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In the Shadow of Alabama
Judy Reene Singer's newest novel is a masterful story of the American experience. Between the past and present, between love and war, between the burdens of race and hope, a woman returns home to discover her father and a history she had never known...
Rachel Fleischer has good reasons not to be at her father s deathbed. Foaling season is at hand and her horses are becoming restless and difficult. Her critical mother and grasping sister could certainly handle Marty Fleisher's resistance better without her. But Malachi, her eighty-something horse manager more father to her than Marty has ever been convinces Rachel she will regret it if she doesn't go.
When a stranger at her father s funeral delivers an odd gift and an apology, Rachel finds herself drawn into the epic story of her father s World War II experience, and the friendships, trauma, scandal, and betrayals that would scar the rest of his life and cast a shadow across the entire family. As she struggles to make sense of his time as a Jewish sergeant in charge of a platoon of black soldiers in 1940s Alabama, she learns more than just his history. She begins to see how his hopes and disappointments mirror her own and might finally give her the means to free herself of the past and choose a life waiting in the wings.
Rachel Fleischer has good reasons not to be at her father s deathbed. Foaling season is at hand and her horses are becoming restless and difficult. Her critical mother and grasping sister could certainly handle Marty Fleisher's resistance better without her. But Malachi, her eighty-something horse manager more father to her than Marty has ever been convinces Rachel she will regret it if she doesn't go.
When a stranger at her father s funeral delivers an odd gift and an apology, Rachel finds herself drawn into the epic story of her father s World War II experience, and the friendships, trauma, scandal, and betrayals that would scar the rest of his life and cast a shadow across the entire family. As she struggles to make sense of his time as a Jewish sergeant in charge of a platoon of black soldiers in 1940s Alabama, she learns more than just his history. She begins to see how his hopes and disappointments mirror her own and might finally give her the means to free herself of the past and choose a life waiting in the wings.
321 pages, Paperback
First published May 30, 2017
73 people are currently reading
1566 people want to read
About the author
Judy Reene Singer
7 books43 followersBorn in Alabama and raised in New York, Judy Reene Singer is a former high school English teacher. When not writing or riding horses, she donates her time to animal rescue. She is the author of Horseplay (Random House, 2004), Still Life with Elephant (Morrow, 2009) and An Inconvenient Elephant (Morrow, 2010).
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 111 reviews
June 12, 2017
So, so much is right with this wonderful book, from the title, the inviting and gorgeous cover to the heartfelt story and amazing characters.Have adored horses since I was a preteen, and Rachel our main character is a writer who also happens to raise and train horses on her very own ranch. The old man Malachi, who seems to have come with the property quickly won my heart, just adored this character.
Rachel's father is dying, she receives a call from her sister and though she does not have any fond memories of her father, nor feel much love for the man he was, guilt and responsibility wins the day. He subsequently dies, and a happening at his burial will have Rachel seeking answers and understanding for the man she felt she never knew. This quest will take her and us back t 1941, an army base in Alabama where her father was the Jewish lieutenant in charge of an all negro crew.
Racial prejucide and the treatment of blacks in the service, so awful how these men were treated. A man who cared so much for his men but coming from the North had little or no understanding of how things went in the South for blacks at this time. Experiences that scarred many for life, the effects of PTSD, and all around disillisionment with the human race, reflected in the treatment of family and friends. We meet a wonderful elderly black man who will tell Rachel her father's story and it is the realization of the man he was that propels Rachel to examine and make changes in her own life.
I loved the story before reading the acknowledgements, but after reading that this is basically her own father's story I realized why this story seemed so real, why the writing seemed so personal. A wonderful story about a heartbreaking time with serious repercussions.
ARC from Netgalley.
Rachel's father is dying, she receives a call from her sister and though she does not have any fond memories of her father, nor feel much love for the man he was, guilt and responsibility wins the day. He subsequently dies, and a happening at his burial will have Rachel seeking answers and understanding for the man she felt she never knew. This quest will take her and us back t 1941, an army base in Alabama where her father was the Jewish lieutenant in charge of an all negro crew.
Racial prejucide and the treatment of blacks in the service, so awful how these men were treated. A man who cared so much for his men but coming from the North had little or no understanding of how things went in the South for blacks at this time. Experiences that scarred many for life, the effects of PTSD, and all around disillisionment with the human race, reflected in the treatment of family and friends. We meet a wonderful elderly black man who will tell Rachel her father's story and it is the realization of the man he was that propels Rachel to examine and make changes in her own life.
I loved the story before reading the acknowledgements, but after reading that this is basically her own father's story I realized why this story seemed so real, why the writing seemed so personal. A wonderful story about a heartbreaking time with serious repercussions.
ARC from Netgalley.
June 16, 2017
At first it felt like so many other stories of a dysfunctional family where one of the parents is dying and the prodigal child comes home to make peace with the ghosts of their pasts, with the broken relationships with their parents and siblings. While this story was all of that, I'm glad that it turned out to be so much more. Rachel Fleisher, a writer, raises horses and is at a crossroads in her relationship with a man she has been unable to commit to. When she is called home to see her dying father, she relives in a number of ways the unhappy childhood she led with what is characterized with miserable parents and a sister. Rachel as the victim of her family members' issues felt a little overemphasized by her, but then she comes to realize things about her family that helps her understand why things were the way they were.
Her father's past and the present day come together by an aging and dying black man Willie. In his telling of their time together in the military when Rachel's father is the commanding officer of a crew of black soldiers working on planes in Alabama, we get the awful picture of the racism in the military in 1941 Alabama. This is another aspect of WWII that isn't always portrayed in war novels. There is bigotry and prejudice against these black men and their Jewish commanding officer, Rachel's father. This is the burden he has carried with him all his life and the specifics of what happened and the inequities are told to Rachel in visits to Willie. We slowly come to know how a man's past has shaped the husband and father he becomes and impact of this on his family is heartbreaking. This is about those awful things that happened but also about family, understanding and sympathy and forgiveness, about how to move forward from the effects of the trauma that was experienced.
" During the World Wars study increased and it was known under various terms including "shell shock" and "combat neurosis".[12]The term "posttraumatic stress disorder" came into use in the 1970s in large part due to the diagnoses of U.S. military veterans of the Vietnam War.[13]" Wikipedia
What makes this story even more meaningful is that the author tells us this was based on her father's story. After her father’s death in 2003, Singer found herself going through his papers and “ ....realized that he had really been suffering from PTSD his entire life.” (Publisher's Weekly 3/17/17 Spotlight on the author). Definitely recommended.
I received an advanced copy of this book from Kensington Publication Corporation through Edelweiss.
Her father's past and the present day come together by an aging and dying black man Willie. In his telling of their time together in the military when Rachel's father is the commanding officer of a crew of black soldiers working on planes in Alabama, we get the awful picture of the racism in the military in 1941 Alabama. This is another aspect of WWII that isn't always portrayed in war novels. There is bigotry and prejudice against these black men and their Jewish commanding officer, Rachel's father. This is the burden he has carried with him all his life and the specifics of what happened and the inequities are told to Rachel in visits to Willie. We slowly come to know how a man's past has shaped the husband and father he becomes and impact of this on his family is heartbreaking. This is about those awful things that happened but also about family, understanding and sympathy and forgiveness, about how to move forward from the effects of the trauma that was experienced.
" During the World Wars study increased and it was known under various terms including "shell shock" and "combat neurosis".[12]The term "posttraumatic stress disorder" came into use in the 1970s in large part due to the diagnoses of U.S. military veterans of the Vietnam War.[13]" Wikipedia
What makes this story even more meaningful is that the author tells us this was based on her father's story. After her father’s death in 2003, Singer found herself going through his papers and “ ....realized that he had really been suffering from PTSD his entire life.” (Publisher's Weekly 3/17/17 Spotlight on the author). Definitely recommended.
I received an advanced copy of this book from Kensington Publication Corporation through Edelweiss.
August 6, 2017
Edit - $2.99 Today 8/6/17 on Kindle / B & N / Apple / Google / Kobo
!! NOW AVAILABLE !!
Rachel Fleischer’s father is dying.
Some daughters might rush to their father’s side; Rachel has multiple reasons tugging at her, keeping her near home. At her small ranch, it’s foaling season, a difficult time for her to be gone. She doesn’t particularly want to be there, to deal with her sister, who can do no wrong in her mother’s eyes, or to deal with her mother, in whose eyes she can do nothing right. And then there’s her father.
He carried a suitcase of grievances throughout his life, things I didn’t understand and didn’t care to. He never spoke of his time in the Army Air Force—that’s what it was called when he was a soldier. He had served during World War II, and it hadn’t been good. I knew that much.
When a strange woman appears at her father’s funeral, it opens some questions when she delivers a package. Something from her father, a memento, of sorts, a way of reaching out, perhaps an attempt to make amends for the years lost to grudges held too long. This strange woman’s father reaching out to her father at the end of his days speaks to her need for something more from her father. Rachel’s curiosity eventually takes her on a trip to follow up, there must be more to this.
I had read Buzz Books Spring Summer excerpt of In the Shadow of Alabama and knowing the era, and some of the details, I was enticed to read this. After his graduation, my father went to work for Musgrove School of Aviation, then West Virginia Air Service, then as a Flight Instructor for Graham Aviation. Later that year Graham Aviation became a contracted school for the Army Air Corps at Americus, Georgia, and he began training US Air Corps and British RAF cadets for flight combat. I don’t know the exact date when he began at Graham before it contracted with the Army Air Corps, but I do have his group photo of the Flight Instructors, dated 27 February 1942. Souther Field in Americus, Georgia vs. Gunter Field in Montgomery, Alabama. Not very far apart geographically.
This story is about the aftermath of war, the bond of those who serve together, how war’s impact is felt beyond the training grounds and the battlefields and hurts even those who never set foot in those shoes. How sometimes words can hurt, but words can also heal. And time. They say that time heals all wounds… at least wraps them up a bit, covering up the sharp edges, easier to put away. Time can also bond you to another person, an experience you shared, good…or bad.
Another era, another way of looking at the world, of looking at people and judging them by things that really don’t matter. These things are always hard for me to read about, but I know that they existed, still do, that as much as they might be better than they were in 1940s Alabama, we still have miles to go.
Race. War. Love. Family. Bitterness. The Past and the Present are all woven through this story which might just be a bit closer to a biography / autobiography-memoir than just a novel.
You have to look with your heart. It is really the vision from the heart that matters.
Pub Date: 30 May 2017
Many thanks for the ARC provided by Kensington Books
!! NOW AVAILABLE !!
Rachel Fleischer’s father is dying.
Some daughters might rush to their father’s side; Rachel has multiple reasons tugging at her, keeping her near home. At her small ranch, it’s foaling season, a difficult time for her to be gone. She doesn’t particularly want to be there, to deal with her sister, who can do no wrong in her mother’s eyes, or to deal with her mother, in whose eyes she can do nothing right. And then there’s her father.
He carried a suitcase of grievances throughout his life, things I didn’t understand and didn’t care to. He never spoke of his time in the Army Air Force—that’s what it was called when he was a soldier. He had served during World War II, and it hadn’t been good. I knew that much.
When a strange woman appears at her father’s funeral, it opens some questions when she delivers a package. Something from her father, a memento, of sorts, a way of reaching out, perhaps an attempt to make amends for the years lost to grudges held too long. This strange woman’s father reaching out to her father at the end of his days speaks to her need for something more from her father. Rachel’s curiosity eventually takes her on a trip to follow up, there must be more to this.
I had read Buzz Books Spring Summer excerpt of In the Shadow of Alabama and knowing the era, and some of the details, I was enticed to read this. After his graduation, my father went to work for Musgrove School of Aviation, then West Virginia Air Service, then as a Flight Instructor for Graham Aviation. Later that year Graham Aviation became a contracted school for the Army Air Corps at Americus, Georgia, and he began training US Air Corps and British RAF cadets for flight combat. I don’t know the exact date when he began at Graham before it contracted with the Army Air Corps, but I do have his group photo of the Flight Instructors, dated 27 February 1942. Souther Field in Americus, Georgia vs. Gunter Field in Montgomery, Alabama. Not very far apart geographically.
This story is about the aftermath of war, the bond of those who serve together, how war’s impact is felt beyond the training grounds and the battlefields and hurts even those who never set foot in those shoes. How sometimes words can hurt, but words can also heal. And time. They say that time heals all wounds… at least wraps them up a bit, covering up the sharp edges, easier to put away. Time can also bond you to another person, an experience you shared, good…or bad.
Another era, another way of looking at the world, of looking at people and judging them by things that really don’t matter. These things are always hard for me to read about, but I know that they existed, still do, that as much as they might be better than they were in 1940s Alabama, we still have miles to go.
Race. War. Love. Family. Bitterness. The Past and the Present are all woven through this story which might just be a bit closer to a biography / autobiography-memoir than just a novel.
You have to look with your heart. It is really the vision from the heart that matters.
Pub Date: 30 May 2017
Many thanks for the ARC provided by Kensington Books
February 11, 2018
Quote: "But the other rules, the rules made by humans, don't seem to be rules at all. They are just decisions, passed along, like the decision that kept Willie from sharing quarters with the white soldiers or that kept him sitting on a hot train while the rest of the men ate in a restaurant. Those aren't rules, they are whims and notions that spring from hateful ignorance."
Prejudice is like a festering sore, growing and building until it creates great pain.
Based upon the author's family history, it details the racism and injustice displayed towards her father, who was Jewish, and the black soldiers who were under his command while stationed at Gunter Field Air Force Base in Montgomery, Alabama in 1941.
Rachel's father is a bitter, angry and critical man who showed little love for his family, preferring to berate them and discourage their dreams. Rachel left at sixteen, maintaining a distant relationship with her family. When she gets the call that her father is dying and she should come home, she hesitates to go. Encouraged by her beloved ranch hand, she reluctantly goes. At the funeral, a woman presents them with an old record album, and an apology to her father. Curious as to the meaning of the album, she tracks down an elderly veteran who served under her father. As she learns his story, she is able to find an understanding of her own pain and fear of giving and receiving love.
I enjoyed both the story of Rachel's awakening and the telling of the details of her father's history.
4.5 rounded up to 5
Prejudice is like a festering sore, growing and building until it creates great pain.
Based upon the author's family history, it details the racism and injustice displayed towards her father, who was Jewish, and the black soldiers who were under his command while stationed at Gunter Field Air Force Base in Montgomery, Alabama in 1941.
Rachel's father is a bitter, angry and critical man who showed little love for his family, preferring to berate them and discourage their dreams. Rachel left at sixteen, maintaining a distant relationship with her family. When she gets the call that her father is dying and she should come home, she hesitates to go. Encouraged by her beloved ranch hand, she reluctantly goes. At the funeral, a woman presents them with an old record album, and an apology to her father. Curious as to the meaning of the album, she tracks down an elderly veteran who served under her father. As she learns his story, she is able to find an understanding of her own pain and fear of giving and receiving love.
I enjoyed both the story of Rachel's awakening and the telling of the details of her father's history.
4.5 rounded up to 5
June 26, 2017
A solid, easy read, but I definitely wanted this to be better than it was. The ingredients were all there for me -- prodigal daughter, dying parent, mysterious past, WWII context, racial tension -- but as the book went on, I felt more like Singer was more interested in hammering me with her philosophies about life, than in telling the story. It's a book that would be easy to pass along but not one that will have a lasting impact on me.
August 24, 2017
This was a very enjoyable audiobook to listen to on the commute to and from work each day. The story was a good one, although I might give the narrator a 3.5 stars - her changes in voice, especially for the mother, sister and father became irritating, and she has a deep, raspy voice - similar to someone that heavily smokes - so that was a distraction at times.
I did enjoy this story about redemption, reconciliation and racism - Singer gives a condemning story of the U.S. Army and racism in the U.S. South.
Thank you to Recorded Books for sending the audiobook for review. I recommend!
I did enjoy this story about redemption, reconciliation and racism - Singer gives a condemning story of the U.S. Army and racism in the U.S. South.
Thank you to Recorded Books for sending the audiobook for review. I recommend!
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March 3, 2025In this heart touching story, Rachel wants to find out what the album handed to her at her father's funeral means. Her father was a very difficult person, always angry and bitter, never showing any real love for either herself, nor her sister and mother. Why then does this black woman attend the Jewish burial service for Rachels father, and what is the meaning of this album, Take the "A" Train mean? It turns out that this woman is there on behalf of her elderly father who had served with Rachels father during the war.
Rachel is having her own issues with her partner, David, on her farm she owns in NY. Relationships are not Rachels strong point.
As Rachel navigates her problems at home, she decides to seek out the fellow serviceman and try to understand the meaning of the album.
Throughout the book, going back and forth from the present to just before the US enters WWII, the reader, along with Rachel, will find out things she never imagined about her father, and begins to understand him, and also realize what is going on in her own life because of it.
Rachel is having her own issues with her partner, David, on her farm she owns in NY. Relationships are not Rachels strong point.
As Rachel navigates her problems at home, she decides to seek out the fellow serviceman and try to understand the meaning of the album.
Throughout the book, going back and forth from the present to just before the US enters WWII, the reader, along with Rachel, will find out things she never imagined about her father, and begins to understand him, and also realize what is going on in her own life because of it.
October 24, 2022
A story about forgiveness, understanding and acceptance.
Rachel carries a big hurt through life that keeps her from feeling or committing to relationships and keeps her from living happy. That pain begins with her father, a man she knows little about.
Then she meets Willie, a man who was in the army with her father. She listens to his story and learns about her father's history, the horrible conditions of prejudice & racism in the army in 1941 Alabama.
This book follows her story and her epiphanies. A solid story that would have been 4-stars except it was a bit drawn out at times.
Rachel carries a big hurt through life that keeps her from feeling or committing to relationships and keeps her from living happy. That pain begins with her father, a man she knows little about.
Then she meets Willie, a man who was in the army with her father. She listens to his story and learns about her father's history, the horrible conditions of prejudice & racism in the army in 1941 Alabama.
This book follows her story and her epiphanies. A solid story that would have been 4-stars except it was a bit drawn out at times.
May 29, 2017
4.5 stars.
Alternating back and forth between the present and the early '40s, In the Shadow of Alabama by Judy Reene Singer is a heartrending novel of complex and difficult relationships, race relations in the South and the lingering effects of wartime.
Rachel Fleischer's relationships with her family are fraught with tension and the last place she wants to be is her father's bedside as he refuses medical treatment for his failing heart. Marty Fleischer has always been a hypercritical, bitter, angry and deeply dissatisfied man whose hateful words continue to haunt her. At the urging of her farm manager and friend Malachi Charge, Rachel reluctantly goes to see her father one last time before his death. At his funeral, stranger Rowena Jackson presents them with a puzzling package from her father, Willie Jackson. Intrigued and wanting to understand a shocking allegation against her father, Rachel later goes to Boston to meet Willie where he recounts his tangled history with Marty.
Rachel's dysfunctional childhood left an indelible mark on her and even as an adult, she cannot escape the legacy of her father's painful words and lack of love. The owner of a horse farm, she lives with her longtime partner, David, and Malachi. Emotionally closed off and protective of her heart, Rachel is unable to fully commit to David and she soon becomes aware there are deep fractures in their relationship. Reluctant to discuss her fears and concerns with him, she ignores the growing distance between them and instead makes the decision to go to Boston to meet Willie.
Rachel knows absolutely nothing of Marty's experiences in World War II and she is quite shocked to learn that he was in charge of a colored squadron in Alabama. Neither man lived in the South prior to their assignment at Gunter Field so they are ill prepared for the reality of segregation and the animosity directed towards Jews. Although both men are college educated, they are assigned to a squadron that cleans aircraft engines. Marty is a benevolent leader who looks out for the men serving under him although his efforts are not at all appreciated by the white soldiers on the base. Despite Willie's best efforts to remain under the radar, he and Marty form a friendship of sorts that comes to an abrupt end following Marty's well intentioned but misguided efforts to treat his men as equals. The two men eventually go back to their regular lives but neither of them are able to escape the tragedies of their shared history.
Based on the real life experiences of Judy Reene Singer and her father, In the Shadow of Alabama is a deeply affecting and rather poignant novel of reconciliation and healing. After learning of the events that shaped her father into the haunted man who raised her, Rachel has a better understanding of herself, her mother and her sister. With newfound awareness of the negative effects of her behavior, Rachel tries to repair her tattered relationships, but is it too late to salvage the one that means the most to her?
Alternating back and forth between the present and the early '40s, In the Shadow of Alabama by Judy Reene Singer is a heartrending novel of complex and difficult relationships, race relations in the South and the lingering effects of wartime.
Rachel Fleischer's relationships with her family are fraught with tension and the last place she wants to be is her father's bedside as he refuses medical treatment for his failing heart. Marty Fleischer has always been a hypercritical, bitter, angry and deeply dissatisfied man whose hateful words continue to haunt her. At the urging of her farm manager and friend Malachi Charge, Rachel reluctantly goes to see her father one last time before his death. At his funeral, stranger Rowena Jackson presents them with a puzzling package from her father, Willie Jackson. Intrigued and wanting to understand a shocking allegation against her father, Rachel later goes to Boston to meet Willie where he recounts his tangled history with Marty.
Rachel's dysfunctional childhood left an indelible mark on her and even as an adult, she cannot escape the legacy of her father's painful words and lack of love. The owner of a horse farm, she lives with her longtime partner, David, and Malachi. Emotionally closed off and protective of her heart, Rachel is unable to fully commit to David and she soon becomes aware there are deep fractures in their relationship. Reluctant to discuss her fears and concerns with him, she ignores the growing distance between them and instead makes the decision to go to Boston to meet Willie.
Rachel knows absolutely nothing of Marty's experiences in World War II and she is quite shocked to learn that he was in charge of a colored squadron in Alabama. Neither man lived in the South prior to their assignment at Gunter Field so they are ill prepared for the reality of segregation and the animosity directed towards Jews. Although both men are college educated, they are assigned to a squadron that cleans aircraft engines. Marty is a benevolent leader who looks out for the men serving under him although his efforts are not at all appreciated by the white soldiers on the base. Despite Willie's best efforts to remain under the radar, he and Marty form a friendship of sorts that comes to an abrupt end following Marty's well intentioned but misguided efforts to treat his men as equals. The two men eventually go back to their regular lives but neither of them are able to escape the tragedies of their shared history.
Based on the real life experiences of Judy Reene Singer and her father, In the Shadow of Alabama is a deeply affecting and rather poignant novel of reconciliation and healing. After learning of the events that shaped her father into the haunted man who raised her, Rachel has a better understanding of herself, her mother and her sister. With newfound awareness of the negative effects of her behavior, Rachel tries to repair her tattered relationships, but is it too late to salvage the one that means the most to her?
May 24, 2017
This is a story of friendship and belonging that took place in wartime amidst several extreme prejudices. What do a Brooklyn Jew, a "colored" Yankee and a flying Welshman have in common? Duty station: Gunter Air Force Base, Montgomery, Alabama, USA. Such a beautiful story to read! The author really paints a picture of the 1940s deep south.
The main character didn't concentrate much energy on her own relationships: familial, romantic, professional or otherwise. Because of this, her story either dimmed into the background or disappeared entirely from my mind. I could not have cared much less about her and David, and by the end of the book I had far removed myself from caring about her relationships with her mother and sister.
Great overall story! Five stars!
The main character didn't concentrate much energy on her own relationships: familial, romantic, professional or otherwise. Because of this, her story either dimmed into the background or disappeared entirely from my mind. I could not have cared much less about her and David, and by the end of the book I had far removed myself from caring about her relationships with her mother and sister.
Great overall story! Five stars!
September 24, 2018
"Cruelty is so simple, really. You just turn your back on your own humanity. It's a blindness of the soul, really. You see symbols instead of the life in front of you."
If I could sum up the theme of this book in one small paragraph, that would be it. I stumbled across this book at the library while searching for another book. The pretty cover caught my eye. This is one case where judging a book by its cover worked out well.
This is a story about a woman named Rachel, who has a very strained relationship with her family. She also has a very strained relationship with her live-in boyfriend, and the reasons for the strain are very complicated.
When Rachel's father dies, a mysterious black woman comes to his funeral and gives Rachel's mother an album and an apology. Rachel is intrigued by this woman's strange gift and searches for the woman. This begins a a journey into her father's past that helps Rachel to see her father and mother in an entirely different light.
Rachel's father was a Jewish man. In 1941, he was in charge of an all black platoon...in Alabama. Do I have your interest yet?
Well, when Rachel tracks down the mysterious woman from the funeral (Rowena), she also meets Willie, Rowena's father, who served with Rachel's father in the war. From Willie she learns about all the horrible things that happened to them while her father was in command of the all-black platoon. She also learns about a horrible misunderstanding that resulted in a tragedy that tore Willie and her father apart-- and deeply scarred her father both physically and mentally.
Rachel comes to understand why her father was such a cynical, closed off man. She also begins to see how her father's actions have made her fearful of committing to her boyfriend. But does she learn that lesson too late? Well you'll have to read the book to find out.
But I'll leave you with this: though the book is a work of fiction, all the events that happened were real. Yes, they happened to the author's father. When I read that after I finished the last page, I sat in shock. The cruelty of racism never ceases to boggle my mind, even after 48 years of living with it.
If I could sum up the theme of this book in one small paragraph, that would be it. I stumbled across this book at the library while searching for another book. The pretty cover caught my eye. This is one case where judging a book by its cover worked out well.
This is a story about a woman named Rachel, who has a very strained relationship with her family. She also has a very strained relationship with her live-in boyfriend, and the reasons for the strain are very complicated.
When Rachel's father dies, a mysterious black woman comes to his funeral and gives Rachel's mother an album and an apology. Rachel is intrigued by this woman's strange gift and searches for the woman. This begins a a journey into her father's past that helps Rachel to see her father and mother in an entirely different light.
Rachel's father was a Jewish man. In 1941, he was in charge of an all black platoon...in Alabama. Do I have your interest yet?
Well, when Rachel tracks down the mysterious woman from the funeral (Rowena), she also meets Willie, Rowena's father, who served with Rachel's father in the war. From Willie she learns about all the horrible things that happened to them while her father was in command of the all-black platoon. She also learns about a horrible misunderstanding that resulted in a tragedy that tore Willie and her father apart-- and deeply scarred her father both physically and mentally.
Rachel comes to understand why her father was such a cynical, closed off man. She also begins to see how her father's actions have made her fearful of committing to her boyfriend. But does she learn that lesson too late? Well you'll have to read the book to find out.
But I'll leave you with this: though the book is a work of fiction, all the events that happened were real. Yes, they happened to the author's father. When I read that after I finished the last page, I sat in shock. The cruelty of racism never ceases to boggle my mind, even after 48 years of living with it.
August 30, 2017
2.5 stars
I normally love historical fiction, but this one fell a bit short. I liked the exploration of the father-daughter relationship and its existence within the larger family dynamic. The premise that the father in this story was deeply affected by his experiences with WW2 and that it changed his interactions in his family/personal life in the years to come seemed interesting. What I couldn't immerse myself in was the father's side of the story (taking place in 1940's Alabama). From the description of the book I had assumed this would be an easy story for me to sink into, but the technical portions of the story where airplane parts and procedures are discussed was something I had a hard time focusing on. The general premise of this book was interesting but I simply found too many sections lacking interest for me. However, I know many readers will read the same sections of the book and enjoy the details completely. The lower rating on this book was due to the fact mechanics hold little to no interest for me. I should also mention that you don't have to love aeronautics to enjoy this story, but I'm not a reader who has any interest in the subject. I can see many readers of historical fiction enjoying this book. I would recommend this book for those interested in WW2 and the personal ramifications of such events.
*I received an advanced copy of the book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
I normally love historical fiction, but this one fell a bit short. I liked the exploration of the father-daughter relationship and its existence within the larger family dynamic. The premise that the father in this story was deeply affected by his experiences with WW2 and that it changed his interactions in his family/personal life in the years to come seemed interesting. What I couldn't immerse myself in was the father's side of the story (taking place in 1940's Alabama). From the description of the book I had assumed this would be an easy story for me to sink into, but the technical portions of the story where airplane parts and procedures are discussed was something I had a hard time focusing on. The general premise of this book was interesting but I simply found too many sections lacking interest for me. However, I know many readers will read the same sections of the book and enjoy the details completely. The lower rating on this book was due to the fact mechanics hold little to no interest for me. I should also mention that you don't have to love aeronautics to enjoy this story, but I'm not a reader who has any interest in the subject. I can see many readers of historical fiction enjoying this book. I would recommend this book for those interested in WW2 and the personal ramifications of such events.
*I received an advanced copy of the book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
February 27, 2018
If you are an east coast elitist who loves horses and doesn't mind unpleasant and rude characters and wants to read a partly historical fiction book, this is one for you. Historical fiction is fine with me but the other aspects made this book not a pleasurable read. The editing was also lacking with run-on sentences and simple plotting problems. Not a book I would recommend but I gave it two stars because of the sections where the author writes about the history.
September 6, 2021
Such a well written story. It was so difficult to tolerate the mother and sister, but I can understand how they came to be the way they were. The story came together so nicely in the end and what really gave it the 5th star was the very last page, “how this book came together.”
October 7, 2021
This book started off really well. Great character development and storyline. A bit of a disappointing ending. However, at the end the reader finds out that this is a true story from her family. It would be interesting to know how her family members felt about the way they were described. It was a good book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 5, 2025
Dual pov of present and ww2 in Alabama. The story was so great and had me hooked and then I read the “how this book came to be” at the end and found out it was a true story! I’ve read plenty of ww2 books, but none where the soldiers haven’t left the us, so I loved this!
February 1, 2018
Solid storyline, a bit preachy in places, could have used a different way to show anger than dropping the f bomb repeatedly
July 2, 2025
This may well be one of my highest rated and favorite reads for the year. Beautiful writing and I truly savored every chapter - one that you want to know how it ends, but not quite ready to finish. I'll definitely check out this author's other books.
May 23, 2017
Thank you Judy Reene Singer and Netgalley for a copy in exchange for an honest review.
I really enjoyed this book so very much.. Crossing back and forth between Alabama in 1941 and the present day, Judy weaves a beautiful written tale that will have you going through many emotions - then you read the acknowledgements and realise that it is very close to being an autobiography. That certainly made my eyes water again.
The rawness of race, war, military life at that time is written so richly. The harsh reality of the 1940's in the south, gently acknowledged.
I highly recommend this beautifully written story. Thank you Judy Reene Singer.
I really enjoyed this book so very much.. Crossing back and forth between Alabama in 1941 and the present day, Judy weaves a beautiful written tale that will have you going through many emotions - then you read the acknowledgements and realise that it is very close to being an autobiography. That certainly made my eyes water again.
The rawness of race, war, military life at that time is written so richly. The harsh reality of the 1940's in the south, gently acknowledged.
I highly recommend this beautifully written story. Thank you Judy Reene Singer.
May 15, 2017
In The Shadow of Alabama is a beautifully written book that deals with characters that are so real they jump off the page. It tells the story of Rachel Fleischer and her family, alternating between present day and her father's experiences during WWII serving as a Sargent in command of a black squadron at a base in Alabama.
Rachel's dad is dying, and she doesn't want to see him. Martin Fleischer is a bitter, difficult, indifferent man, and she has, so she thinks, put him behind her when she left home at 15. In reality, he has shaped every portion of her life, and not in a good way. A beloved friend insists she go see him so that she doesn't regret it later. She goes. When she attends his funeral, a black woman stands in the back, and gives Rachel's mother a record album from her father, Willie Jackson, a member of the squadron Martin commanded. Willie wanted to attend to pay his respects, but couldn't because of poor health. He also wants to make amends and to apologize for calling Martin a murderer.
Rachel's mother won't tell her why someone would call her father a murderer, so she seeks out Willie, an old man hoping to clear his conscience, who is glad for the chance to tell his story. Through his reminiscing, we learn of what it was like to be colored in America in the 1940's and also colored in the military. Martin, a Jew, was put in charge of a squadron of colored because he too, was considered less than in that time period. The southern white military delighted in harassing Martin and his crew. Martin was a different man in those days; it was his experiences in the military that scarred his soul and changed him forever. There are several tragedies during the book; some as a result of war, some as a result of prejudice, all riveting. The impact of these changed not only Martin and his crew, but affected their interactions with their families as well. The impact of Martin on his wife and daughters is deep.
This is a book about coming to terms with the past, of reconciliation, of acknowledging intent over actions, and recognizing the pain of others. "You have to look with your heart. It is really the vision from the heart that matters."
It was only in reading the author's notes at the end of the book that we find this is not really a work of fiction, but more of a memoir about her own father.
An excellent read!
Many thanks to Netgalley and Kensington Books for allowing me to read an e-ARC of this wonderful book!
Rachel's dad is dying, and she doesn't want to see him. Martin Fleischer is a bitter, difficult, indifferent man, and she has, so she thinks, put him behind her when she left home at 15. In reality, he has shaped every portion of her life, and not in a good way. A beloved friend insists she go see him so that she doesn't regret it later. She goes. When she attends his funeral, a black woman stands in the back, and gives Rachel's mother a record album from her father, Willie Jackson, a member of the squadron Martin commanded. Willie wanted to attend to pay his respects, but couldn't because of poor health. He also wants to make amends and to apologize for calling Martin a murderer.
Rachel's mother won't tell her why someone would call her father a murderer, so she seeks out Willie, an old man hoping to clear his conscience, who is glad for the chance to tell his story. Through his reminiscing, we learn of what it was like to be colored in America in the 1940's and also colored in the military. Martin, a Jew, was put in charge of a squadron of colored because he too, was considered less than in that time period. The southern white military delighted in harassing Martin and his crew. Martin was a different man in those days; it was his experiences in the military that scarred his soul and changed him forever. There are several tragedies during the book; some as a result of war, some as a result of prejudice, all riveting. The impact of these changed not only Martin and his crew, but affected their interactions with their families as well. The impact of Martin on his wife and daughters is deep.
This is a book about coming to terms with the past, of reconciliation, of acknowledging intent over actions, and recognizing the pain of others. "You have to look with your heart. It is really the vision from the heart that matters."
It was only in reading the author's notes at the end of the book that we find this is not really a work of fiction, but more of a memoir about her own father.
An excellent read!
Many thanks to Netgalley and Kensington Books for allowing me to read an e-ARC of this wonderful book!
September 22, 2017
The story of a 53-year-old woman excavating her father's traumatizing past--a stint as the Jewish supervisor in charge of an all-black Housekeeping Crew for planes in WWII--by way of interviews with one of the men who served under him. At the end of the book, in a section, "How this book came to be," the author explains that the book is largely autobiographical; this story is her father's story. The historical sections, which are compelling, reflect a world that is inhumane and brutal in its racism; but Rachel's story, about how she can't commit to David who loves her, how she pushes people away because she never learned what love is, how she refuses a therapist's help, how she cruelly refuses to empathize with an abused horse, felt flat and too pat to me. I know I was supposed to feel for Rachel, with her cold and embittered father, her worn-out and disaffected mother, her sister who can only overeat and grab belongings to fill the hole of lovelessness inside her. But I found myself impatient with Rachel; she seems to have insights throughout and yet purposefully remains stuck in her behavior, and so her sudden revelation and change at the end seemed, to me, unearned. I did like much of the writing; one of my favorite lines: "[Nature] can take a heart that has lived like an empty barrel, echoing angrily with noise from the past, and fill it with hope. Love, even."
April 28, 2017
In the Shadow of Alabama is a quietly powerful novel about the prisons we make for ourselves and how they affect our lives. The story is two-fold, one part a daughter's discovery of her father's past and it's ramifications on her present, and the other an old man's reminiscences of a tragic, guilt-ridden past. The author has created characters that are at once realistic and larger than life, and the reader can't help but get emotionally involved in their lives and struggles. The writing style is descriptive and often lyrical and flows easily.
I enjoyed this book far more than I expected, and highly recommend it.
"Alabama sun was really something, Willie though, it was really something. It battered you, enshrouded you, like it had made a pact with hell and humidity to bring you to your knees."
I enjoyed this book far more than I expected, and highly recommend it.
September 21, 2017
Judy Reene Singer has moved to the top of my "favorite authors" list with this novel. She has created characters that are deeply flawed, but each has hidden - and redeemable - values.
Rachel Fleischer didn't want to be there when her dad died. There was no love lost between. When a mysterious gentleman, an elderly black man who served in the military with her father, offers to tell her more about her dad, she reluctantly agrees.
What she discovers is that time changes a person - for better or worse. And that what you see may not even be the tiniest glimpse into a person's past and how it shapes the present.
ARC provided by NetGalley
Rachel Fleischer didn't want to be there when her dad died. There was no love lost between. When a mysterious gentleman, an elderly black man who served in the military with her father, offers to tell her more about her dad, she reluctantly agrees.
What she discovers is that time changes a person - for better or worse. And that what you see may not even be the tiniest glimpse into a person's past and how it shapes the present.
ARC provided by NetGalley
June 24, 2017
One of those books that is hard to read because, while it's fiction, you know things like that happened. It goes into the way blacks were treated in the army in the 60. About a white man that was put in charge of the black soldiers because he was Jewish. Just slightly higher thought of than blacks. He worked hard to make things easy for his group and was severely reprimanded, so much so that he was never really right again. His family paid the price. At he time, his daughter didn't understand why he was so cold. She found out, not from her family, but from a daughter of one of the soldiers her father was in charge of.
May 4, 2021
This book was an okay book. We get the story of Rachel as she learns about her father and why he’s so cold towards everything. We find ourselves in the story of her father and willie as they experience things in the army. It was a okay story and I liked the concept but I personally think it could of been better. There were times when the past blended in with the present and I personally found Rachel to be annoying as well as Sandra. I could of been so much better and I think the transitions could of been more fluent. Not a fan of this book wouldn’t recommend
June 6, 2017
This is a novel based on a true story. The authors father was a Jewish staff sgt. During WWII in charge of a platoon of black men and takes place in Alabama. It was an emotional rollercoaster about family, friends, love, forgiveness and redemption. Very well done.
May 18, 2017
Loved this book! Well written & a great story!
October 13, 2017
In the Shadow of Alabama
By Judy Reene Singer
Narrated By Carol Monda
Published 2017 by Recorded Books
10 hours and 56 minutes
I received a free audio copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Rachel Fleischer, a middle-aged woman with emotional baggage and a troubled love-life, returns home to see her estranged father who is on his deathbed. At her father’s funeral, a stranger brings an unusual gift and an apology which sparks the beginning of Rachel’s journey towards discovering the truth about her father.
I immediately connected with Rachel. She is a strong, independent woman who runs a horse farm and is a successful writer in spite of having left home at 16 with no familial support. Her internal struggle between the desire to be a good daughter that is worthy of love and the overwhelming need to protect her heart from additional pain and rejection is raw and real. Rachel is searching for excuses for her father’s behavior—reasons that might allow her to forgive and move on. The more she learns about her father’s past, the more sympathetic she becomes toward her father.
This story alternates between present day and flashbacks to her father’s time as Sergeant Fleisher in the Army Air Force during WWII. Sergeant Fleisher was a Jewish soldier in charge of a troop of all black soldiers in 1940s Alabama. It becomes obvious to Rachel that her father’s experiences during his time as a soldier are directly responsible for the hard man Rachel knew as her father. I don’t think this knowledge was able to excuse his behavior, but it did lend an understanding that eventually allowed Rachel to move on with hope towards her future.
This book is a glowing example of literary fiction. The complex, well-developed characters made this story one to remember. My favorite character was Malachi, the 80-something farm manager. Everything about Malachi tugged on my heartstrings. I would love to see him get a book of his own to learn his backstory and what made him into the man he was. The writing style was also noteworthy and there were several profound ideas that made me wish for a highlighter and a physical copy to mark up.
This book was narrated by the talented Carol Monda. I will be adding her to my auto-buy narrator list. Her voice has a maturity and heaviness that complemented the serious subject matter. I really appreciated the inflections and emotion that she conveyed through her reading. Not only was she the perfect choice to tell Rachel’s story, but the multi-character performance of the soldiers was extraordinary.
By Judy Reene Singer
Narrated By Carol Monda
Published 2017 by Recorded Books
10 hours and 56 minutes
I received a free audio copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Rachel Fleischer, a middle-aged woman with emotional baggage and a troubled love-life, returns home to see her estranged father who is on his deathbed. At her father’s funeral, a stranger brings an unusual gift and an apology which sparks the beginning of Rachel’s journey towards discovering the truth about her father.
I immediately connected with Rachel. She is a strong, independent woman who runs a horse farm and is a successful writer in spite of having left home at 16 with no familial support. Her internal struggle between the desire to be a good daughter that is worthy of love and the overwhelming need to protect her heart from additional pain and rejection is raw and real. Rachel is searching for excuses for her father’s behavior—reasons that might allow her to forgive and move on. The more she learns about her father’s past, the more sympathetic she becomes toward her father.
This story alternates between present day and flashbacks to her father’s time as Sergeant Fleisher in the Army Air Force during WWII. Sergeant Fleisher was a Jewish soldier in charge of a troop of all black soldiers in 1940s Alabama. It becomes obvious to Rachel that her father’s experiences during his time as a soldier are directly responsible for the hard man Rachel knew as her father. I don’t think this knowledge was able to excuse his behavior, but it did lend an understanding that eventually allowed Rachel to move on with hope towards her future.
This book is a glowing example of literary fiction. The complex, well-developed characters made this story one to remember. My favorite character was Malachi, the 80-something farm manager. Everything about Malachi tugged on my heartstrings. I would love to see him get a book of his own to learn his backstory and what made him into the man he was. The writing style was also noteworthy and there were several profound ideas that made me wish for a highlighter and a physical copy to mark up.
This book was narrated by the talented Carol Monda. I will be adding her to my auto-buy narrator list. Her voice has a maturity and heaviness that complemented the serious subject matter. I really appreciated the inflections and emotion that she conveyed through her reading. Not only was she the perfect choice to tell Rachel’s story, but the multi-character performance of the soldiers was extraordinary.
November 13, 2017
This novel is obviously highly autobiographical, and what an interesting story it is about the ghosts who haunt us. Since his experiences during WWII at a military base in Alabama, Rachel Fleischer's father appeared to be haunted all the rest of his life. No, he never went overseas, but he saw his share of deaths and knew severe injury. In the final chapter entitled "How This Book Came To Be," author Judy Renee Singer told how she realized as an adult that her father suffered from PTSD. "It explained everything", she states.
But did it explain everything? And did it excuse everything? That's one of the problems I had with the story--the belief that if not for the war, Rachel Fleischer's father would have been a totally different husband and father to his two daughters. Maybe so or maybe not. There's precious little details about his childhood in the story, about how he related to his own family growing up. Yes, he treated his men well during the war, but some individuals are wonderfully kind at work and no such thing at home. He was totally surrounded by men during the war, too. How did he feel about women in general, about his own mother? This is not an attempt to drag her father down, but to propose those with PTSD still have free will.
Other than that; as well as the hard-to-believe idea that someone as insightful as Ms. Fleischer did not realize until her mid-50s the reason she treated her boyfriend like she did; this novel is an interesting look at both racism and wartime at a military base in Alabama in the 1940s. In addition, it is an interesting look at running a horse farm; at how horses relate to each other; and at how an individual who had a difficult childhood turned to animals to make herself happy and content as an adult. But even a farm full of animals cannot chase away all the ghosts. The remaining ghosts have to be eventually dealt with sooner or later, to go forward in life in an honest manner, as Rachel Fleischer discovers.
(Note: I received a free ARC of this book from Amazon Vine.)
But did it explain everything? And did it excuse everything? That's one of the problems I had with the story--the belief that if not for the war, Rachel Fleischer's father would have been a totally different husband and father to his two daughters. Maybe so or maybe not. There's precious little details about his childhood in the story, about how he related to his own family growing up. Yes, he treated his men well during the war, but some individuals are wonderfully kind at work and no such thing at home. He was totally surrounded by men during the war, too. How did he feel about women in general, about his own mother? This is not an attempt to drag her father down, but to propose those with PTSD still have free will.
Other than that; as well as the hard-to-believe idea that someone as insightful as Ms. Fleischer did not realize until her mid-50s the reason she treated her boyfriend like she did; this novel is an interesting look at both racism and wartime at a military base in Alabama in the 1940s. In addition, it is an interesting look at running a horse farm; at how horses relate to each other; and at how an individual who had a difficult childhood turned to animals to make herself happy and content as an adult. But even a farm full of animals cannot chase away all the ghosts. The remaining ghosts have to be eventually dealt with sooner or later, to go forward in life in an honest manner, as Rachel Fleischer discovers.
(Note: I received a free ARC of this book from Amazon Vine.)
August 13, 2019
What a marvelous, gripping story this is! This book was an accidental find. It fell off the library shelf while I was grabbing a book alongside it. Reading the blurb as I was putting the book back, I thought the story's premise, a Jewish sergeant in charge of black soldiers in Alabama in the 1940s, was interesting. The author had me hooked on page 2 with the last line of the prologue when the narrator says, "And then she dropped a word, so charged, so fueled with anger, that I was compelled to follow it to wherever it led." This compelled me to read on and do nothing else for the day but read this story which is based on actual events (including, as the author describes in "How This Book Came To Be" at the end, the author's relationship with her father). It's more than historical fiction though. It's also a story about reconciliation and love. The author weaves two storylines together. One is the exploration of racism in the military and in the South and the other is a contemporary story of the narrator reconciling herself with family and partner. I have frequently found that stories bouncing between periods are uneven because one of the tales is stronger than the other. In this book I think the author succeeds in balancing the past and present in a way that maintains interest in both storylines and support each other. In the beginning chapters, there is enjoyable Jewish humor with the main character's parents, sister, and herself. It's a comfortable way to bring the reader into the darker story of the 1940s in Alabama. I think this book would be an excellent choice for a book club.
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