Seattle To Strawberries
Also available at Judaica stores worldwide
Seattle to Strawberries is a young adult novel about 16-year-old Rina Ziskind, sleuth-in-training, who sees every sign of a bright future at her Jewish high school in Seattle, until the tuition crisis hits hard; her father has no way to pay and the scholarship fund mysteriously disappears. The clues she finds lead Rina to the wealthy new man in town, Mr. Nathan Rudd, who has suddenly taken over the school’s finances. But before she can solve the mystery, Rina and her family are whisked away to her father’s new job on a strawberry farm in Cedar Grove, Oregon, which is sadly empty of Jewish life, lacking shuls, kosher food, and Jewish schools.
Rina struggles with her faith and her fate as she navigates life in her new, isolated country town. Will Rina forgive her parents for tearing her away from her friends and beloved school or will she insist on living in the past? Follow Rina in her desperate attempts to reconnect with her high school friends, her zany ideas for her brother’s bar mitzvah, and her failed attempts at earning a living wage.
The story turns when Rina finds herself bonding with a rich, Jewish, country girl who has never been to a Shabbos table and as their relationship blossoms, it opens up her heart to happiness for the first time since the move, taking Rina in new directions.
Suddenly Rina’s arch-enemy Mr. Rudd appears in her family’s kitchen in Cedar Grove with a request that changes Rina’s life in ways she never expected, and forces her to make a life changing decision.
Teen readers will relate to Rina’s complicated mix of emotions fueled by her determination against all odds to restore her family’s dignity and to complete her high school diploma that she is certain will seal her financial future. Rina’s encounter with Jews from different walks of life provides the opportunity for her to make Judaism her own as she moves into adulthood.
Book Excerpts
This moment would forever be seared into my memory. I never wanted to be in the position where I would have to ask someone for money again. I sped down the block and crossed to the other side of the street, running away from my embarrassment. I was still shaking when I reached home, my blouse soaked with sweat and my hair wind-blown and tangled. What would it matter how I looked now that my life was just about over? I was going to be a 16-year-old dropout. I raced to my room, threw myself face down on the bed, and pulled my pillow over my head, blocking out all of my troubles.
In a last-ditch panic, I tried bargaining with Hashem: When I finally get my diploma and work at a good paying job, I won’t forget the poor families that can’t afford tuition. Isn’t that what You want, Hashem?
That was my mystical side talking.
Then my logical side spoke up: how was I supposed to do that if I couldn’t finish school and get a diploma?
I hated the trees and the flowers and the birds. Country life held no appeal for me. All I wanted was Seattle. I was a city girl who had never been to camp. Although I used to sit on a bench in Seward Park on Shabbos afternoons in Seattle, it was like a rest stop. I stepped into the park for a while and then stepped back into the city. Here I was enclosed by the great outdoors with no path leading out. I longed to step out of here and back into the city for a breath of city air.
A breeze rustled the leaves on the elm trees beside the porch, and I turned around to see if someone was there. I lowered my voice. “I have my suspicions about who took the scholarship money.”
That night, I collapsed onto my bed, vaguely noticing a noisy chorus of frogs, hummingbirds, and crickets outside my window, a symphony of strangeness that sounded nothing like the city chorus of cars, sirens, and train horns that filtered through my window back home. The only thing that grounded me was the sight of my unpacked boxes in the corner of the room that contained all of my memories. They chased away the thick darkness in the room that threatened to swallow me up.
Glossary
Ahavas Yisroel - Love of a fellow Jew
Alef-Bet - The Hebrew alphabet
Aleph - The first letter of the Hebrew alphabet
Aliyah - The honor of being called up to read from the Torah during services
Avinu - Our father
Avraham - The Biblical Abraham
Bar Mitzvah - The celebration of a Jewish boy turning 13 and therefore obligated to fulfill the 613 Jewish commandments
Baruch Hashem - Thank G-d
Bas Yisroel - A Jewish girl
Be’er Sheva - A city in Israel
Ben - Son of
Bentching - The grace said after meals
Bet - The second letter of the Hebrew alphabet
Brocha, Brochos - Blessing/Blessings
Bikur Cholim - Visiting the sick
Challah - Traditional braided Sabbath bread
Chaggim - The Jewish holidays
Charan - An ancient city outside of Israel
Chavrusah - Torah studying partner
Chazan - Cantor in a synagogue
Chesed - An act/acts of kindness toward others
Chossid - A follower of a Chassidic leader
Chulent - A stew of beans, barley, potatoes, onions, and meat that cooks for 24 hours
Chumash - The 5 Books of Moses
Dalet - The 4th letter of the Hebrew alphabet
Daven, Davening - To pray
Dreidel - A 4 sided spinning top traditionally played with on the festival of Hanukkah
Dvar Torah - A speech containing a lesson in Judaism derived from the Bible
Eliezer - Servant of Abraham
Eretz Yisroel - The land of Israel
Erev Shabbos - The afternoon before Shabbos
Frum - Religious
Gefilte fish - Cooked fish that is deboned, chopped, and served in the form of a loaf
Gemach - A loan fund without interest
Gemorra - The Talmud
Gimmel - The 3rd letter of the Hebrew alphabet
Goyim, Goyish - Non-Jew, Non-Jewish
Haftorah - The portion of the Prophets read after the Torah reading during services
Halacha - Jewish law
Hashem - G-d
Hasmodah - Learning Torah with diligence
Havdallah - The ceremony marking the end of the Sabbath
Kiddush - 1. Blessing said over a cup of wine or grape juice at the beginning of a Sabbath meal
2. Meal in the synagogue after the Sabbath prayer services
Kiddish Hashem - Honoring G-d in public
Kitzur Shulchan Aruch - Abridged version of the Code of Jewish Law
Kosher - In accordance with Jewish dietary laws
Kotel - The remaining Western Wall of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem
Kugal - A Jewish traditional casserole made of potatoes, noodles, or vegetables mixed with eggs
Mashgiach - A supervisor who ensures that a factory or restaurant is operating in accordance with Jewish dietary laws
Mazel Tov - Congratulations
Melachim - Angels
Mesechta - One book of the Talmud
Mezuzah - An inscribed parchment in a case affixed to the doors of a Jewish house
Minyan - A quorum of 10 men for prayer.
Mitzvah - A commandment from G-d
Morah - Teacher
Moshiach - The future messiah
Nachas - Special pride from the behavior or successes of children or grandchildren
Niggunim - Soulful Jewish melodies
Novi - Prophet
Pareve - Neutral, food with neither dairy nor meat
Parsha - The weekly portion of the Torah
Pesach - Passover
Purim - A joyous Jewish holiday commemorating Queen Esther’s successful mission to save the Jews of the Persian Empire from a genocide attempt. Celebrants dress up in costumes and deliver food to friends and charity to the poor
Queen Esther - A Jewish queen in the palace of Persian King Achashverosh (Xerxes)
Rambam - A commentator on the Torah from the Middle Ages
Rashi - A commentator on the Torah from the Middle Ages
Rav - A Jewish judge; a Rabbinical guide
Rivka - The Biblical Rebecca
Rosh Chodesh - The first day of every Jewish month
Rosh Hashonah - The festival celebrating the beginning of the Jewish New Year
Schach - Vegetation put on top of a Succah
Sefer - A religious book
Sefer HaNiggunim - A book of Jewish melodies
Sefer Torah - A handwritten scroll of parchment containing 5 Books of Moses
Shema - A central Jewish prayer proclaiming the oneness of G-d
Sephardic - Jew of Spanish or Middle Eastern descent
Shabbos - The Sabbath
Sholom Aleichem - Traditional greeting to a fellow Jew
Shul - Synagogue
Shulchan Aruch - The Code of Jewish Law
Siddur, Siddurim - Jewish prayer book/books
Sofer - A Hebrew scribe
Sora - The Biblical Sarah
Succah - A booth without a proper roof built for the holiday of Succos
Succos - A Jewish holiday celebrated in special booths commemorating the harvest and the Jews traveling through the desert following the Exodus
Tefillin - Black boxes with straps, worn on the head and arm by men and boys over 13 during prayer
Tefilos - Prayers
Tehillim -The book of Psalms in Hebrew
Torah - The 24 Books of the Hebrew Bible, sometimes referring only to the 5 Books of Moses written on a parchment scroll
Treif - Not kosher
Trop - The musical notes for reading from the Torah during services
Tzoraas - A skin disease akin to leprosy caused by spiritual failings
Vayeitze - One of the sections of the Torah
Vov - The 6th letter of the Hebrew alphabet
Yakov - The Biblical Jacob, the son of Isaac
Yarmulka - A religious head covering
Yeshiva - A religious school of Torah learning
Yeshiva bochur - A student attending a Jewish religious school
Yiddishkeit - Judaism and its tenants
Yirei Shemayim - G-d fearing Jews
Yitzchok - The Biblical Isaac, the son of Abraham
Yom Kippur - A holy day of repentance
Yom Tov - A Jewish holiday
Yud - The 10th letter of the Hebrew alphabet
Zmeros - Songs sung at Sabbath meals