An incredible novel about a young woman navigating the tension between what's expected from her as a Jewish woman from Poland at the turn of the century & her own aspirations. I read the edition with a forward by Alice Kessler Harris, written in 1975. It provided fantastic context - on its 50th anniversary - about the author's life and her contributions to American literature. Now, almost 50 years later, this book is still easy-to-read & super impactful. I think a lot about what it's like to be a part of the Jewish diaspora, so it's wild to think that what it means for me to be Jewish is so different than it's meaning for Sara and her family. I'm grateful that this book has survived this many years since publication & I had the opportunity to read it!

I grew up loving "All-of-a-Kind Family", the story of poor Jewish immigrants in the tenements of New York, five girls cherished by their parents and encouraged to grow and have adventures and find their path in life. I'm sure the stories were somewhat idealized for the audience of children they were aimed at, but they provided a benign window on a different world than my Protestant, Midwestern, middle-class one.

This grim tale of the same era, same location, same culture, could hardly be more different. Of course, as an adult the tales of poverty and oppression should hardly be surprising, but the total selfishness and utter lack of sense, insight, and compassion of the father simply was repugnant to me. His emotional blackmail and ignorance overshadowed his so-called "holiness" and I could not sympathize with him at all.

On the other hand, the character of Sara was charming. Her determination to escape, her intelligence, hard work and sacrifice, really won my heart. When she finally comes into her own, it is a moment truly worth savoring.

Was the world really that horrible at that time? The lack of kindness, of sympathy, just seems so extreme that it's a little difficult to relate to. On the other hand, literature from every age proclaims that being poor, female, dependent, immigrant, strange, powerless leads to being more and more downtrodden, even by your own family.

In the end, however, Sara overcomes her challenges and is on her way to a rich and fulfilling life.

When I'm listening to a book and I want to actually reply to characters, or I get really mad at someone in the book, or I'm upset long after I've been listening then I call that a good book. Bread Givers had me in fits! I was so frustrated and angry...but also concerned and sad and sympathetic to their struggles and aching for good luck to finally come their way. This book had me completely engaged and I felt like I was right in the middle of the Smolinsky family as youngest daughter Sarah finally breaks free to make a life for herself.

yezierska is an author i'd never heard of prior to having this as required reading. that said, she's amazing. this book was a raw and emotional depiction of a family's life in the 1920s us.

there's still so much to take away from it. i wrote a blog post about this.

it's an interesting perspective, albeit one not seen very often. excellently depicts generational misogyny and the conflicted state of a young immigrant.

⇢ 5 stars

Three and a half stars. The writing style is quite simple and the plot is often maudlin and predictable. Still, there is something so sincere about this novel about a young Jewish girl trying to eke out an existence in the extreme poverty and squalor many first generation immigrants experienced in the early part of the twentieth century. This novel brought to mind Little Women and Fiddler on the Roof (four daughters to marry off). You are meant to intensely dislike their father who is painted as a tyrranical old fool. He doesn't lift a finger to provide for his family and mostly spends his time reading from the Torah. He can't be bothered by anything but his spiritual pursuits. As I was reading this book, I kept feeling she really was a very amateurish writer, not polished. And yet that unspoiled artlessness wound up winning me over. I was pleased by the ending, too. I was expecting something tidy and moralistic; glad it wasn't that at all. Do I have reservations about some things, of course! This was definitely a book of its time and there's a lot in it that seems very dated. But still worth the read.

This was the only book for my college seminar on immigration that I enjoyed reading. Anzia projects her experiences in assimilating to life in the United States into the character of the headstrong Sarah. Sarah struggles to find her place in two worlds that are constantly trying to tell her what her role as a young Jewish girl is.

In the first half of the book, she lives in a household tyrannized by her extremely zealous religious father. She watches as he makes her mother and sisters miserable and makes decisions which keep her family in a state of dire poverty, blaming everyone except himself for when his decisions have "unforeseen" consequences.

In the second half, Anzia ardently attempts to attain her dream of achieving independence and becoming a teacher. This goal keeps her living a life of isolation as she vehemently throws herself into her work and studies. Other characters are unable to identify with her and try to pressure her to abandon her studies in order to get married.
The ending of the book is powerful. It strongly portrays the struggles that Jewish immigrants of the early 1900s had to face in finding their place in the lower East side of New York City.

** 3.5 stars **

Yezierska's novel follows Sara Smolinsky, the youngest daughter of Polish Jewish immigrants to the United States in the 1910s/1920s. Her father is set in his Old World ways and values and believes that his wife and four daughters should financially support his study of the Torah and Jewish law. The family lives in squalor, counting pennies and trying to survive on a daily basis. Sara's father drives away his daughters' love interests, attempting instead to match-make with men he believes to be wealthy so that they can help support him financially. Sara sees her father's tyranny and his matchmaking plans backfire and resolves to become a New World American. We follow her journey from Hester Street on the Lower East Side to college to her eventual job as a public school teacher.

This novel does a good job of depicting the clash between traditional Orthodox Judaism and American values and the patriarchy vs. feminism/egalitarianism. Sara and her father are the most well-developed characters in the novel; I wish we got more character development in the depiction of Sara's three sisters and her mother. Also, there are several events that occur in the novel that seem more than a little convenient to the plot. Aside from these flaws, however, this book is engaging and I found the story compelling. Would recommend if you have an interest in turn-of-the-century immigration, early Jewish American literature, or early feminist lit.

This book was assigned reading as part of a course on immigration policy within the US. The professor recommended it highly and told the class that it was a good read and that we would all find ourselves absorbed in the book once we got into it. Truth was spoken.
Bread Givers is the story of Russian Jew immigrant Sara Smolinsky and her desire and struggle to achieve the pinnacle of what it means to be an American; the opportunity to invest one's self in individual pursuits.
As with any book I read through the foreword and introduction, written by Alice Kessler-Harris, and she tells of how she discovered Yezierska when she was a grad student and became entranced by her. I was intrigued by her passion for the text and encouraged further to read (I also had a deadline, the test was in one day and I hadn't started the book). Kessler-Harris uses the adjective "powerful" to describe the writing style, and it was appropriate. I became so engrossed in the book that I finished in one day (not a huge feat, the book is only 297 pages).

After the first chapter I was hooked. I felt the hunger of her family as they scrounged for food and warmth, the shame of being impoverished, and the singular hope of Sara's brave spirit to live free from the shackles of oppressive patriarchy. I wanted to throttle her sisters and I found Yezierska's adjective of "dumb" accurate to describe the broken, spiritless, acquiescence of her sisters and mother. In our in class discussion the professor mentioned the "necessary cooperation of women for any paternalism to exist" and I hoped silently that at least a few of the women in the classroom fully understood the comment. Line after line I found myself silently railing against the self entitled patriarch, and while I understand that much of his faults were enabled by social constructs I could not completely sympathize with his position. I was reminded of my own grandfather who had as much fault in his own death as the diabetes and strokes that were listed on his death certificate, the same sense of imperial entitlement. I was also reminded of him when Sara comes home from college to find that her mother's feet have rotted away from gangrene, and her refusal to have them removed to save her life. I had to take a few moments to reflect on my own past. I celebrated her Sara's strength of conviction to continue with her studies in the face of hunger, isolation, and discouragement. I felt like I was beside her in her dingy basement room covered in filth and lit by candle. I celebrated when she sees through the guise of the predatory suitor, I laugh knowingly as she falls for improbable crushes and I enjoy her triumphant completion of college and return to New York as a teacher. Her resolution with her father and stepmother left me a bit confused, perhaps I am a bit too hard. Then again I see much of my own family in the enabled, manipulative, and yet dependent father. So many emotions and so much commentary on social constructs.
The fact that this book was written in the 1920's and that it was not immediately recognized as a masterpiece of literary work, says much about American society in the turn of the twentieth century. Perhaps it is my American self that cries out for Sara to come among us and take her place as one of the brave and free. I hear her desire to stretch her wings to their greatest span and to live without imposed restraints of social obligation, because that is what it means to be free to live as you will. Understanding that celebration of the self is a celebration of life. Anzia Yezierska, I take my hat off to you. Well done madam, well done.

This is one of my absolute favorite books of all time. I really enjoyed her writing style. I felt connected to her characters and love the plot. I can totally relate to this story. Her dilemma to choose college over marriage. It was heartbreaking seeing the daughters marry and struggle and become controlled by their abusive husbands. Her overbearing father cracks me up but also annoys and irritates me. I found joy in watching her make her way through college and then find the love of her life. What a joy to read. I will treasure this book always.

I had to stop reading prematurely. I cannot stand the father nor the women for putting up with his ridiculous demands. I don't think I've encountered a more infuriating character before!

LOVED THAT. i picked this book up bc i liked the cover and im so happy i did. felt like little women w added themes of religion and generational trauma. which sounds no fun but makes for a really compelling story

Tradition or assimilation? Multiculturalism or feminism?