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“You give up traditions at your peril. One day you’ll look back and not remember who you are.”
Imagine it’s 1909, and you, a Jewish teen accompanied by your family, survivors of the Russian revolution at a terrible cost, land in NYC to begin a new life.
And so it is that the turn of the century quickly develops into an incredibly turbulent time for Ruth, aged seventeen, and her fourteen year old sister Ester. Deeply traditional in the practice of their faith, America offers an opportunity to embrace freedoms unavailable to the girls under Jewish strictures, and the burgeoning suffragette movement opens doors wide to now dizzying prospects of actual choices in career and marital partnerships.
Ruth, the first POV we meet in this story, is a fighter, an opinion-holder and change-maker in a world unwelcoming of female chutzpah. Her sister Ester, the second female POV, is softer and more deliberate in her ways, longing to find a life-long balance between ways of old and new.
We come to know (and care about) each character amidst the historical backdrop of a looming historical factory fire, and the author builds suspense with a tantalizing countdown “days before fire” that extends from the very first chapter. The fire is real; the impact on our fictional characters and their families, – unknown until the final conclusion of our story.
Throughout the story the historical context is beautifully constructed and fascinating, and the author introduces some interesting and complex themes.
- Is it really possible to balance traditional values with cataclysmic social change (and in particular, gender equality) ?
- Is there a “too” far in the fight for equality, freedom and justice? Are all costs, including those forced upon loved ones, acceptable collateral damage?
Highly recommended, this lovely book was a wonderfully absorbing read and a great introduction to a tragic historical event I knew little about.
A great big thank you to author for an ARC of this book. All thoughts presented are my own.
My stop today on the @RRBookTours1 #RRBookTours #blogtour for #TheGirlintheTriangle #HistoricalFiction by @JoyanaPeters
