It’s 1950s New York, and Marisabina Russo is being raised Catholic and attending a Catholic school that she loves ― but when she finds out that she’s Jewish by blood, and that her family members are Jewish survivors of the Holocaust, her childhood is thrown into turmoil. To make matters more complicated, her father is out of the picture, her mother is ambitious and demanding, and her older half-brothers have troubles, too.
Following the author’s young life into the tumultuous, liberating 1960s, this heartfelt, unexpectedly humorous, and meticulously illustrated graphic-novel memoir from an acclaimed picture book creator explores the childhood burdens of memory and guilt, and Marisabina’s struggle and success in forming an identity entirely her own. It's a powerfully moving story of the author's experiences with family, religion, and coming of age in the aftermath of World War II, and the childhood struggles and family secrets that shaped her.
"The episodic story leisurely follows Russo’s life in New York City as she discovers a love of visual art, endures emotional shake-ups and family dramas, and, piece by piece, begins to put together what her family endured during World War II. Notably, clichés of intergenerational trauma are sidestepped: Holocaust and wartime survivors aren’t walking tragedies but fully human, everyday people with foibles as well as pain.... Affectionately celebrates Jewish American experiences." — Kirkus Reviews
Recommended Age | 13 and up |
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Author | Marisabina Russo |
Illustrator | Marisabina Russo |
ISBN | 0374303835 |
Publication Date | Oct 26, 2021 |
Publisher | Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR) |
Language | English |