Late in life, a London Blitz survivor turns self-publisher of thrillers

The former businessman uses enticing paperbacks to help teach English in Israel.

By GLORIA DEUTSCH
‘We consciously took the decision to devote our lives to causes for the Jews and Israel,’ Cooper says of meeting his wife in a Zionist youth movement. (photo credit: GLORIA DEUTSCH)
‘We consciously took the decision to devote our lives to causes for the Jews and Israel,’ Cooper says of meeting his wife in a Zionist youth movement.
(photo credit: GLORIA DEUTSCH)
Sid Cooper, 84
From London to Hod Hasharon, 1983
After decades of being a businessman, Sid Cooper, who made aliya in 1983, discovered a new talent.
He had been teaching English for several years which, for him, made a pleasant change from working in his import/export business, and decided to publish some of the material he wrote for his lessons.
He recently published several books with intriguing titles like A Shot in the Dark and The House in the Woods, glossy paperbacks with spooky and enticing covers – perfect for maintaining an Israeli teenager’s interest in the all-important job of learning English.
“I began teaching English about 15 years ago,” says the sprightly 84-year-old, who made aliya with his wife of now 63 years, Rina, back in 1983.
For Cooper it was a natural development, as someone who describes himself as a lifelong Zionist.
He was born in London in 1929 and grew up in Leyton, surviving the London Blitz. Cooper recalls it clearly: “I stayed in Leyton and remember the V1 rockets exploding nearby, a few hundred yards from the school. During the air raids, the pupils used to file into the corridors to get away from the windows in the classroom.”
In contrast, Rina had been evacuated to the English countryside and has only happy memories of the time.
The couple met through the Zionist youth movement Habonim and married when they were both 21. Sid was very active both in Jewish and non-Jewish affairs, becoming chairman of the parents’ association in several of his children’s schools and an honorary officer in the Zionist Federation of Great Britain.
“We consciously took the decision to devote our lives to causes for the Jews and Israel,” he says, citing a number of influences such as James Michener’s The Source and seeing pictures of the Holocaust, which fellow Jews were experiencing as the Coopers were enjoying a happy childhood in England.
Once their four children had grown up – in fact, their older daughter had already come to Israel – they decided to follow, and in September 1983 sold their house in Woodford Green, left London and moved into the Ra’anana absorption center.
It proved to be the perfect place for them to begin their aliya and they had a great time socially, also learning some Hebrew in the process. “We still maintain friendships we made in that period,” the couple says.
After several years in Ra’anana and Kfar Saba, they moved to Hod Hasharon and stayed there. Sid carried on with his business, always discovering more items he could send abroad or bring in – whether it was paint, self-adhesive tape or zip fasteners.
During this time, he became very involved in the Hitachdut Olei Britannia – the British Immigrants’ Association, becoming chairman of the Ra’anana branch and later secretary of the national executive.
Who can ever forget Cooper, the unflappable questionmaster of the HOB national quiz, a hugely popular event among Anglos in the ’90s? He set all the questions himself, and they covered a range of subjects; it was no surprise to learn that years before in England, he had become a member of Mensa.
Although today teaching seems so natural to him, he actually only took up the role 15 years ago.
“In 1999, I decided to go to ulpan to improve my Hebrew,” he says. “A Russian studying with me asked me to help him with English, and I found I liked teaching.”
Later he was invited to help out in several schools near his home, and still teaches in one of them today.
For dictation, he never used texts from published books. “I started to write my own dictation sheets,” he says. “I would take all the interesting and new words I needed to reinforce from the previous lesson, and put them into that week’s story.”
His stories were thrillers – “often grisly murders,” he says with a smile. They were just the thing to keep the teenagers interested, and their English improved thanks to Cooper’s lurid plots.
It was his students who suggested he put them into a book.
“Once I decided to go ahead, I began researching on the Internet and found a good self-publisher,” he says.
Some of his books, like his “Robert the Robot” stories for younger children, come with questions at the end of each chapter to help the teacher give the lesson.
“My books are aimed at children at different levels, but they are written in a wry, humorous style so older people can enjoy them, too,” he says.
Although no longer holding any office, Cooper still takes an interest in what is going on around him.
“Even before we made aliya, we were always involved in Israeli affairs,” he says. “We belonged to the British Friends of the Israeli War Disabled and used to have wounded veterans staying with us over the years. I was also active in the Joint Israel Appeal.
“In fact we would be out five nights a week, at different meetings, all to do with Israel.”
Making aliya meant the focus was different, but he was still always ready for public service.
“If I decide to go into something, I tend to get very involved in it,” says Cooper.