Jennifer S. Brown (1)

The year is 1935 and 6 members of the Krasinsky family in a 2 bedroom apartment in Mahattan's Lower East Side. Russian-born Rose is the 42 year-old matriarch, and her eldest child, 19-year old Rose, is a bookkeeper in an insurance office. Both find themselves pregnant with unwanted children.

"Modern Girls" provided an insightful portrait of a newly-arrived Jewish family, the relationship between a mother and daughter, and the choices women had (and didn't have) in the mid 1930's. While many books have been written about Europeans affected by the horrors of WWII (and the years leading up it), this book is one of the few that I've read that looks at those years through the eyes of American Jews who are just starting to see what might be on the horizon for their brothers and sisters across the ocean.

4 stars… (mehr)

I had some doubts at various points while reading this book, but I loved the story by the end. This novel packs a lot into four weeks in the life of a Jewish mother and daughter in 1930s New York City. Both are dealing with unexpected pregnancy and secrets they struggle to shared with each other, themes which drive the action in this novel. I really appreciated the details about life within a Jewish family in this era - the concern for relatives still in Europe, the divides among different members of the Jewish community, the need for extra sets of dishes for Kosher cooking. Overall, a very enjoyable novel that concludes on a hopeful note.… (mehr)

I had the pleasure of reading this book through Penguin's first to read program. I think what amazes me most about this book is that it is a debut novel. Modern Girls is a well-written book set in 1935 New York. It follows the story of Dottie Krasinsky and her mother, Rose. Both of them find themselves with an unexpected pregnancy. Rose is a 42 year old, Jewish immigrant who wanted to spend her life becoming more involved in social activism now that her children are older. While Dottie is a young bookkeeper who longs to marry her long-time beau and start a life with him. After Dottie a careless night with another man, she quickly finds herself running out of options.

This book hooked me from the very first page. I enjoyed reading from both Dottie and Rose's perspectives. I especially enjoyed seeing Rose's story about her life in Russia, her immigration, and how she settled into America. I loved that Dottie was a bookkeeper who wanted to go to school for accounting, since that is my field. It made it easy to identify with her. This was a wonderful story about the choices that woman have to make when they find themselves with an unexpected pregnancy, as well as the sacrifices made by parents for their children. I really hope that there will be a sequel to this book. I really want to know what ends up happening to Dottie in Europe at the start of WWII and how her family will fare in New York. I also want to know if Dottie and Willie will ever find love in their marriage. … (mehr)