What do you think?
Rate this book
Rue des Rosiers
Sarah is the youngest of the three Levine sisters. At twenty-five, she is rudderless, caught in a paralysis which keeps her from seizing her own life.When Sarah is fired from her Toronto job, a chance stay in Paris opens her up to new direction and purpose.
But when she reads the writing on the wall above her local Metro subway station, death to the Jews", shadows from childhood rise again. And as her path crosses that of Laila, a young woman living in an exile remote from the luxuries of 1980s Paris, Sarah stumbles towards to an act of terrorism that may realize her childhood fears.In this new novel by the author of The Knife Sharpener's Bell, writing that is both sensual and taut creates a tightly woven, compelling narrative.
But when she reads the writing on the wall above her local Metro subway station, death to the Jews", shadows from childhood rise again. And as her path crosses that of Laila, a young woman living in an exile remote from the luxuries of 1980s Paris, Sarah stumbles towards to an act of terrorism that may realize her childhood fears.In this new novel by the author of The Knife Sharpener's Bell, writing that is both sensual and taut creates a tightly woven, compelling narrative.
- GenresFiction
264 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2019
About the author
Rhea Tregebov
31 books45 followersRhea Tregebov is the acclaimed author of eight collections of poetry. Her most recent, Talking to Strangers, won the 2024 Canadian Jewish Literary Award for poetry and was long-listed for the Al Eurithe Purdy Poetry prize. In addition to her poetry, she has published two novels, Rue des Rosiers (2019) and The Knife Sharpener’s Bell (2009). She is also the author of five popular children’s picture books including The Big Storm and What-If Sara, which are set in Winnipeg. She has edited ten anthologies of essays, poetry and fiction, most recently Arguing with the Storm. Her work has received a number of literary prizes, including the Tiny Torgi award (for The Big Storm) as well as the Pat Lowther Award, Prairie Schooner Readers’ Choice Award, and the Malahat Review Long Poem Award for her poetry.
Born in Saskatoon and raised in Winnipeg, Rhea Tregebov received her undergraduate education in Winnipeg. She did postgraduate studies at Cornell and Boston Universities.
For many years she worked as a freelance writer and editor in Toronto, where she also taught creative writing for Ryerson Continuing Education. She was an Associate Professor of Creative Writing at the University of British Columbia, where she taught poetry and translation until her retirement in 2017. She is now an Associate Professor Emerita.
From the Author:
Talking to Strangers is a book of bracing encounters. Throughout her four decades as poet, Rhea Tregebov has displayed an uncommon eye for the mysteries of ordinary life—moments where, as she writes, “[t]he simplest things / elude me.” This gift is brought to brilliant effect in her eighth book of poetry and most charged to date. In gorgeous arias of recollection and evocation, of elegy and heartbreak, Tregebov mourns, praises, prays, regrets, summons, celebrates, and bears witness with formidable artistry and tenderness (“You wouldn’t think the inanimate would get tired /but it does.”) Direct, never forced, keenly observant, and marked by scrupulous craft, these new poems unfold in beguiling, often breathtaking ways. They confirm Tregebov’s place among the most significant poets of her generation.
Born in Saskatoon and raised in Winnipeg, Rhea Tregebov received her undergraduate education in Winnipeg. She did postgraduate studies at Cornell and Boston Universities.
For many years she worked as a freelance writer and editor in Toronto, where she also taught creative writing for Ryerson Continuing Education. She was an Associate Professor of Creative Writing at the University of British Columbia, where she taught poetry and translation until her retirement in 2017. She is now an Associate Professor Emerita.
From the Author:
Talking to Strangers is a book of bracing encounters. Throughout her four decades as poet, Rhea Tregebov has displayed an uncommon eye for the mysteries of ordinary life—moments where, as she writes, “[t]he simplest things / elude me.” This gift is brought to brilliant effect in her eighth book of poetry and most charged to date. In gorgeous arias of recollection and evocation, of elegy and heartbreak, Tregebov mourns, praises, prays, regrets, summons, celebrates, and bears witness with formidable artistry and tenderness (“You wouldn’t think the inanimate would get tired /but it does.”) Direct, never forced, keenly observant, and marked by scrupulous craft, these new poems unfold in beguiling, often breathtaking ways. They confirm Tregebov’s place among the most significant poets of her generation.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
August 22, 2019
Although this book seemed slow to start and somewhat disjointed at first, I really got into it and was totally entranced by the end.
November 4, 2019
I loved this book, the range of emotions, the poetry of the writing and the hopefulness of the resolution. I don't have sisters but this book made me wish I did - three sisters who push each others' buttons, feel resentment, but when big issues occur are one hundred percent there for each other! I learned a lot about Jewish culture and history, the angst of a teenage abortion and the joy of working with your hands creating gardens. Plus, the close-up details of Paris evoked my own trip there in 1994 when a terrorist bomb went off at my local Metro station [fortunately for me not while I was exiting]. So many themes woven into one complex and emotionally satisfying novel.
October 20, 2019
This book is not what it first appears, the youngest sister of three who is struggling with early adult angst, dealing with a teen abortion, the recent stillbirth of her oldest sister and her university studies the Holocaust, and its lingering ruminating horrors. By good fortune, she ends up in Paris and the charm of exploring the city ends in her being a victim of a chance terror attack. Meanwhile another woman from an opposite world exists within the book, crossing paths with the protagonist. And swirling around through the whole book is the fragility of life based on planned verses chance events. It is a book with many layers to explore.
I read it twice and got so much more with a second read!
I read it twice and got so much more with a second read!
August 15, 2020
This story was hard to put down. I liked all the characters and how they were woven together.
June 22, 2021
This book is divided into two sections: Toronto and Paris. While the Toronto section can feel a bit plodding and dark, the Paris section more than makes up for it. I felt like I was there: taking in the architecture, the sights, the sounds of the city, especially its gardens and restaurants and its FOOD.
Tregebov writes about a little known but important incident in French/Jewish history, set in Paris's Jewish quarter--a terrorist attack that was new to this reader, but will not be forgotten.
The novel's prose is testament to Tregebov's background as a poet. It's gorgeous--especially the Paris bits.
By the end of the novel, I was attached to the main character, and cared deeply about what was happening to her. I couldn't put the novel down until I knew how everything turned out.
Tregebov writes about a little known but important incident in French/Jewish history, set in Paris's Jewish quarter--a terrorist attack that was new to this reader, but will not be forgotten.
The novel's prose is testament to Tregebov's background as a poet. It's gorgeous--especially the Paris bits.
By the end of the novel, I was attached to the main character, and cared deeply about what was happening to her. I couldn't put the novel down until I knew how everything turned out.
May 11, 2019
Rue des Rosiers is one of those rare books that deals intelligently with the complexity of things: Relationships between sisters, ambivalent feelings about an abortion (while still firmly on the side of women having choice and controlling their bodies), Israel and Palestine, the legacy and on-going trauma of the Holocaust, the persistence of anti-Semitism, class and privilege, sexual violence, and the experience of displaced people and refugees.
The book is also a lot of fun — long alcohol-soaked Parisian lunches at historic literary establishments, curious facts about how the Paris streets are cleaned. One of my favourite scenes is a slapstick episode after a difficult interaction between the main character and her sister. The story brings us face-to-face with the conflicted and competing feelings of love and anger that run through families.
This is the achievement of a good writer who can show us what it feels like to live in another person’s skin.
Tregebov’s story makes us aware of the the reality of contingency, the constraints in our lives (especially those imposed by forces of sexism and racism), and the necessity to make conscious choices about who we are, what we value, and how we want to live — and to remember always to celebrate life itself.
The book is also a lot of fun — long alcohol-soaked Parisian lunches at historic literary establishments, curious facts about how the Paris streets are cleaned. One of my favourite scenes is a slapstick episode after a difficult interaction between the main character and her sister. The story brings us face-to-face with the conflicted and competing feelings of love and anger that run through families.
This is the achievement of a good writer who can show us what it feels like to live in another person’s skin.
Tregebov’s story makes us aware of the the reality of contingency, the constraints in our lives (especially those imposed by forces of sexism and racism), and the necessity to make conscious choices about who we are, what we value, and how we want to live — and to remember always to celebrate life itself.
October 11, 2022
Rhea Tregebov’s novel, Rue de Rosiers, is fascinating. The protagonist, Sarah, is lovable and full of characteristics, a dropout, a coin flipper, and a gardening lover. As a girlfriend, Sarah has a strong sense of independence. The author’s vivid, fantastic, and detailed description makes all the characters come to life, including Laila. The reader didn't quite understand the reason why this character exists until the end. Sarah’s personal story brings the reader to different places: Toronto, Winnipeg, and Paris. The reader learns about Jewish culture and historical facts. The parts about Sarah at the grenade and gun attack in the restaurant and her treatment in the hospital show very touching moments, and they are suspenseful. The ending is satisfying and powerful.
April 3, 2021
Initially, this book reminded me a lot of Mariam Toews All My Puny Sorrows. Sisters, depression, suicide, Winnipeg, Toronto, relationships, guilt. However, after the first 100 pages, when the protagonist goes to Paris, the novels became distinctly different.
Sarah goes to Paris with her boyfriend who is there for a business project with his company. She continues to process family relationships. The book moved slowly, but there were parts I enjoyed.
Sarah goes to Paris with her boyfriend who is there for a business project with his company. She continues to process family relationships. The book moved slowly, but there were parts I enjoyed.
November 12, 2019
3.5
Lovely writing. Enjoyed that it was a Canadian story. Found some parts of the story and story lines at times hard to connect/follow.
Lovely writing. Enjoyed that it was a Canadian story. Found some parts of the story and story lines at times hard to connect/follow.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews