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To Save a Life
About the author
Larry Zuckerman, named for a Shakespearean actor because of crossed paths during World War II, has been blending drama with history ever since he took up writing at age fifteen. His first book, The Potato: How the Humble Spud Rescued the Western World, was excerpted in the New York Times and won an award in the United Kingdom. The Rape of Belgium: The Untold Story of World War I resulted from his lifelong passion for that tragic era, which inspired Lonely Are the Brave, his fiction debut. He has appeared on NPR's Morning Edition with Renée Montagne, delivered a keynote address at the 2009 World Potato Congress in Christchurch, New Zealand, and was a historical consultant for Hot Potatoes, an award-winning PBS documentary. A former at-home parent to two sons, now grown-another inspiration for Lonely Are the Brave-he lives in Seattle.
Larry Zuckerman
In 1909, Malka Kaminsky steals her dowry to flee Russia and an arranged marriage, arriving in New York hungry for freedom. Drawn into the hustle of the Golden Land, Malka joins a sweatshop strike and is nearly beaten by thugs, but a stranger and fellow Russian Jew, Yaakov Rogovin, rescues her. Malka doesn’t thank him, refusing to acknowledge her debt, but when chance brings Yaakov to her Sabbath table, they laugh and trade warm glances—only to deny their mutual attraction.
After all, they carry deep scars from Russia, where admitting to desires always led to heartache. But as they strive to become entrepreneurs—Yaakov as a musician, Malka as a dressmaker—they hope that independence will show them how to live unafraid, despite the past. And they will need that lesson soon, because when Malka’s fiancé arrives, determined to reclaim her, she seeks Yaakov’s help, neither of them aware what fighting for their dreams will cost.
