A Day of Small Beginnings

Lisa Pearl Rosenbaum
Little, Brown and Company (2006)
ISBN 9780316014519
Reviewed by Deb Shunamon for Reader Views (11/06)


I would read anything else written by this author in a heartbeat. Not only is this story incredibly interesting, but Lisa Pearl Rosenbaum is a superb writer.

“A Day of Small Beginnings” is catalogued as a fictional novel on the topics of:  Spirits, Jewish families, and Poland, but it is so much more. Fourteen year-old Itzik Leiber awakens the spirit of a Jewish woman by desperately praying for help in a graveyard, and so begins a fantastic story that travels through generations, from Poland in 1906, to America, and back to a healing, present-day Poland. The book masterfully covers a lot. The scrutiny of, loss of, and tentative discovery of religious faith, and the abundance of historical and cultural information on Poland are fascinating, but I particularly liked what it had to say about some effects of immigration. Rosenbaum says in the Acknowledgement that she discovered her story was more universal than she had originally thought, and I totally agree. This book will appeal to interests beyond the formal catalogue topics, as this wise author comments on human nature, religious and cultural change/clashes, and insularity vs. the globalization of our world.

If I have any criticism to make, it's that I don't like having dance or artwork described to me as I am never able to fully empathize with the character's reactions to the works afterwards. However, the opening paragraph of the book immediately peaked my curiosity, the second paragraph had me hooked into a tale that I had to learn more about, and by the end of the first page I had a very difficult time putting this book down for any reason. It was a sincere pleasure to read Rosenbaum's concise, clear writing, and experience this elegant, insightful story about life. “A Day of Small Beginnings” moves along at a quick, enjoyable pace; its cover is lovely and the chapter designs are refined, and the words on its pages are worth every minute of any thoughtful reader's time.

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