This is a very beautifully written book about the little know sect of Jews who lived in Jerusalem, Israel during the dying days of the Ottoman Empire pre-WWI. They were the Haredi Jews. They are almost cult like in their Orthodoxy. They consider themselves the Jewish people's emissaries to the holy city and devote their entire life to worshipping Gd.
This is the story of Esther Kaminsky. The story begins in 1911. Esther is eleven and has been raised to believe that she is one of the elite Jews who will save all the Jews by following all the very strict rules and regulations imposed upon them by their holy books and rabbis. Growing up in poverty, she is taught that as a Jewish girl living in the Holy City, it is her role and responsibility to marry an Orthodox man and hasten the coming of the Messiah, by having as many children as possible. Esther struggles against these expectations and also against the commandment no to make idols. When Esther discovers her amazing artistic talents, she struggles with believing that they are Gd's gift to her or believing what her religion tells her is a mortal sin.
The book is very engaging.
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