Broken Strings

by Eric Walters, Kathy Kacer Narrated by Gabi Epstein

Overview

A violin and a middle-school musical unleash a dark family secret in this moving story by an award-winning author duo. For fans of The Devil's Arithmetic and Hana's Suitcase.

It's 2002. In the aftermath of the twin towers -- and the death of her beloved grandmother -- Shirli Berman is intent on moving forward. The best singer in her junior high, she auditions for the lead role in Fiddler on the Roof, but is crushed to learn that she's been given the part of the old Jewish mother in the musical rather than the coveted part of the sister. But there is an upside: her "husband" is none other than Ben Morgan, the cutest and most popular boy in the school.
Deciding to throw herself into the role, she rummages in her grandfather's attic for some props. There, she discovers an old violin in the corner -- strange, since her Zayde has never seemed to like music, never even going to any of her recitals. Showing it to her grandfather unleashes an anger in him she has never seen before, and while she is frightened of what it might mean, Shirli keeps trying to connect with her Zayde and discover the awful reason behind his anger. A long-kept family secret spills out, and Shirli learns the true power of music, both terrible and wonderful.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

One of Kirkus Reviews' Best Middle Grade Books of 2019
One of the Globe and Mail’s 100 Books that Shaped 2019
One of Quill And Quire’s Honorable Mentions for 2019 Books of the Year for Young People
One of CBC Books Best Canadian YA and Middle Grade Books of 2019

PRAISE FOR Broken Strings:

“Shirli's voice is true and strong as she narrates her own tale of rehearsals, her very ethnically diverse friendships, her deep distress as she witnesses Zayde's pain, and her joy as he reconnects with his music. A beautiful, painful, heartfelt reminder that the past is with us still.” —Kirkus Reviews, starred 

“Walters and Kacer pull of this impressive feat of complex storytelling and make it look easy . . . . [It is an] honest, open and unflinching [story] about some of the more dark and traumatic aspects of history.” —Quill & Quire, starred

“Broken Strings does a great job of combining a wide variety of interests — history, musical theatre, music, romance, realistic fiction — in one well-paced story. It’s a book with heart, and one that will definitely be added to my school library collection.” —CM Magazine

“Middle grade readers will have learned a great deal about the inhumanity of Nazism, as well as about the scars left on their victims. They will also come away with a sense of the damaging effects of silence, and the hope that, at least sometimes, burdens can be shared.” —Jewish Book Council 

“A tale that teaches both history and compassion; a great choice for middle grade readers.” —School Library Journal

"The author has interwoven threads of the response to the"terrorism"of the Twin Towers, reaction to immigrants and racial prejudices, and teenage anxieties into the story, each with a gentle touch. There is much food for thought provided by this book.” —Resource Links

“[T]he authors successfully connect 9/11 and the Holocaust in terms of persecution, intolerance, and loss. At the same time, lighter scenes featuring junior high school lunchroom banter, rehearsal drama, and does-he-like-me uncertainty ensure that younger readers, who are perhaps less aware of the Holocaust, will stay engaged.” —Booklist

School Library Journal

08/01/2019

Gr 5 Up—Shirli was born with music in her blood, so landing a lead role in her middle school's production of Fiddler on the Roof is an amazing opportunity. Unfortunately, she isn't given the role of one of the sisters as she was expecting, but the role of the mother. Disappointed at first, Shirli tries to embrace the role and its benefits, including spending time with her stage husband and crush Ben Morgan. On a quest to prepare for her performance, Shirli asks her grandfather for props from the old clothes and furniture in his attic. There she discovers an old violin and poster for her grandfather and his family's band. When Shirli asks her grandfather, who never listens to music or seems to have any musical talent, about the violin, he tells her of the time he spent playing in a concentration camp during World War II. As her grandfather slowly recounts bits of his and his family's stories, she begins to feel a new closeness to him, as well as to her role in the musical. Taking place in the year after 9/11, the novel weaves the uncertainty and discrimination felt during the time following the terrorist attacks with Shirli's grandfather's experience during World War II. VERDICT A tale that teaches both history and compassion; a great choice for middle grade readers.—Jayna Ramsey, Douglas County Libraries in Parker, CO

Kirkus Reviews

★ 2019-06-10
Zayde's memories profoundly affect his young granddaughter.

In the aftermath of 9/11, the school's annual musical is to be Fiddler on the Roof, because its themes resonate. Eighth grader Shirli is a very talented singer and actor who is disappointed to be given the lead part of Tevye's wife, Golde, who has no solo. She believes that her beloved grandfather can help her research background for the play, although she knows almost nothing of his past. Zayde has never allowed any form of music in his home, and when Shirli finds an old, damaged violin in the attic, it causes him great pain. As the play begins to take over Shirli's life, she shares it all with Zayde, who finds he is able to recount bits of their family history. His mother barely survived the pogroms in Russia. When he was a child, he played violin in his family's klezmer band. And then came the Holocaust and the hell that was Auschwitz, where he lost them all and was forced to play music as his fellow Jews went to the gas chambers. Shirli's voice is true and strong as she narrates her own tale of rehearsals, her very ethnically diverse friendships, her deep distress as she witnesses Zayde's pain, and her joy as he reconnects with his music.

A beautiful, painful, heartfelt reminder that the past is with us still. (authors' note, acknowledgements) (Fiction. 10-14)

Product Details

BN ID:	2940177140292
Publisher:	Penguin Random House
Publication date:	09/08/2020
Edition description:	Unabridged
Age Range:	10 - 13 Years

Read an Excerpt

The bell sounded. People jumped to their feet and gathered their things.
“And don’t forget there’s a unit test on Friday!” Mr. Herman, our math teacher, called out over the noise.
A collective groan rose up from the class. Some people started to argue for a postponement till Monday to give them more time to study. On any other day I would have stuck around and joined in the argument. But not today. Today I needed to get out of the classroom as fast as I could. I had something more important to think about than a math test. I threw my books into my bag and joined the crowd funneling out of the room. I’d gone only a few steps when I almost bumped into Natasha, my best friend. She flashed me a big smile. Smiling was the last thing on my mind.
“Are you ready, Shirli?” Natasha asked.
“No!”
“We don’t have to go,” she said. “We could go to the mall, get a soda instead, maybe buy something.”
“And just not look at the cast list?” I asked.
“It’ll still be there tomorrow.”
“Tash, I’ve waited all week. Do you really think I can wait another day?”
She flashed that smile again. “Patience is a virtue.”
“This coming from you, the least patient person I know?” I asked.
“Okay, you’re right, and I was just joking. Let’s go and look.”
The hallway was packed, and it felt as if we were salmon fighting our way upstream. We were the largest junior high in New Jersey, but the building didn’t seem big enough to hold all 1,600 of us who called this place our home away from home. We squirmed and shuffled our way forward.
“You know you have nothing to worry about,” Natasha said.
“Thanks. Neither do you.”
“Oh, I’m not worried, Shirli. You know that.”
Natasha and I had been friends, and pretty much inseparable, since third grade—like two peas in a pod, or peanut butter and jam. But there was a big difference between us. Natasha had never been in a school show before. In fact, she had only tried out this time because I’d practically dragged her to the auditions. It really didn’t matter to her whether she got a part or not. The problem was that for me it mattered way too much.
“Ms. Ramsey really likes you,” she pointed out. I knew she was trying to reassure me.
“She likes everybody,” I said.
“It’s more than that. I think she sees herself when she looks at you.”
I laughed. “Like she’s looking in some sort of fun-house mirror?”
Ms. Ramsey was our drama teacher. She was in her early thirties but looked a lot younger. She was blond and slim and moved in this slinky, smooth way like someone who’d had years of dance training. We couldn’t have been more different in appearance, but I guess I had the same way of moving, thanks to my own dance classes.
“I didn’t mean the way you two look,” Natasha continued. “Ms. Ramsey is so beautiful.”
“Gee, thanks.”
“Come on, you know what I mean. You’re really pretty, but not like her. You look more like me!”
Well, true, we did look a lot alike, even though my family was eastern European and Jewish, and Natasha’s was Portuguese and Catholic. But where the heck was this going?
“I mean she sees you as being talented like her.”
“Thanks, Tash.” Now that was a compliment.

Videos