Broken Strings
Broken Strings
There was an air of semi-organized chaos about things. The musicians were practicing, the set-builders were hammering away, members of the ensemble were working on a song in the back of the auditorium, and Ben was up, center stage, with “our daughters” rehearsing a scene. The only thing missing was Ms. Ramsey. Practice was supposed to have started at 7:00 a.m., twenty minutes ago, and she wasn’t here. She was usually such a stickler for being on time herself, and she was likely to bite your head off if you were even a minute late.
Mr. Nevarez sat at his piano. He was working on one of his crossword puzzles, as stone-silent as ever. Sometimes it seemed as though he was only vaguely aware that we existed, so there didn’t seem to be any point in asking him questions about Ms. Ramsey’s absence, or thinking that he might lead the rehearsal until she got here.
Finally, Ben stepped up to take charge. I guess that was the quarterback part of his personality coming out! He got people moving in the right direction. Mindi helped him, making sure that the actors were going over their lines in groups and generally making it feel as though the rehearsal had started, even though our director was absent. I had to give Mindi full marks for that, even if giving orders was something she seemed to like to do. Okay, I was being a bit mean. She was actually polite and even helpful to her “sisters” as they rehearsed a scene.
I looked at my watch again.
“She probably slept in,” Natasha said.
“Probably.”
“There’s nothing to worry about.”
“I know.”
“But you’re still worried,” Natasha said.
“Unavoidable. You know me. Besides, we really can’t afford to lose any more time.”
“Yeah, but I’m sure Ms. Ramsey will just schedule an extra rehearsal to make up for it. Relax!”
When talented eighth-grader Shirli Berman learns that her school will be putting on a production of Fiddler on the Roof, she has her eyes on the role of Hodel and the beautiful solo that comes along with it. When she is cast as the matronly Golde, she is disappointed but turns to her grandfather, a survivor of Auschwitz concentration camp, to help her really understand the character. This connection with her elderly Zayde ends up teaching her more than she could ever imagine—about her religion, about the play, and about the world around her.
Shirli is a truly believable, honest narrator. The authors have done a really nice job of capturing a teen voice. Shirli comes off the page as a balanced mix of confidence and self-doubt, with both maturity and the inexperience of youth. She has a clear character arc, evolving as the book progresses, as does her Zayde. The scenes between the two are particularly well done as readers can feel both Shirli’s desire to know more about her grandfather’s life while still wanting to respect his boundaries.
One of the most interesting choices Walters and Kacer made was setting this novel in New Jersey shortly after 9/11. By including characters like Amir (a Hindu man who befriends Shirli’s grandfather) and Mohammad (a Muslim student who is involved in the play) and illustrating the issues they face in a post-9/11 world, the authors are able to give a sense of how much damage can be done when ignorance and fear combine. The parallels between the Holocaust and the way people from minority groups are often treated are not subtle; even an inexperienced reader would be able to pick up on the message.
My one issue with this novel-- and this is really reaching-- is that the romance between Shirli and the actor who plays her onstage husband was probably not necessary. It’s not that it was forced (anyone who has ever been in a play knows how easy it is for backstage romances to form!), but I’m not convinced that it adds to what is already a complex story. There is a lot going on here without that extra layer.
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.
Allison Giggey is a teacher-librarian from Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island.