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Shayna, a Novel
“From frozen ground, flowers grow…” 1919 Ukraine – In a small trunk in the corner of an abandoned shed a young woman huddles hiding from the Cossacks ravaging her shtetl, burning homes and killing Jews. Shayna Rifkin, seventeen, loses everything. Desperate to find safety, she dreams of reaching America. Shayna rescues her four-year-old nephew and with her fiancé and his mother braves a perilous trek across Europe. Shayna’s courage and determination bind them together, weaving a strong fabric from their separate threads to make a family, a safe place from which to build a new life in a new country. This emotionally rich novel is steeped in the Yiddish culture of the shtetl and the Lower East Side of New York in the early 20th century. Winner Hackney Literary Award
330 pages, Paperback
Published December 7, 2021
13 people are currently reading
98 people want to read
About the author
Miriam Ruth Black
3 books15 followersMiriam Ruth Black’s life journey has been characterized by an adventurous spirit and love of change. She explores the theme of change—inevitable and often surprising, in her well-received debut novel, Turtle Season. A teaching degree in English from the University of Minnesota became a ticket to work in a variety of settings including the American International School in Israel and Los Angeles’s inner city. She earned a Master’s in Educational Psychology and then acquired a Marriage and Family Therapy License. Those degrees morphed into a career in the Northwest as a lecturer in education, substance abuse and mental health. Currently, she spends winters in Tucson, Arizona and summers in Minneapolis, Minnesota and is working on her next novel.
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
February 25, 2022
I will first mention that I give out very few five star ratings, but "Shayna" definitely deserves it. This book is so beautifully and powerfully written that the reader feels all of the fear, joy, confusion, uncertainty, and sense of family that the characters experience. I highly recommend the book, both because of how wonderfully written it is, but mostly because everyone should know about the history of how the pogroms destroyed families and uprooted lives.
February 2, 2022
I highly recommend this beautifully written book. I looked foreword to reading it everyday and was sad when I reached the last page! It made me want to read anything Miriam Ruth Black has written. I could deeply feel the emotions, the struggles, and courage of each character, hurting for them at times and then celebrating with them at others … thank you , Miriam, for the gift of your amazing writing of a beautiful story..Readers, you can’t pass this one up! I’m a fan!
August 12, 2022
An intimate reflection on heritage and identity, asking timeless moral questions that resonate across unconventional relationships and borders. The author clearly has a deep knowledge of Jewish history and culture, and was able to effectively balance that with a clear and engaging narrative.
The only change I would have made is to have included the wonderful Yiddish index in the front of the book, signal more clearly that it is there for the reader, and/or utilize footnotes to contextualize the in-text terms for more non-familiar readers.
The only change I would have made is to have included the wonderful Yiddish index in the front of the book, signal more clearly that it is there for the reader, and/or utilize footnotes to contextualize the in-text terms for more non-familiar readers.
May 3, 2023
What a gem this book is. The characters, their interactions, their lives feel so utterly real. Black manages to convey so much sense of place, so much emotion, with such a clear but delicate touch, even when describing incredibly difficult things. Highly recommended.
December 28, 2025
Great book! The author is in my book club and she is awesome!
February 23, 2022
Shayna: A Novel
Being a Jew, early in the 20th century in the Ukraine, was not easy. Shayna was 16 years old, engaged to be married to Yussi, and living alone in her parent’s home, when she heard the horses coming and gunshots in the distance. The pogrom that was rumored about was really happening!
Shayna’s parents had already been killed by the Russians in an earlier attack on their village. Shayna quickly hid in the safe place her father had carved out for her prior to his death.
As the shouting and hoof beats came closer, she worried about her sister and her young family in a nearby village, her best friend, and her fiancé’ and his mother. She smelled smoke and heard the crackling of fire…. Yet, she stayed still until she could be sure that the invaders had left her home. Retreating from her hiding place, she saw her house in flames. She ran to the next village to find her sister…. What she saw would remain in her memory forever. Her sister lay on the bed, dead and violated. Her newborn niece was on the floor, very still and not breathing. Where was her young nephew?? He was alive! She took Dovide and ran to look for her fiancé’! Hundreds of people in the neighboring villages had been killed. It was no longer safe to stay. The Russians would come back!
Yussi and Shayna knew they had to leave…. They set their sites on America.
This book tells the story of this young couple and their journey to get to America. It is a very emotional tale of love, perseverance, forgiveness and trust. It’s a book you will never want to end.
Many thanks to the author, Miriam Ruth Black, #kirkhousepublishers, and #netgalley for the privilege of reading and reviewing an advanced copy of this book.
Being a Jew, early in the 20th century in the Ukraine, was not easy. Shayna was 16 years old, engaged to be married to Yussi, and living alone in her parent’s home, when she heard the horses coming and gunshots in the distance. The pogrom that was rumored about was really happening!
Shayna’s parents had already been killed by the Russians in an earlier attack on their village. Shayna quickly hid in the safe place her father had carved out for her prior to his death.
As the shouting and hoof beats came closer, she worried about her sister and her young family in a nearby village, her best friend, and her fiancé’ and his mother. She smelled smoke and heard the crackling of fire…. Yet, she stayed still until she could be sure that the invaders had left her home. Retreating from her hiding place, she saw her house in flames. She ran to the next village to find her sister…. What she saw would remain in her memory forever. Her sister lay on the bed, dead and violated. Her newborn niece was on the floor, very still and not breathing. Where was her young nephew?? He was alive! She took Dovide and ran to look for her fiancé’! Hundreds of people in the neighboring villages had been killed. It was no longer safe to stay. The Russians would come back!
Yussi and Shayna knew they had to leave…. They set their sites on America.
This book tells the story of this young couple and their journey to get to America. It is a very emotional tale of love, perseverance, forgiveness and trust. It’s a book you will never want to end.
Many thanks to the author, Miriam Ruth Black, #kirkhousepublishers, and #netgalley for the privilege of reading and reviewing an advanced copy of this book.
September 6, 2022
A Tragic Story Powered by Love
“Shayna, A Novel,” is a powerful story artfully and lovingly written by Miriam Ruth Black.
Shayna’s story begins in 1919 as Jews were being forced to flee their homeland in Ukraine during the pogroms (“an organized massacre of a particular ethnic group …”), and leaving behind most if not all of their worldly possessions and sometimes family members for a new life in America.
History it seems has a way of repeating itself based on what we’re hearing and seeing on the news today and over the past few months which really made this book come to life for me.
Shayna’s story is a story of courage and strength, resilience and fortitude, hope and healing, one rooted in religious history and beliefs that as a result of her unfathomable experiences cause her to question her faith, her worth. But, in the end through the power of sheer determination, personal growth, understanding and love of herself and from those closest to her is able to make a new life for herself and her family.
I learned so much about the Jewish culture through the reading of this book and am thankful to the author for including the glossary of terms at the end of the book to help me understand the meaning of the words and phrases unfamiliar to me.
“Shayna, A Novel,” is a powerful story artfully and lovingly written by Miriam Ruth Black.
Shayna’s story begins in 1919 as Jews were being forced to flee their homeland in Ukraine during the pogroms (“an organized massacre of a particular ethnic group …”), and leaving behind most if not all of their worldly possessions and sometimes family members for a new life in America.
History it seems has a way of repeating itself based on what we’re hearing and seeing on the news today and over the past few months which really made this book come to life for me.
Shayna’s story is a story of courage and strength, resilience and fortitude, hope and healing, one rooted in religious history and beliefs that as a result of her unfathomable experiences cause her to question her faith, her worth. But, in the end through the power of sheer determination, personal growth, understanding and love of herself and from those closest to her is able to make a new life for herself and her family.
I learned so much about the Jewish culture through the reading of this book and am thankful to the author for including the glossary of terms at the end of the book to help me understand the meaning of the words and phrases unfamiliar to me.
June 15, 2023
Reading two novels that focus on similar time periods and characters can make for interesting reading. Reading two novels that were written and published almost 100 years apart makes for fascinating reading. If I hadn’t known that “Bread Givers” by Anzia Yezierska (Penguin Classics) was originally published in 1925, I would have criticized it for its unrealistic, feminist approach to women of that time. That made comparing it to “Shayna” by Miriam Ruth Black (Kirk House Publishers), which was published in 2022, fun because, while its heroine dislikes religious restrictions on women’s actions, she would not qualify as a feminist. However, “Shayna” does contain material – fairly explicit descriptions of rape and violence – that few publishers would have been willing to print in the early part of the 20th century.
See the rest of my review at https://www.thereportergroup.org/past...
See the rest of my review at https://www.thereportergroup.org/past...
November 5, 2023
Book Title: Shayna
Author: Miriam Ruth Black
Genre: Novel
Book Reviewed By Sylvia Jacobs
This book is about a Jewish Women named Shayna. It is about her family running from Ukraine to America in 1919.They were not safe in Ukraine. They constantly had to hide. Where a synagogue once stood, now, all Shayna saw was smoke.
Shayna is a 17 year old girl who is Jewish. Will her family survive? Will she lose most of her family because of the many programs in Ukraine, where she lives? Who will she escape with? She is quite determined. What hardships will lie ahead for her?
The pogroms had burned their villages for years. Somehow the Jewish people were able to survive. Shayna heard guns in her sleep, even when there were no guns. Many people left the country to go to America. Does she have an older brother who lives in America?
This book comes highly recommended as it was the winner of the National Jewish Book Awards of 2022. It is highly recommended, as it is about how people can survive in very difficult circumstances. This book deserves a rating of five out of five stars.
Author: Miriam Ruth Black
Genre: Novel
Book Reviewed By Sylvia Jacobs
This book is about a Jewish Women named Shayna. It is about her family running from Ukraine to America in 1919.They were not safe in Ukraine. They constantly had to hide. Where a synagogue once stood, now, all Shayna saw was smoke.
Shayna is a 17 year old girl who is Jewish. Will her family survive? Will she lose most of her family because of the many programs in Ukraine, where she lives? Who will she escape with? She is quite determined. What hardships will lie ahead for her?
The pogroms had burned their villages for years. Somehow the Jewish people were able to survive. Shayna heard guns in her sleep, even when there were no guns. Many people left the country to go to America. Does she have an older brother who lives in America?
This book comes highly recommended as it was the winner of the National Jewish Book Awards of 2022. It is highly recommended, as it is about how people can survive in very difficult circumstances. This book deserves a rating of five out of five stars.
July 7, 2023
Miriam Ruth Black’s Shayna is the story of a young woman who flees the pogroms in the Pale of Russia in Ukraine in 1919. Her own family murdered by the Cossacks, Shayna rescues her orphaned nephew, and she, her fiancé, and his mother make a perilous journey across Europe with dreams of reaching America.
A skilled storyteller, Black creates complex, unforgettable characters, who move about in a richly observed Yiddish culture, from the shtetl in Europe to the Lower East Side of New York. Readers will root for Shayna and her new family as they face unexpectedly harsh conditions even after their arrival in America.
Black weaves themes of faith, culture, love, and personal identity throughout this absorbing historical novel. Above all, it is a terrific, story. Once begun, the book is very hard to put down. These compelling characters will stay with readers long after they’ve finished the book.
A skilled storyteller, Black creates complex, unforgettable characters, who move about in a richly observed Yiddish culture, from the shtetl in Europe to the Lower East Side of New York. Readers will root for Shayna and her new family as they face unexpectedly harsh conditions even after their arrival in America.
Black weaves themes of faith, culture, love, and personal identity throughout this absorbing historical novel. Above all, it is a terrific, story. Once begun, the book is very hard to put down. These compelling characters will stay with readers long after they’ve finished the book.
January 3, 2022
The story takes place prior to the Holocaust when Jewish people were being persecuted and how many people escaped through Antwerp. This is a time in history which many of us are not aware of. Those people that escaped murder and mayhem suffered terribly on the ships that carried them to America. Once they arrived they were faced other indignities, horrible living and working conditions and even relatives who were horrible to them.
This is an emotional story as seen through Shayna’s eyes. The determination and resolve of the characters in this book is amazing.
I highly recommend this book to everyone.
This is an emotional story as seen through Shayna’s eyes. The determination and resolve of the characters in this book is amazing.
I highly recommend this book to everyone.
February 4, 2022
I read this novel with great interest. It tells a terrific story of a Jewish woman’s escape from the programs and her beginnings as an immigrant in New York. All the characters are believable and flawed, as they should be in a good novel. I couldn’t put the book down because I wanted to know what would become of Shayna and her family. I highly recommend the book as a great read.
April 10, 2022
This book was beautifully crafted and written! I was riveted from page one to page 322. Yussi was my favorite character. Manya provided a bit of humor to the story. Shayna is the very embodiment of female strength and determination. The Jewish culture was so present and rich. What a beautiful story!!
May 15, 2022
Wow. This is a wonderful book. I looked forward to reading it every day. So beautifully written, and I enjoyed the historical component. I feel as if I know Shayna, the main character.
I have Turtle Season on its way and will read everything the author writes. I read this book on recommendation from a friend who is a nephew of the author, and I am thankful to have had the recommendation.
I have Turtle Season on its way and will read everything the author writes. I read this book on recommendation from a friend who is a nephew of the author, and I am thankful to have had the recommendation.
January 13, 2024
Although fiction, everything about this journey is truth. My aunt longed to ask questions of her parents, after they were gone, about their life in the shtetl and coming to America. This book gives us that story.
April 20, 2022
Excellent Read
I highly recommend this book. The author writes with great compassion for her characters. As the reader you become very invested in the story early on.
I highly recommend this book. The author writes with great compassion for her characters. As the reader you become very invested in the story early on.
Read
February 19, 2023DNF
Waited months, then only available on Libby.
Waited months, then only available on Libby.
Read
July 10, 2023I really enjoyed this story. I want to find more stories of the journeys Jews took to get to America.
January 19, 2024
3.5 stars. Interesting historical novel, but the writing wasn’t great. I found myself skimming at times because it just wasn’t necessary to read every word.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews