The author’s mother is the heroine of this book, and, with two names and lives, one as Ruth McBride Jordan and one as Rachel Deborah Shilsky, the heroine’s duality accentuates the theme. The theme of this book revolves around the separation of people through color and ethnicity. Ruth was an immigrant Jew from an Orthodox household where the lifestyle was severe and non-nurturing, “There were too many rules to follow, too many forbiddens and ‘you can’ts’ and ‘you musn’ts,’ but does anybody say they love you? Not in my family we didn’t. We didn’t talk that way. We said things like, ‘There’s a box in there for the nails,’ or my father would say, ‘Be quiet while I sleep,’” (McBride 2). However, among the black community Ruth discovered there was another world, one of warmth and strength in the midst of struggle. Inspired by love and combining the best values of Jews and blacks (education/community and warmth/strength respectively), Ruth would successfully raise twelve African American children in the inner-city of New York. All of them are now educated, successful professionals. She did this in poverty and surviving the death of two husbands.
When she announced her intentions to marry a black man, Ruth’s birth family disowned her and performed the classic Orthodox Jewish ceremony for the dead. She would never forget her religious heritage though she would the rituals and practices, nor the Jewish values involving education and community. However, it was in the black community where she found unconditional love for the first time. Forming an identity that was a combination of both communities, she proved how a devoted mother who loves her children can survive the worst tragedies and greatest obstacles and still have hope, humor and love. Ruth would even earn her bachelor’s degree at the age of 65. The book is the author’s testament to the courage, l
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