DEAR EMMA

In a follow-up to FARAWAY SUMMER, 12-year old Jewish immigrant Dossi Rabinowitz writes to her new Vermont farm friend, Emma, sharing moments from one eventful year in New York's Lower East Side. These include trying to adjust to life with a new brother-in-law (her sister has recently married), worrying about the little girls in her building, being sick with diphtheria, and mourning the loss of friends when a sweatshop filled with immigrant women (the famous Triangle Shirt Waist Factory) burns down. The low-key style and slow pace of the story may put off some; unfortunately Barbara McCulloh's stiff, formal narration doesn't help. Nevertheless, Dossi's wise reflections and vivid depictions of time and place make this a rewarding read. E.S. (c) AudioFile 2003, Portland, Maine [Published: OCT/ NOV 03]