Shush! Growing up Jewish under Stalin: A Memoir
Emil Draitser
(Author)
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Description
Many years after making his way to America from Odessa in Soviet Ukraine, Emil Draitser made a startling discovery: every time he uttered the word "Jewish"―even in casual conversation―he lowered his voice. This behavior was a natural by-product, he realized, of growing up in the anti-Semitic, post-Holocaust Soviet Union, when "Shush!" was the most frequent word he heard: "Don't use your Jewish name in public. Don't speak a word of Yiddish. And don't cry over your murdered relatives." This compelling memoir conveys the reader back to Draitser's childhood and provides a unique account of mid-twentieth-century life in Russia as the young Draitser struggles to reconcile the harsh values of Soviet society with the values of his working-class Jewish family. Lively, evocative, and rich with humor, this unforgettable story ends with the death of Stalin and, through life stories of the author's ancestors, presents a sweeping panorama of two centuries of Jewish history in Russia.
Product Details
Price
$19.99
Publisher
Independently Published
Publish Date
January 06, 2022
Pages
338
Dimensions
6.0 X 9.0 X 0.7 inches | 1.0 pounds
Language
English
Type
Paperback
EAN/UPC
9798502345538
BISAC Categories:
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About the Author
Professor emeritus at Hunter College of the City University of New York, Emil Draitser is an award-winning author of artistic and scholarly prose. Besides his sixteen books, he has published essays and short stories in the Los Angeles Times, Partisan Review, Kenyon Review, North American Review, Prism International, World Literature Today, and others. He lives in West New York, New Jersey.