As One Must, One Can

“The heartwarming—and heart wrenching—tale of life for pre-World War I Jewish society. . . . Well-researched and a gem of a novel.” —Caroline Giammanco, author of Into the Night

In Kansas City, 1907, Havah Gitterman continues her rebellious ways, teaching Hebrew and Humash classes for girls and doing everything she can for her family, even though the nerve pain in her legs continues to plague her, a constant reminder of the pogrom that nearly destroyed her childhood.

At home and abroad, anti-Semitism rears its ugly head once again. Havah’s husband Arel could go to prison for not observing the Christian Sabbath. Her blind daughter Rachel, a piano prodigy, is taken on a European tour by their family friend, where they are confronted by none other than a young Adolf Hitler.

But no matter how often Havah has been thrown about by life, she always lands on her feet. She rises above the close-mindedness that surrounds her to see Rachel play at the White House—and to usher a new life into the world just when all seems lost . . .

“As they did in Please Say Kaddish for Me and From Silt and Ashes, the characters shine in the third in Havah’s trilogy . . . a story of triumph over adversity.” —L.D. Whitaker, author of Soda Fountain Blues

“This story of love, joy, conflict and fear kept me turning the pages and taught me many things about Jewish culture.” —Jan Morrill, author of The Red Kimono

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.