Shush! Growing Up Jewish under Stalin: A Memoir

by Emil Draitser

Many years after making his way to America from Odessa in Soviet Ukraine, Emil Draitser made a startling every time he uttered the word "Jewish"―even in casual conversation―he lowered his voice. This behavior was a natural by-product, he realized, of growing up in the anti-Semitic, post-Holocaust Soviet Union, when "Shush!" was the most frequent word he "Don't use your Jewish name in public. Don't speak a word of Yiddish. And don't cry over your murdered relatives." This compelling memoir conveys the reader back to Draitser's childhood and provides a unique account of midtwentieth-century life in Russia as the young Draitser struggles to reconcile the harsh values of Soviet society with the values of his working-class Jewish family. Lively, evocative, and rich with humor, this unforgettable story ends with the death of Stalin and, through life stories of the author's ancestors, presents a sweeping panorama of two centuries of Jewish history in Russia.

Genres: History, Memoir, Nonfiction, Jewish, Russia

320 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2008

About the author

An author and professor of Russian at Hunter College in NYC, a three-time recipient of fellowships from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, in addition to his twelve books, his work has also appeared in the Los Angeles Times, the Partisan Review, and the North American Review. "

Reviews

[Irina · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an incredibly interesting and personal story of my cousin's experience growing up as a Jew in Soviet Russia. The honesty and self-examination that the author brings to this novel is engrossing and unflinching. I'm totally engrossed on a personal and intellectual level.

[Alexa · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best books I ever read!!