An outstanding review for Please Say Kaddish for Me by Rochelle Wisoff-Fields, published by Argus Publishing

By J Hays

I have long been a fan of the historical fiction genre, in part because I can get a more personal view of past events than what might be presented in history books. Having said that, Please Say Kaddish For Me goes way beyond just illuminating a terrible chapter in Jewish history. I suspect many people today know little, if anything, about the pogroms that preceded the holocaust of WWII. With this novel the historical aspect is clearly well-researched. But the characters that illustrate this history are so real that I found it hard to put the book down. I needed to know that Havah would survive, that she would hopefully find her happiness. But it wasn’t just Havah that drew me in, it was Arel, and Ulrich, and Nikolai…and all the other members of this group whether family or acquaintances. Every character is strongly drawn and fully three-dimensional, complete with the personal complexities inherent in all of us. It has been a while since I have read a book that was a real page-turner but this most assuredly was. Wonderful book.