Shush! Growing Up Jewish Under Stalin: A Memoir"Emil Draitser is authentic and honestly self-critical, while also full of humor and warmth. Shush! is a great tribute to the tenacity of a people who kept their identity and loyalty intact even when threatened with dire consequences."—Irena Grudzinska Gross, author of The Scar of Revolution "A wonderfully evocative memoir of childhood and adolescence during one of the most tragic epochs in Russian history. As grim as the historical background of the memoir is, the mood is redeemed by Draitser's perfectly Odessan Jewish humor, sad yet optimistic, compared with that of another great Odessan, Isaak Babel."—Lara Vapnyar, author of There are Jews in My House and Memoirs of a Muse "Emil Draitser resurrects the world of his Jewish childhood in the Soviet Union touchingly and with a great sense of humor, a truly rare quality."—Solomon Volkov, author of Shostakovich and Stalin and The Magical Chorus: A History of Russian Culture from Tolstoy to Solzhenitsyn "Emil Draitser's memoir tells me, adroitly and movingly, more about being a child in Stalin's Russia than all the fiction and nonfiction I had read before put together. His work has worldwide appeal."—David Westheimer, author of Von Ryan's Express and Death is Lighter than a Feather "A poignant and gripping book. . . . A compelling memoir. . . . A sweeping panorama of the Jewish history in Russia, this richly documented work is a remarkable humanitarian contribution and a challenge to the continued silence in Russia surrounding its persecution of Jews. The volume touches a nerve and is written with a depth of feeling. The reader will appreciate the skilled craftsmanship that elevates Draitser's perfect gem of a memoir to fine literature."—Notes on Contemporary Literature "Vivid and engaging. . . .The most moving episodes are concerned with Draitser's coming to terms with his Jewish identity. . . . Elegantly and warmly written, this volume will be of interest to scholars exploring Jewish life in the Soviet period. . . . Despite the dramatic nature of the material, the stories are told with humor. A welcome addition to curricula in Russian culture, as well as for Jewish studies, sociology, history, and psychology."—Slavic and East European Journal "Rich in minute observations, psychological insights, and vivid descriptions."—World Literature Today “An intimate account of an extraordinarily difficult period in Jewish history, written with such erudition, elegance, texture, and humor. This immensely enjoyable book makes a consequential -- and little understood -- era come alive through the prism of the author’s personal experience and enviable writing style. One can only hope that this book will receive the large audience it so richly deserves.” --David A. Harris, Executive Director, American Jewish Committee |
Contents
Prologue | 1 |
How I Failed My Motherland | 7 |
Whats in a Name | 46 |
Us against Them | 69 |
Friends and Enemies | 97 |
The Girl of My Dreams | 107 |
How They Laugh in Odessa | 116 |
part | 131 |
One Passover in Odessa | 195 |
part three | 203 |
On Commissars Cosmopolites and Lightbulb Inventors | 205 |
Them | 213 |
No Kith No Kin | 224 |
Grandpa Uri | 236 |
Missing Mikhoels | 250 |
Black on White | 260 |
Papa and the Soviets | 133 |
A Dependent | 149 |
Without Declarations | 159 |
Whos Who | 169 |
A Strange Orange | 179 |
Who Are You? | 186 |
Time Like Glass | 269 |
The Death of Stalin | 282 |
Epilogue | 293 |
My Genealogical Tree | 302 |
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Common terms and phrases
Abram adolescence already know Anna Ivanovna apartment Aunt can’t catch chest cold Comrade Cossacks couldn’t courtyard death Deribas Street didn’t doesn’t door everything eyes face father feel film floor front Galina Ivanovna German girl glass Grandfather hands happened Haydamaks he’s head heart hero I’ve Jewish Jews kike Kotya laugh Lazar Lenin live look Mama says Mama’s Marshak matzo Minsk Moscow mother movie newspapers nose Odessa once Papa’s poem Pravda pull Pushkin Pushkin Street radio rush Russian Sasha Sholom Aleichem shouts shtetl smell smile song Sonya Soviet Stalin stand stop surname talking Tanya tell theater there’s thing turns Ukrainian Uman Uncle Misha understand voice wait What’s window woman words Yan’s Yiddish Young Pioneers Young Pioneers Palace Zhenya