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Dineh: An Autobiographical Novel
Available in English translation for the first time, DINEH, posthumously published, is an autobiographical Yiddish-language novel by Ida Maze (1893-1962). DINEH is a pastorale laced in beauty and sorrow and a bildungsroman told from the point of view of a young girl. Set entirely in what is now Belarus, Maze's eponymous heroine is fueled by her hunger for learning, connection to family and community, and love of the natural world. Fiction. Jewish Studies, Women's Studies.
290 pages, Paperback
Published April 1, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
July 27, 2022
Yermiyahu Taub has given us this superb, poetic translation of Maze’s autobiographical novel of life in White Russia in the early 1900’s.
June 16, 2022
Very vivid and moving picture of life in a Jewish shtetl in Belarus around the turn of the last century -- a large, expanding family against the backdrop of so many upheavals in Russia, pogroms, the 1905 Revolution, constantly changing fortunes. Told mostly through the eyes of the eponymous Dineh, a young girl (from 6 to 16), we see her relations to her parents and brothers, her yearning to study, her fear of emigrating to the U.S. with her mother. The novel would have benefited from a family tree, as there were so many characters (some of whom had the same name...) that I found myself confused at times. I just ignored the confusion and went with the flow.
August 30, 2022
Read as part of the Yiddish Book Center’s book club for 2022.
November 28, 2022
Fascinating, enchanting, sad book.
December 28, 2024
Dineh
4
Pros:
Autobiographical novels are hit/miss for me and Dineh, like Everything Sad Is Untrue, was a hit.
Beautifully written—almost musical—and very tender in both the good and “ouch that’ll bruise” way.
I can’t remember the last book that made me feel so attached to a place, but reading how tsarist Russia steadily besieged Dineh’s (AKA Ida’s) community and in so doing uprooted her family from the only home they’d ever known was rough. Long meditation on how alienation can proceed physical separation and how feeling adrift can induce paralysis.
“No plans or goals crept into his brain. Everything was decided without him, around him, and for him.”
“This isn’t home. We’re on the road…”
Made me think of that song “I had all of you.. most of you… some of you… none of you…” only with respect to a place rather than a person.
Fantastic reminder that a Blanche-like dependence upon the kindness—not even of strangers—but of long-time neighbors may not go well.
“The Jews knew their gentile neighbors well, and they knew how easy it was to persuade them to do evil.”
Made me appreciate the insight of Psalm 146:3-5 anew: “Put not your trust in nobles, in a man who cannot save. When his breath leaves him, he returns to the ground. On that day, his plans die. Happy is the one whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the LORD his God.”
Also made me think of the scene from My Fair Lady when Eliza confronts Colonel Pickering: “What have you left me fit for?!” Intense formation by and attachment to a person/place, can become a real hindrance when faced with renunciation/relocation.
Cons:
As I was reading this, Maddie asked, “Do you like it?” My response: “Yes, but it’s hurting me.”
One of the section headers about ⅔ of the way through is “The Gloom Deepens” and I actually wrote HOW?! in the margin. This book really be like “Oh, you think you’re seeing a light at the end of the tunnel? SIKE! That’s a freight train!” Everything bad that can happen to a person will happen, so just know that going in.
“In Sholem’s house there wasn’t much time to devote to a single calamity.”
Favorite quotes:
“Well a person isn’t made of stone after all, God forbid.”
“Although it was difficult for her to absorb fully all of their words, Dineh always made an effort.”
“But all pieces of news get old with the passage of time.”
“Don’t be afraid, Dineh. We’re not arguing. We’re having a discussion.”
“It’s good to look upon the graves of the fallen. It gives us courage.”
“Those who aren’t looking for a loved one should stay with the dead.”
“Why are people so strange that nothing bothered them?”
4
Pros:
Autobiographical novels are hit/miss for me and Dineh, like Everything Sad Is Untrue, was a hit.
Beautifully written—almost musical—and very tender in both the good and “ouch that’ll bruise” way.
I can’t remember the last book that made me feel so attached to a place, but reading how tsarist Russia steadily besieged Dineh’s (AKA Ida’s) community and in so doing uprooted her family from the only home they’d ever known was rough. Long meditation on how alienation can proceed physical separation and how feeling adrift can induce paralysis.
“No plans or goals crept into his brain. Everything was decided without him, around him, and for him.”
“This isn’t home. We’re on the road…”
Made me think of that song “I had all of you.. most of you… some of you… none of you…” only with respect to a place rather than a person.
Fantastic reminder that a Blanche-like dependence upon the kindness—not even of strangers—but of long-time neighbors may not go well.
“The Jews knew their gentile neighbors well, and they knew how easy it was to persuade them to do evil.”
Made me appreciate the insight of Psalm 146:3-5 anew: “Put not your trust in nobles, in a man who cannot save. When his breath leaves him, he returns to the ground. On that day, his plans die. Happy is the one whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the LORD his God.”
Also made me think of the scene from My Fair Lady when Eliza confronts Colonel Pickering: “What have you left me fit for?!” Intense formation by and attachment to a person/place, can become a real hindrance when faced with renunciation/relocation.
Cons:
As I was reading this, Maddie asked, “Do you like it?” My response: “Yes, but it’s hurting me.”
One of the section headers about ⅔ of the way through is “The Gloom Deepens” and I actually wrote HOW?! in the margin. This book really be like “Oh, you think you’re seeing a light at the end of the tunnel? SIKE! That’s a freight train!” Everything bad that can happen to a person will happen, so just know that going in.
“In Sholem’s house there wasn’t much time to devote to a single calamity.”
Favorite quotes:
“Well a person isn’t made of stone after all, God forbid.”
“Although it was difficult for her to absorb fully all of their words, Dineh always made an effort.”
“But all pieces of news get old with the passage of time.”
“Don’t be afraid, Dineh. We’re not arguing. We’re having a discussion.”
“It’s good to look upon the graves of the fallen. It gives us courage.”
“Those who aren’t looking for a loved one should stay with the dead.”
“Why are people so strange that nothing bothered them?”
October 2, 2024
Dineh is the story of a girl/young woman in what is now Belarus before the Russian Revolution, as well as her community. Interesting period piece, with a nicely flowing translation, but a bit dull and rambling. The author wrote from her own personal experience.
June 12, 2025
dineh when she's born: :(
dineh when she pushes her sister and she dies: :(
dineh when she's the smartest in the world: :(
dineh every day every minute: :(
dineh: :(
dineh when she pushes her sister and she dies: :(
dineh when she's the smartest in the world: :(
dineh every day every minute: :(
dineh: :(
November 30, 2025
lovely book, devastating, punched me in the gut a lot of times
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews