author Yvonne David of Altamonte Springs (right) with Nicole Raphael, the director of a play that was adapted from one of Yvonne’s historical fiction books for young readers. The play is being produced Off-Broadway in New York City in September.

That image would eventually become 12-year-old Adam Bieman, the protagonist of Yvonne’s award-winning Out of the Apple Orchard. Set in the Catskills in the fall of 1910, the book tells the story of Adam, who steals apples to help feed his family and then must face the repercussions of his actions.

Yvonne drew inspiration from the musical Fiddler on the Roof and the book on which it was based as well as the Charles Dickens classic A Christmas Carol. Her book was published in 2005 and illustrated by Yvonne’s sister, Lyn Rodden, who has since passed away.

“The first book covers the essence of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur and shows that you’re not defined by your mistakes,” says Yvonne. “When you do make a mistake, you make up for your wrongdoings. And if you’ve hurt somebody, you ask for forgiveness.”

From the Page to the Stage

Yvonne David with Robert Sauber, who illustrated her soon-to-be-released second book. The historical fiction book for young readers is titled The Night Sky Lined with Silver.

Out of the Apple Orchard was adapted for the stage by playwright Ellen W. Kaplan and has been given readings in New York City and Orlando. In 2016, a fully staged production was presented at Orlando Repertory Theatre, now known as Orlando Family Stage. The Off-Broadway production, directed by Nicole Raphael, will run September 10-14 at the historic Actors Temple Theatre in the Times Square Theater District. Nicole is also an educator at the Park Avenue Synagogue Congregational School in Manhattan where she has taught a course about the book and its development into a play, From Page to Stage.

“With the play, we’re going to showcase kindness and understanding,” says Yvonne, who will be in the Big Apple for the entire run of the show. “Making amends for mistakes and new beginnings.”

Her newest book, The Night Sky Lined With Silver, is also being adapted for the stage. Yvonne’s latest tale is set in the winter of 1938 when Adam is a grown man with children of his own. The lessons of Hanukkah are a focal point of the book, which is illustrated by artist and set designer Robert Sauber.

“The second book showcases being there for one another and looking for the light in the darkness, which will help you get through the dark times,” says Yvonne.

Out of the Apple Orchard and The Night Sky Lined With Silver are both hardcover coffee table books. Yvonne has already written several drafts of what will become the third book in the series and has a basic storyline in mind for the fourth – and final – book. The third book will be set in the spring and the fourth will take place during the summer, covering all four seasons and spanning four generations of Biemans.

Yvonne notes that turning Adam’s story into a series of books was her son’s idea, and one she has fully embraced.

“This has been an exciting journey of discovery,” she says.

To learn more, visit OutOfTheAppleOrchard.com and AppleTreeSeries.com.

This story was originally published in print in Fall 2023.