First in the historical trilogy set in Czarist Russia: "Filled with suspense, beauty, love, and true-life horror . . . a riveting read." --Diane Yates, author of Pathways of the Heart

Nineteenth-century Russia is not a safe place for those of Jewish faith. They are prisoners in their country, unable to own land, and denied an education beyond their Hebrew schools. Pogroms rage--and it is one such massacre that rips Havah Cohen's family from her . . .

Found wounded and barefoot on the steps of nearby synagogue, clad in only a nightdress, Havah is taken to safety by a rabbi and his son, Arel, who are shocked to hear the words of the Kaddish come from a mere girl. No woman should know the holy writings.

Havah is welcomed into the house of the local midwife, where she becomes part of the family and close-knit community--though some eye her with suspicion as the rumor of her praying spreads. And while she now lives with the girl who is Arel's intended, his kind face is never far from her mind. With the pain of her family's death and the threat of pogrom always hanging over her, the fiercely intelligent and independent Havah knows that a bigger world awaits--if she's brave enough to meet it . . .

"This book will ignite the fire of indignation in your soul against all forms of intolerance, as well as the fire of faith in the face of despair." --James C. Washburn, author of Touching Spirit: The Letters of Minominike