The Tears of Yesteryear

by Julie Tulba

In the first decade of the 20th century, nearly 10 million immigrants journeyed to America in search of a better life. Thousands settled in Homestead, Pennsylvania, a city where the skies were always black, the steel mills were always roaring, and life was bleak and harsh. One of them, Ewa Piekos, an orphan girl of 15 from Poland, wants simply to be loved and to feel like she is not alone.On the voyage to America, Ewa’s beloved sister dies, throwing her into an emotional tailspin. It’s only after arriving at Ellis Island that Ewa learns the real reason she was brought to the Land of Golden Opportunity. This secret is almost as crushing to her as the moment her sister died.From the time she arrives at Ellis Island, Ewa's life is never an easy one. It is filled with heartache and loss. But her life in America enables her to plant roots which eventually grow with the family she establishes there.

Genres: Historical Fiction

295 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2019

About the author

It was series like Dear America, Little House on the Prairie, and American Girl books that instilled in Julie at a young age her lifelong love and fascination with history. And a childhood spent growing up in Philadelphia, colonial America's foremost metropolis, further cemented this love affair.

An ardent bibliophile (she can remember as a teenager carrying around a copy of young adult historical fiction author Ann Rinaldi's gripping Civil War tale, The Last Silk Dress, and reading it between rides at Disney World because she didn't want to wait until she got back to her hotel room to finish it) it came as a surprise to no one when she became a librarian. Julie currently works as an academic librarian in the Pittsburgh area.

Besides history, travel is Julie's other great love in life, especially when there's a food tour (or two) involved; she's taken more than 20 in 13 countries around the world. Nothing brings the past more alive than being, in the words of Lin-Manuel Miranda's Hamilton, right in "The Room Where it Happened."

Julie published her first book, The Tears of Yesteryear, in 2019, followed by The Dead Are Resting in 2021, and Red Clay Ashes in 2022. Her newest book- Last Call, Cairo- comes out this fall. She lives in the Pittsburgh area, passport always at the ready for her next international adventure, but also brainstorming ideas for her next novel.

Reviews

[Stephanie Fitzgerald · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enthralling historical fiction!
A teenage girl travels from Poland to America in the late 1800’s. Her experiences at Ellis Island, and life as a young bride and mother in the mining center of Pennsylvania are drawn accurately and interestingly by the author, who based the story loosely upon her relative’s lives.

[kaylasbookishlife · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed following Ewa’s journey as a new immigrant in America. Her journey began when she was 15 years old and she landed in a new land scared and unsure of what her life would be like. This book was very well constructed and researched I felt as if the life described was historically accurate and it was interesting to read about life in 1903 Pennsylvania.

[Keith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Robber Barons and commoners

The setting is different, but the story is the same as what was happening on the northern plains. The Tears of Yesterday captures no only the uncertain misery of steel mill workers in Homestead PA, but also the struggles of immigrants in North Dakota
, also. Robber Barons like John Jacob Astor, who exploited the abundance of fur bearing animals, trading whiskey for skins of animals like mink, so that women on Paris and other exotic places may wear mink coats. The indigenous peoples of the Plains and the immigrants that railroad Robber Barons like James Hill, in concert with the bankers and killers of Minneapolis, could provide him with the resources he's to import Irish men to lay rails across the plains. And if you listen closely to earth and sky you will hear the stories of a thousand thousand Ewa's who went crazy, who aged quickly, and who died young. I feel in love with Ewa. So will who if you read her story will understand the plight of immigrant women and their children and men.
In

[Patsy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Two Polish girls were traveling with their Uncle from Poland crossing the Atlantic Ocean to the United States in the late 1800'.

The story follows the young girls, Eva and her sister, Mayan has a sad beginning on the trip. This is a very good Family Saga about their journey, hardships, heartbreaks, trials, joys, happiness, love and disappointments in their lives.

A wonderful historical story that touched my heart and my emotions. The author had woven facts with fiction to pull the story together for smooth reading. I enjoyed learning how some of the first Polish came to American, how they lived and made themselves a home. I really enjoyed this book, loads of history with a good story. I loved it.

[carol michaels · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tears of Yesteryear

This story lived up to its title. There was no happily ever after yet sometimes that is simply known as life.

[Carol Tulba · Rating 5 out of 5]

This novel tells the gripping story of a young immigrant girl's coming of age in early 20th century America, a place unlike anywhere she has known or seen in her short life. Her story is not unique in American history, but rather becomes a testament to the power of resilience, grit, and love in shaping not only one's day to day existence, but also one's destiny. The novel is filled with moments of heartbreak and tears, but they never outweigh the positive spirit and determination that Ewa exudes. The Tears of Yesteryear provides the reader with a history lesson of immigrant America in the last century, a tale of harshness tempered by love and affection, and most of all, a love story that the reader will remember.

[Barb Czz]

This book caught my interest from the very beginning. While I felt so sad for young Ewa
I kept reading. She did have a few people in her life who truly loved and cared about her
Her determination and stamina have to be admired in her facing the tragedies that occured
in her life.

I think this is a true picture of a lot of immigrants who arrived in our cities and towns
during that time.
Hopefully more novels are in the works by this author.

[Chrissy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good lord this book was sad. Life of an immigrant in the early 1900s was no piece of cake, sure, but my goodness. Poor Ewa. She really went through the ringer. I initially picked this book up because it's set in Homestead, where I live. There are still remnants of the mills here, and you still hear about the horror of working in them. Thankfully our air and rivers are much cleaner now. But I feel like this book was a fairly accurate version of how life was for them.

[Lisa Seel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Julia Tulba has woven a beautiful and tragic story about the struggle of Eastern Europeans in America at the turn of the 20th century. Being from Pittsburgh, I love the history she weaves into the storyline. I only wish that her editor would have been a bit better at catching discrepancies and misspellings.

[Jackie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I will sum it up for you....life’s a bitch and then you die.
This was a well written book but a bit hard to read. In fact I skimmed through many of the abuse and horrific sadness because I found myself cringing at the thought of the next sentence.
Yes, there are people who live these hardships. But life is too short for me to get depressed by a book.

[Roberta Stoneback · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first novel by this new author provided a very pleasant surprise. She showed in unsparing detail the harshness and drudgery of an immigrant woman's life early in the 20th century. As someone familiar with the Pittsburgh area, it was especially fascinating to read a book with so many local references.

[denise · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eva

Interesting story of immigrant workers and the hardships they faced while working in the steel mills. They also had to face death of not only the working men, but the horrors of illness due to cramped and crowded towns.

[Marguerite DiMattia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Page turner!

A heartfelt look into the life of an immigrant woman - her loss, loves, & and struggles in a new world. Ms. Tulba gives us a glimpse into the world of the immigrant of the early 1900's and what those brave women & men faced.

[ROCKY · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful/Heartbreaking!!!

What a beautiful but heartbreaking & suffering story of Ewa & the fate of immigrants that arrive in this country years ago. Life was so hard & to this day still is. Just breaks my heart!! A definite must read!!

[Conchita · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this story.

[Sheila Martinez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good read

I’m really enjoying reading thes stories in my late life and finally realizing how simple and good mine was. Most of all, I should have enjoyed my life more.

[Pam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really good book, but at the same time a very sad one—so much heartache in one life.

[Debbi Marquette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another good book by Julie Tulba. If you like historical fiction I highly recommend them.

[Ruth Walsh · Rating 4 out of 5]

The only thing I want to share is do not listen to the audiobook version. The AI narrated mispronunciations are difficult to listen to.