Nonfiction

Tears Over Russia: A Search for Family and the Legacy of Ukraine's Pogroms

Tears Over Russia: A Search for Family and the Legacy of Ukraine's Pogroms

  • Downloads：5616
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2023-01-21 11:21:51
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Lisa Brahin
  • ISBN：1666627720
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Reviews

HalKid2 ，

I was so looking forward to this book based on my own genealogy work and particularly an interest in learning more about pogroms。 （There seems to be very little written about them， certainly not in historical fiction。） But I’m afraid I was very disappointed。To completely ‘fess up， I wound up skimming most of this book。 Just keep that in mind if you read on。First， my mistake。 I thought this was historical fiction and I was looking forward to a fictionalized and emotionally rich account that would I was so looking forward to this book based on my own genealogy work and particularly an interest in learning more about pogroms。 （There seems to be very little written about them， certainly not in historical fiction。） But I’m afraid I was very disappointed。To completely ‘fess up， I wound up skimming most of this book。 Just keep that in mind if you read on。First， my mistake。 I thought this was historical fiction and I was looking forward to a fictionalized and emotionally rich account that would show me the human side of the thousands of Jews killed during the period of the pogroms。 Unfortunately， the book turned out to be NON-fiction。 Not my preferred genre。Second， I found this very dry non-fiction — a compilation of chronological facts taken from the author’s considerable and detailed research into her family history。 With tons of people （some with identical names） to keep track of。 On the plus side， I give the author kudos for shedding light on this seldom addressed chapter of history。 And I did get a general sense of the impoverished and ever-threatened lives of Jews living in the Pale of Settlement， along with the many and time-consuming difficulties they faced in trying to leave their homeland for Palestine， another European country， or the United States。 I just didn’t expect to have to also wade through the detailed stories of the lives of the author’s many relatives once they came to the U。S。 To me， it all became tedious。 I wish Lisa Brahin had used her family story to illuminate the wider picture of Jewish persecution during this period。 Instead， reading her book felt more like getting through a too-long and extremely personal term paper。 。。。more

Granne52 ，

While it is challenging to follow the chronology and keep the various family lines distinct， the historical content is both valuable and heartbreaking。

Karyn ，

An extraordinary family history！ Immersive experience that made me feel like I knew these people and tasted their bread。

K ，

Tears Over Russia by Lisa Brahin is an incredible true tale of one man's rescue from almost certain death of almost 100 family members from the pogroms and rampant murder of the early part of the 20th century in what is now Ukraine。 The author presents this history， worthy of a Hollywood epic in the vein of "Holocaust" or "Roots"， that relates the insecurity/poverty/love/hatred/misery/randomness of the time and place， and though the cast of individuals can be confusing， their stories combine to Tears Over Russia by Lisa Brahin is an incredible true tale of one man's rescue from almost certain death of almost 100 family members from the pogroms and rampant murder of the early part of the 20th century in what is now Ukraine。 The author presents this history， worthy of a Hollywood epic in the vein of "Holocaust" or "Roots"， that relates the insecurity/poverty/love/hatred/misery/randomness of the time and place， and though the cast of individuals can be confusing， their stories combine to give the reader a good sense of that period and their lives。 This is an impressive work。 。。。more

Lanny Udell ，

Tears Over Russia brought tears to my eyes， for several reasons。 One， I have a direct connection to the story as my life partner was a Cutler （see footnote on page 211）， so many of the characters were very real to me。 Second， because of the author’s vivid account of the pogroms and the murder of thousands of Jews and destruction of their homes and property。 To learn what these families endured to escape their homeland and make their way to the Golden Land is overwhelming。 It struck me that those Tears Over Russia brought tears to my eyes， for several reasons。 One， I have a direct connection to the story as my life partner was a Cutler （see footnote on page 211）， so many of the characters were very real to me。 Second， because of the author’s vivid account of the pogroms and the murder of thousands of Jews and destruction of their homes and property。 To learn what these families endured to escape their homeland and make their way to the Golden Land is overwhelming。 It struck me that those of us born here had no real idea of our ancestors’ journeys。 The author was fortunate that her grandmother， Channa， （Anne） was willing to tell her stories and allow them to be recorded when so many of our grandparents didn’t want to talk about the painful past。I am grateful to the author for her exhaustive research， and her persistence in telling the story of her family and their community in Stavische。 While it reads like historical fiction， it’s well documented history， one that shouldn’t be forgotten。 Even her appendices were fascinating！ Of course， the parallels between events then and the current war in Ukraine are inescapable and they remained front and center in my mind as I read Tears Over Russia。 A Jewish genealogist and researcher， Brahin turned her prodigious professional skills to uncovering her own family’s history， and in the process opens a window for so many of us who had been left to wonder about our roots。 I highly recommend Tears Over Russia to anyone whose family history dates from that era and geographical area， as well as those with an interest in Eastern European history。 。。。more

Janilyn Kocher ，

An in-depth look at a Ukrainian community’s history and subsequent immigration to the US。 I didn’t realize how many pogroms there were during the 19teens and 1920s。 One of the most amazing stories was the mass exodus of almost 100 people led by one man。My one critique is I got lost often with all the names and different families。Thanks to Edelweiss and Pegasus Books for the complimentary copy。

Heidi Slowinski ，

Set in the early 20th century， Brahin provides an account of her grandmother， Channa’s accounts of escaping the perils of Ukraine as pogroms across the country took the lives of hundreds of thousands of Jews。 traveling first through Russia and then Romania， Channa’s family traveled over the course of three years in a group of approximately eighty， guided by an American who returned to aid his own family in their escape from the violence。 Brahin crafts a biography that reads like a suspense novel Set in the early 20th century， Brahin provides an account of her grandmother， Channa’s accounts of escaping the perils of Ukraine as pogroms across the country took the lives of hundreds of thousands of Jews。 traveling first through Russia and then Romania， Channa’s family traveled over the course of three years in a group of approximately eighty， guided by an American who returned to aid his own family in their escape from the violence。 Brahin crafts a biography that reads like a suspense novel。 At times I found myself forgetting this was a true story。 This history feels all the more essential given Russia’s current invasion of Ukraine。 This period of history is often times forgotten and yet needs to be remembered in the lead-up to the Shoah。Brahin also does a lovely job of celebrating the work of historical researchers， librarians， and genealogists。 These unsung heroes do the essential work of preserving such important histories。I highly recommend this book and look forward to more from the author。 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Tears Over Russia: A Search for Family and the Legacy of Ukraine's Pogroms

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Tears Over Russia: A Search for Family and the Legacy of Ukraine's Pogroms&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Tears Over Russia: A Search for Family and the Legacy of Ukraine's Pogroms&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0