I found this book very good reading material which describes, in detail, life of Jewish immigrants in America around 1920 and the development of their community. This book helps me understand the culture, religion, beliefs, the Jewish immigrants’ relations with other immigrants and Americans, their family structure, their way of life in the city. It also talks about the poverty and despair of immigrants to America. The writing style is not difficult and I enjoyed reading this book and I learnt a lot about the life in American city at the turn of the century. In addition, knowledge of American history at that time and development of society in city helped me to better understand the material I learned in class. The story and events of Bread Givers gives me a clear understanding of the lives of new, Jewish immigrant families and their quest to achieving success in an unfamiliar and unaccepting new country. This book is a good reading material.
The novel Bread Givers by Anzia Yezierska is a moving story about the lives of the Smolinsky family and their integrations into life in America. With a father deeply rooted in Torah and allegiance to God, the four Smolinsky daughters are put to work to support their family, and are burdened with the tasks of finding husbands or just being married off without choice. Many issues such as those involving the differences of gender and lives in the public and domestic spheres are touched upon in the Smolinsky family's quest to gain a livelihood, just as many other Eastern European families did in coming to America in the early 20th century. Life was difficult for the entire Smolinsky family; where the father was so deeply rooted in his Judaism, and the daughters, while supporting their family by working, all had different ambitions for the futures of their own lives.
The Smolinsky
