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A review by katherinezee
Letters from Cuba by Ruth Behar
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
MY REVIEW: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This is my 3rd middle grades historical fiction novel by this author! Letters from Cuba is an epistolary novel based on the real story of the author’s maternal Polish Jewish grandmother Esther who leaves her mother, grandmother, sister and three brothers and beloved homeland to make the voyage from Poland to Cuba to join her father just a couple of years before the start of WWII. In Cuba, her father is working to make enough money to be able to bring the rest of the family over, but he needs another family member to join him in order to raise funds faster as the anti-Semitic treatment of Jews has escalated throughout Eastern Europe. As an immigrant, the only work he was able to get was as a peddler, but once his oldest daughter Esther arrives, she discovers she has a hidden talent with which she can raise more money faster…and speed is of the essence as Hitler is fast encroaching upon Poland. This award-winning author Ruth Behar hits the ball out of the park once again! I look forward to reading one of her adult novels next!
This is my 3rd middle grades historical fiction novel by this author! Letters from Cuba is an epistolary novel based on the real story of the author’s maternal Polish Jewish grandmother Esther who leaves her mother, grandmother, sister and three brothers and beloved homeland to make the voyage from Poland to Cuba to join her father just a couple of years before the start of WWII. In Cuba, her father is working to make enough money to be able to bring the rest of the family over, but he needs another family member to join him in order to raise funds faster as the anti-Semitic treatment of Jews has escalated throughout Eastern Europe. As an immigrant, the only work he was able to get was as a peddler, but once his oldest daughter Esther arrives, she discovers she has a hidden talent with which she can raise more money faster…and speed is of the essence as Hitler is fast encroaching upon Poland. This award-winning author Ruth Behar hits the ball out of the park once again! I look forward to reading one of her adult novels next!