5 February 2016

Published February 3, 2016 by rochellewisoff

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Genre: Realistic Fiction

Word Count: 100

COLLATERAL ORANGE DAMAGE

“Farewell, Rob.” I laid my battered dog tags on his grave.

Prostate cancer took him. Doctors say I’m next.

Please try to understand. We were soldiers following orders.

“A little defoliating agent to clear the jungle and expose the enemy.” Our commanding officers assured us. “Nothing that will harm a human.”

I had to go back and see for myself.

Last night I visited a children’s hospital in Ho Chi Minh City where the fruits of our labors languish with twisted or missing limbs and eyes that bulge from enlarged skulls.

We have exposed the enemy, and he is us.

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WARNING! This is disturbing, watch at your own risk.

Character Study – Rabbi Shimon and Miriam Cohen

Published January 24, 2016 by rochellewisoff

Out of the corner of her eye she [Havah] saw her mother creep through the doorway and inch toward the bed with a wooden rolling pin high over her head. She slammed it down on the back of the man’s head. With a sudden jerk and a grunt he released Havah. He rolled off her and fell to the floor unconscious.

She sat up, clutching a pillow and stared down at him. Blood pooled under his head and seeped into the cracks between the floor boards. This had to be a dream. In the morning Papa would wink at her over breakfast and assure her it had all been a horrendous nightmare.

Her mother yanked her hand, dragged her from the bed and held her for a moment, her tears hot on Havah’s neck.

“Hurry, Havah. May the God of Israel go with you.” Taking Havah’s face between her hands her mother kissed her forehead.

“But Mama—”

Tugging Havah’s arm, her mother dragged her to the back door of the house and shoved her out. “No arguing. Go!”

Heart thumping, she ran. Thick smoke stung her eyes and burned her throat. She stopped and turned to look one last time. The blazing synagogue crumbled to the ground.

“No, Havah, don’t look back!”

~~Taken from Please Say Kaddish for Me by Rochelle Wisoff-Fields

Original Artwork © Rochelle Wisoff-Fields

The Heder teacher’s face turned crimson. He narrowed his eyes and glared at five-year-old Havah as if she were a piglet about to be dumped on his doorstep. Then he clenched his tobacco-stained teeth and spat a brown glob on the doorstep.

Up until this moment she had been excited to learn to read the Torah, the words that came from Adoshem’s own mouth. Huddled against Papa’s shoulder she hid her eyes in his coat folds.

“You can’t be serious, Rabbi Shimon. She’s a girl.”

“So she is.” Papa’s arm tightened around her. “My daughter’s mind is every whit as keen as her brother Mendel’s.”

“To be certain she’s a bright one, and one day she’ll be a most excellent wife and mother. Perhaps she’ll even marry a rabbi herself but, Rebbe, to come to Heder with boys? It’s not right.”

“Where does the Torah say it’s wrong for a girl to learn?”

“Rabbi Ben Hyrcanus clearly stated in the Talmud that to teach a daughter Torah is tiflut, obscenity. And did he not also say that the words of the Torah should be burned rather than be entrusted to a woman? Rabbi, you of all people should know this.”

“As far as I’m concerned it’s opinion and rubbish! Didn’t the prophet Yo’el write ‘your sons and daughters shall prophecy’? Miriam and Deborah—were they not judges in Israel?”

“You win, Rebbe.”

“I always do.”

~~Taken from From Silt and Ashes by Rochelle Wisoff-Fields

Published by Argus Publishing

Represented by Loiacono Literary Agency

Original Artwork © Rochelle Wisoff-Fields

Until the pogrom that took them from her, Havah’s parents, Rabbi Shimon and Miriam Cohen were the two most important people her life.

Not one to be bound by law and traditions, Rabbi Cohen relied more on Torah than Midrash, the rabbinic commentaries. When questioned, he was quick to argue that the former was the irrefutable word of God while the latter was merely opinion and conjecture. He encouraged his daughter and his wife, if they so desired, to study the Holy Word.

Miriam was a gentle and loving wife who kept a clean, Kosher home. She considered her greatest treasures to be her husband, her two sons and her daughter.

Havah adored her parents and her memories of them are a constant thread throughout the series. Even though she was only sixteen when they died, their words of wisdom are always there to guide her.

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Check out my author page on the Loiacono Website. For all of the character studies thus far, click on the link Rochelle Wisoff-Fields Art and Blogs or my website RochelleWordArt.

Character Study – Valerica Dietrich

Published January 15, 2016 by rochellewisoff

Although she [Havah] had dusted it many times, a faded photograph in a silver frame caught her attention. A woman with pale curls around her face smiled at her from under a lace bridal veil. She lifted the picture from the table beside the piano.

“What was she like?”

“My Valerica.” He took the picture from her. Then, holding it to his chest, he propped an elbow on the piano and rested his head on his hand. “Kolyah introduced us.”

“Dr. Nikolai?”

“She was his wife’s best friend. Do you believe in love at first sight, Havah?”

Not waiting for an answer, he continued. His spirit seemed to travel to a distant time and place. Tears shimmered in his eyes. “Valerica Dietrich. She was always the picture of fashion. But, if you ask me, she could’ve worn flour sacks and still have turned heads.

~~From Please Say Kaddish for Me

“Have you heard from your professor?”

“I got a letter this morning.” Havah took an envelope from her pocket. “How is he?”

“He’s so lonesome. Oh, he doesn’t say so, but I can tell by the way he talks about his wife and how much he misses her. She’s been gone thirteen years. It’s a pity he never remarried.”

~~From From Silt and Ashes

Published by Argus Publishing

Represented by Loiacono Literary Agency

Original Artwork © Rochelle Wisoff-Fields

It was for his Romanian wife, Valerica that Ulrich moved to Kishinev, Moldova. Her death in childbirth dealt him a terrible blow from which he has never recovered. In Please Say Kaddish for Me, to keep her memory alive, Ulrich still has all of her belongings and refuses to sell the house they shared.

However, after experiencing anti-Semitic oppression and the carnage of the pogrom, he can no longer bear to remain in Kishinev.

As From Silt and Ashes opens he has sold the house and moved to London where he teaches at the Royal Academy of Music. Valerica’s wedding photo is ever by his piano for, as he’s told Havah, “She had music in her eyes.”

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Both Available at

ANGUS & ROBERTSON AMAZON B&N BAM BOOKWORLD FISHPOND SHELFARI BOOK DEPOSITORY WATERSTONES GOODREADS IDREAMBOOKS

Check out my author page on the Loiacono Website. For all of the character studies thus far, click on the link Rochelle Wisoff-Fields Art and Blogs or my website RochelleWordArt.

15 January 2016

Published January 13, 2016 by rochellewisoff

The following photo is the PHOTO PROMPT. Does it speak to you? Tell us what it says in a 100 words or less.

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PHOTO PROMPT © Amy Reese

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Genre: Realistic Fiction

Word Count: 100

STOCKHOLM SYNDROME

What began with a chance meeting on the walking trail grew into a fairytale romance. Enan’s soulful brown eyes captivated me. I pledged my eternal love. I felt safe with him.

One day, after our daily hike, Enan led me to a windowless cabin in the woods.

“Behold our romantic hideaway.” His hot breath in my ear rendered me helpless as he tied my hands behind my back. “You’re mine, princess—forever and always.”

A year passed before I saw the sun again.

***

I watch the police take Prince Not-So-Charming away in handcuffs.

God forgive me. I love him still.

Character Study – Jeffrey and Evalyne Tulschinsky

Published January 8, 2016 by rochellewisoff

“Mama, Jeffrey took my doll and hid it. Make him tell me where it is!”

“Tattletale!”

Frustrated by her children’s constant bickering, Sarah Tulschinsky stood and hurled her sewing basket to the floor. “Can’t you two play nice? Don’t you know how good you have it?”

Eyes wide, twins Jeffrey and Evalyne backed away from her. Sarah wished she could take back her harsh words. She had always made it a point never to raise her voice to them. After all they were only four. How could she expect them to understand?

While they were outside playing tag and climbing trees, the postman delivered a letter from Arel that had been lost for almost two months. His detailed account tore her heart into pieces.

Before she could explain to her son and daughter what had happened to those poor children in Kishinev, the front door opened. Wolf stepped over the threshold. Evalyne and Jeffrey raced to him. He scooped them up, one on each arm and spun them around.

“Papa, the lights comed back on today and we gots water, too!” Evalyne always had to be the first to share whatever she knew.

~~Taken from Please Say Kaddish for Me

________________

“Do you miss those boys and girls in Kishinev, Auntie?” Evalyne’s round eyes, brimming with curiosity, seemed to pop out of her slender face.

“Would you miss your nose if it fell off?” asked Havah.

Sarah held her finger to her lips. “Evie, you’ll wear Auntie out with your questions.” “How else will she learn? She can never ask me too many questions.”

~~Taken from From Silt and Ashes

Published by Argus Publishing

Represented by Loiacono Literary Agency

Original Artwork © Rochelle Wisoff-Fields

Evalyne and Jeffrey Tulschinsky are Sarah and Wolf’s twin children. In the excerpt from Please Say Kaddish for Me they are five years old when Sarah receives a lost letter from Arel telling her about the Kishinev pogrom.

The excerpt from From Silt and Ashes takes place a few months later, after Arel and Havah have settled in Kansas City.

Evalyne is the more outgoing of the two children. Although Havah loves both children, she is drawn to the precocious little girl who is constantly asking questions.

Evalyne (author’s mother) and Norman Weiner on their 15th birthday.

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Both Available at

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Check out my author page on the Loiacono Website. For all of the character studies thus far, click on the link Rochelle Wisoff-Fields Art and Blogs or my website RochelleWordArt.

Character Study – Wolf Tulschinsky

Published January 3, 2016 by rochellewisoff

After one last draw on his pipe, Wolf emptied it into an ashtray on the end table. He leaned back on the sofa and stretched his lanky arms over his head and his long legs out in front of him.

“Public school is a wonderful thing,” he said. “The twins will learn to read and write like American children. There’s talk at the synagogue of starting a Talmud Torah class as well. It will be like heder in the old country, so Jeffrey will learn Hebrew, too.”

“What about me?” Evalyne sat up straight.

“Talmud Torah classes are for boys, sweetheart.”

“Auntie Havah reads the Torah in Hebrew, doesn’t she?” Evalyne stuck out her lower lip.

“Yes, I do. Is this not America? Why shouldn’t Evie know what her brother does?”

Havah rose and arched her back in an attempt to find some relief.

“Are you saying we should be without tradition like the gentiles?” asked Wolf with a growl in his voice as he stood.

“I’m saying, our traditions should include women and girls.”

“Then your tradition contradicts Talmud!”

“My papa used to say the Talmud is just a bunch of rabbinic opinions.”

“They’re damn good ones at that, and I’ll thank you to keep your ideas to yourself where my daughter’s concerned.”

~~Taken From From Silt and Ashes by Rochelle Wisoff-Fields

Published by Argus Publishing

Represented by Loiacono Literary Agency

Original Artwork © Rochelle Wisoff-Fields

Wolf Tulschinsky is a self-made man. He met and fell in love with Sarah Gitterman on the way to America. Together they’ve forged a good life for themselves and their twins, Jeffrey and Evalyne. He’s a good husband and a loving father. While Wolf prides himself on his trade as a tailor and a modern American, his ideas concerning Jewish tradition are very much old world. Although it’s clear in both Please Say Kaddish for Me and From Silt and Ashes he admires Havah’s courage and strength, he disagrees with her radical stance on women and education.

The Sequel to

Both Available at

ANGUS & ROBERTSON AMAZON B&N BAM BOOKWORLD FISHPOND SHELFARI BOOK DEPOSITORY WATERSTONES GOODREADS IDREAMBOOKS

Check out my author page on the Loiacono Website. For all of the character studies thus far, click on the link Rochelle Wisoff-Fields Art and Blogs or my website RochelleWordArt.

Character Study – Sarah Tulschinsky

Published December 21, 2015 by rochellewisoff

Sarah Tulschinsky, Arel’s older sister, fascinated Havah. Her crooked-toothed smile eclipsed her hollow cheeks. Skinny, with a thatch of kinky black hair and round eyes, she lacked Shayndel’s physical attributes.

Arel said he could not recall ever hearing Sarah raise her voice, until seven years ago. Always the dutiful daughter, she did whatever she was told until her father arranged for her to marry a man twice her age. With shrieks of rage that shocked everyone, she stuffed her few belongings into a carpetbag and left home. The few kopeks she had scrimped together from mending clothes paid her passage to America.

Amid stench and disease in the ship’s steerage, she met her beloved Wolf. Married soon after their arrival in New York, they followed their dreams to Kansas City where they lived in a flea-infested shack among the impoverished unwashed in a settlement known as McClure Flats. Side-by-side, she and Wolf established his tailor shop. Within two years, they saved enough money to move from the slums into a two-story home.

~~Taken from From Silt and Ashes by Rochelle Wisoff-Fields

Published by Argus Publishing

Represented by Loiacono Literary Agency

Original Artwork © Rochelle Wisoff – Fields

Sarah Tulschinsky is a gentle presence in both Please Say Kaddish for Me and From Silt and Ashes. In the first book the family in Svechka looks forward to her letters telling of her life in America. Although Yussel, who feels that he drove her away, wrestles with his guilt and worries that she hasn’t forgiven him.

Sarah is the first to welcome Havah to Kansas City. However, when she sees how Yussel dotes on Havah, she feels twinges of jealousy. In the end a close bond forms between the two women.

McClure Flats in Kansas City, MO. circa 1911

Published 15 December 2015

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Both Available at

ANGUS & ROBERTSON AMAZON B&N BAM BOOKWORLD FISHPOND SHELFARI BOOK DEPOSITORY WATERSTONES GOODREADS IDREAMBOOKS

Check out my author page on the Loiacono Website. For all of the character studies thus far, click on the link Rochelle Wisoff-Fields Art and Blogs or my website RochelleWordArt.

18 December 2015

Published December 16, 2015 by rochellewisoff

FRIDAY FICTION CONCRIT SUBGROUP

If you want to be part of this group click the link above and follow the rules set forth by Jennifer Pendergast, the leader of this subgroup. No one is under obligation to participate nor is it necessary to dig something up to criticize for the sake of critique. Please keep it polite and friendly.

The next photo is the prompt and is from Yours Truly.

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Genre: Teaser

Word Count: 97

LUCID NIGHTMARE

“Police! Open the door!”

Her body shook, more from horror than cold. She drew up her knees, cowered in a corner of the room and stared at the bloodstains on the floral wallpaper. The back of her head ached where he had yanked her hair and dragged her to the floor. A bitter wind blew through the broken window. She shivered. Her knuckles smarted from a large gash across them. She wrapped her nightgown hem around her hand.

Tears burned her eyes and she shut them tight, leaning her head against the wall. “Will it ever end?”

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A bit of self-promotion today as my second novel From Silt and Ashes debuted this week. The “story” above is the opening of book. I hope it drew you in and made you want to know more. 😉

Now available on Amazon.com

11 December 2015

Published December 9, 2015 by rochellewisoff

FRIDAY FICTION CONCRIT SUBGROUP

If you want to be part of this group click the link above and follow the rules set forth by Jennifer Pendergast, the leader of this subgroup. No one is under obligation to participate nor is it necessary to dig something up to criticize for the sake of critique. Please keep it polite and friendly.

The next photo is the PHOTO PROMPT. I appreciate the diverse offerings from fictioneers. Please be courteous and give credit to whom credit is due.

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Genre: Historical Fiction

Word Count: 98

FLIGHT OF FANCY

10 February 1830

Dearest Lucy,

When I think about your advocacy of this wild man who sails from one continent to another in pursuit of his ambition I am filled with love.

The English engravers are tirelessly rendering my dream into reality. I marvel at nature when dawn presents her in richest, purest array and hope my humble paintings shall be my legacy for our two sons.

I could not do better than to travel and finish my collection of the ‘Birds of America.’

Across the ocean, ma chérie Mrs. Audubon, your devotion sustains me.

Affectionately yours,

John

To learn more click here.

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Lucy Audubon

John James Audubon

Character Study – Arel Gitterman in Kansas City

Published December 4, 2015 by rochellewisoff

The neighbor’s mouth puckered between her weathered cheeks. She glared at Arel and thrust a spear like finger in his direction. “I’m telling you, Officer, I hear this commotion almost every night. That beast is beating up on this poor helpless gal. It’s a crying shame, her being in a family way and crippled besides. Why he oughta be horsewhipped! Just look at them scars, any dang fool can tell he’s a brawler.”

Arel’s gray eyes turned black. He tugged his nightcap trying to hide the scars that trailed from his forehead to his chin. His thin lips tightened over his clamped teeth.

Havah’s chest buzzed like an angry hornet. How dare this wicked woman make such accusations! Clenching her good hand into a fist, Havah tripped toward her, but Arel’s fingers tightened around her shoulder.

~~Taken from From Silt and Ashes by Rochelle Wisoff-Fields

Published (December 2015) by Argus Publishing

Represented by Loiacono Literary Agency

Raised to walk in his father’s footsteps as a rabbi in the Old Country, Arel Gitterman turned from his vocation when his first wife, Gittel died in childbirth. He felt unworthy to teach Torah since he had been unfaithful in his heart and mind for, in the midst of his arranged marriage to the sweet young woman, he still longed for Havah.

Like Havah, Arel sustained both physical and emotional injuries in the Kishinev pogrom. Scars from a nearly fatal beating obscure half of his face.

Adapting to his new life as an American, he works as a tailor in his brother-in-law’s shop, a job that fits him like a well-made suit.

The birth of a less than perfect child puts a strain on Arel and Havah’s marriage. After all they have been through together, he’s not sure he’s up to the challenge.

As the family faces another tragedy, Arel learns that God’s light shines brightest in times of darkness.

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Check out my author page on the Loiacono Website. For all of the character studies thus far, click on the link Rochelle Wisoff-Fields Art and Blogs or my website RochelleWordArt.

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