Excerpt
Halitza, a simple yet profound word, is the central force that sets this family memoir into motion. Halitza is an ancient Jewish law that requires a brother-in-law to marry his brothers wife if she is widowed and childless. If the brother is already married, a ceremony called Halitza must be performed to free the widow to remarry. To comply with this law when his younger brother died in 1906, Pincas Meirowitz left his secure life in Romania and immigrated to New York. He brought with him his wife, Golda, and their four young children.
But this story is really Goldas, who, as an eight-year-old orphan, was placed in the custody of her greedy sister-in-law, Toba, fifteen years her senior. Toba was very mean to her. After seven difficult years, a marriage was arranged for Golda with Pincas Meirowitz who provided her with a good life filled with challenges as well as a multitude of pleasures.
Readers of all ages will find the problems, joys, and traditions detailed in this inspiring family saga fascinating. The reader goes with Golda from poverty to comfort, from an immigrants struggle to success. Throughout the ethical, religious, and cultural challenges Golda faces as she raises her eight children, she is the family nurturer, arbiter, mainstay, and matriarch. The story reveals the complexity of this large family and tells of their experiences in twentieth century America.
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