The author carries us through the lifetime of a fascinating Jewish man who used his wonderful hands to survive. They also were filled with romance as he and his wife spent 6 decades together. The reader will look at his own hands and wonder out loud if they have been as energized as those of the hero. I, too, ask myself - how many special traits do my ten fingers possess? Robbins' book offers each of us our own personal answer.
David Geffen is an American-born historian, author and rabbi living in Jerusalem. His writing has appeared in such publications as The Jerusalem Post.
Author Roni Robbins weaves together a historic novel inspired by true events that is a page-turning credit to her literary talents. Her book Hands of Gold is a testament to her storytelling ability, a timeless treasure lost in the horrific tragedies of war, with a spirited main character who lived through one challenge after another. Robbins portrays the spirit of a man, though broken, who is memorable as he holds onto life, time and what truly matters most. An amazing book about resilience, worthy of your immediate attention.
Robyn Spizman is a media personality and an award-winning New York Times bestselling author who has written more than 50 books.
"Where are all your great miracles now?" the story begins, in the hoarse, wry, honest voice of the much-travelled, much-aggrieved Sam Fox, a Zelig of a fictional spinoff of the author's grandfather. An Eastern European immigrant, born at the start of the new century - "My birth was not the greatest timing, I know. But who was I to question such a thing?" - he managed to taste, and to suffer, much of what midcentury America had to offer, from the golden age of TV & radio to a mass shooting at a workplace. A natural-born survivor, skipping across borders, changing identities, harboring secrets, Sam always made time to relish moments of happiness, always displaying - even when on the run, even when grieving his loved ones - a tremendous love of life.
Melissa Fay Greene, a two-time National Book Award finalist, is the author of Praying for Sheetrock and The Temple Bombing.
Based on the lives of her immigrant forebears from Hungary and their American-born children, Roni Robbins has written an absorbing and richly detailed novel about the struggles and triumphs of people who made their way in the promised land of America during the last century. The novel traces the lives of the many members of the Fox family. The characters are vividly drawn and the novel contains many moving stories and episodes. One, in particular, that stands out in the mind of the reviewer involves the journey of Mo Fox to Europe in the wake of the Holocaust to retrieve a family heirloom that represents the title of the novel. Readers interested in learning much about the story of the Jewish immigrant experience in America will find Ms. Robbins' novel a richly rewarding experience.
Sheldon Neuringer is a retired history professor and published author of stories about history and Jewish life, including two novels about Jewish youths growing up in New York. He recently wrote a short story, For the Love of Yiddish.
2022-02-18
A debut novel focuses on a 20th-century Jewish immigrant.
Shimshon “Samuel” Fox is born on a farm in Hungary in 1905. He is one of 13 children, and luxuries are few. Still, the family makes enough to survive even if bad weather spells disaster and antisemitism occasionally rears its ugly head. Samuel’s mother dreams that her son will one day become a cantor. Life winds up taking Samuel on a different path. After a failed attempt to head to America, he eventually finds the resolve to cross the Atlantic on a second endeavor. He works aboard a ship, but he abandons his post while the boat is docked in Canada. In Montreal, he manages to find some work. He also meets the love of his life, a woman named Hannah Stein. Samuel finally lands in New York City in 1926. There, he and Hannah raise a family, work, kvetch, and do what they can to get the most out of their circumstances. The couple share triumphs and hardships over the years. Money is always an issue. News from Europe is not always easy to swallow. And New York is never without its surprises. Robbins’ ambitious story covers the entirety of Samuel’s life. Although some major events like World War II are touched on, the focus is on Samuel’s survival. Many details of his struggle prove insightful. He experiences tuberculosis treatments and a family lecture on the importance of Shabbos observance. He comes to appreciate America as a place where he can speak his mind. He takes such “privileges seriously as they are not so readily available elsewhere.” Of course, Samuel, as an ordinary person, has an often mundane existence. He is willing to share dry facts, such as how his son became a pressman and “within a year, he was a pressman in charge, meaning he was the head pressman on the crew that ran the press for that shift.” While such assertions may help shape Samuel’s character, they do not provide much endearing substance.
An intriguing and realistic, if sometimes uneven, portrait of an immigrant’s intricate journey. (Glossary)
