90 Charles Street: Girlhood in an immigrant Jewish family in Greenwich Village

About this book

On 90 Charles Street in Greenwich Village, New York City, the doors do not close, and the dead and the living move seamlessly together. Jennifer is raised to be seen but not heard in this religious Jewish household, where she becomes a keen observer of her immigrant family's jovial unhappiness while struggling to learn the quiet problem-solving abilities required of Orthodox women. Her mother, who fled from Switzerland in 1938, creates routines, regimenting every minute of the day, while her father's childhood, his deportation from Poland to the Soviet Gulag in Siberia, casts a shadow over the mundane texture of life in New York. When her parents die, Jennifer is left to navigate the colossal mess - of their house, and of their lives. As she renovates the family home, she finds herself grappling with decades of clutter both inside the house and in her memories. She uncovers stories, family secrets and layers of history.

Details

Format

Paperback

ISBN-13

9789493541108

Publisher

Amsterdam Publishers

Published

October 19, 2026

Pages

248

Weight

11.8 oz

Editions

2 (Paperback · Hardcover)

Subject

Biography & Autobiography