From Silt and Ashes (Paperback or Softback)

The author of Please Say Kaddish for Me continues the story of a Jewish woman’s journey from Czarist Russia to the heartland of America.

Since losing her family in a pogrom, Havah Gitterman has already seen the worst of humanity. But at last, she and her husband Arel have made it to Kansas City, thanks to Havah’s benefactor. Though haunted by friends and family they have lost—and those left behind—the couple hopes to make a new beginning, especially since Havah is pregnant.

But some traditions are hard to change. Havah studies the Torah in Hebrew and considers teaching it to other girls, much to the chagrin of those still clinging to the old ways. And when Havah gives birth to a daughter who is blind, Arel’s dismay shocks Havah, threatening their marriage.

Havah will learn that even in the New World, prejudice and hate thrive in the shadows, and some wounds will never heal. But with perseverance and faith, Havah will find her way and set an example for her daughter, her community, and generations to come . . .

“Heart-wrenching, incisive and elegantly written, From Silt and Ashes is ultimately a compelling and riveting look into the heart of humanity—at is worst and its best.” —Lisa Regan, author of Local Girl Missing

“Introduces the reader to unique and intensely-drawn characters who bring the story of Jewish persecution in Czarist Russia into stark realization.” —Ginny Fite, author of Possession and Cromwell’s Folly

“An engrossing family saga.” —Jack Martin, author of Brother, Can You Spare a Dime? and Hail, Columbia!

Rochelle Wisoff-Fields is an author and illustrator. A woman of Jewish descent and the granddaughter of Eastern European immigrants, she has a personal connection to Jewish history, a recurring theme throughout much of her writing. Heavily influenced by the Sholem Aleichem stories, as well as Fiddler on the Roof,her novels Please Say Kaddish for Me, From Silt and Ashes, and As One Must One Can were born of her desire to share the darker side of these beloved tales.

A Kansas City native, Wisoff-Fields attended the Kansas City Art Institute, where she studied painting and lithography. She maintains her blog, Addicted to Purple, and is the author of This, That and Sometimes the Other, an anthology of her short stories, which she also illustrated. Her stories have also been featured in several other anthologies, including two editions of Voices. Wisoff-Fields and her husband, Jan, have three sons and now live in Belton, Missouri.