Welcome, friends!
Gittel, my debut middle-grade novel, is here!
Not a middle-grader? No worries. Gittel is perfect for readers age 11 to adult.
“Thirteen-year-old Gittel comes of age and realizes her potential in this...evocative novel saturated in her Jewish heritage, the importance of family, and the power of hope.... Gittel provides a unique conversation about community through a historical-fiction lens that invites connection to the modern day.” —Booklist
“All you need is a pulse to fall in love with Laurie Schneider’s main character, Gittel. This middle-grade novel delivers all the feels, from laughs, to outrage, to tears.... This highly recommended gem will entertain young readers while provoking and reinvigorating classroom discussions about antisemitism, displacement, and equality in a time when so many have forgotten the value of these honest conversations.” —Historical Novel Society
“Gittel and her family are characters that will be remembered long after one finishes reading.” —Jewish Book Council
“Gittel is an irresistible historical novel. Set between 1911 and 1912, the book captures a Midwestern town’s coming-of-age in the prewar period well. Yiddish words are sprinkled across its pages, fleshing out Gittel’s family life, and details as of Jane Addams’s suffragism, teetotalers breaking saloon bottles, and Emma Lazarus’s “The New Colossus” give shape to the growing pains and values of the era. Gittel is the perfect guide through these complex times—self-aware, determined, and eager to flourish.” —Michelle Anne Schingler, Foreword Reviews
“As winter melts into spring and summer 1912, Gittel navigates matters relevant to contemporary middle-grade-readers: friendship, family dynamics, bullying, bigotry, and loss. The young heroine of this coming-of-age novel, a sort of Jewish version of Anne of Green Gables... is a delight.” —Washington State Magazine
“Very well-written and told with a lot of humor, the family dynamics and dialogue are very realistic and enjoyable to read. Readers will love getting to know outspoken Gittel and her trials and tribulations as they come to know her family, friends, and neighbors.... This title is recommended for any middle-grade collection.” —American Jewish Libraries
