Touched by Fire

I enjoyed reading this book even though I think it might be intended for young readers. The storyline is about Miriam Markov who immigrates from her homeland of Russia thru Germany and then into the United States to be met by her father.
The stories of Immigration and Elis Island are usually a story

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of heartache and hard work. Years of separation and constant worry becomes an integrated part of the experience.
I can only imagine what it would be like to live in the crowded bowels of a ship for a month with limited water and food.
The author does a fine job of telling this family's story, holding the pace well thru out the story. The fire in the factory is not too graphic to disturb readers, but explains the horror at the same time.
I like this book very much and would recommend it. Thank you to the publisher for making this book available to early reviewers.

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This review includes spoilers for the entire book. Since this book is for younger readers and deals with tough subjects, I think parents (or any other adult choosing books for a child) should know about some key events in the story so they can decide whether it's appropriate for their child.

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Touched by Fire tells the story of Miriam and her family, who flee Russian pogroms in the early 1900s and move to Germany before emigrating to the United States, where Miriam finds work at the Triangle Shirtwaist Company shortly before the infamous fire at their sweatshop.

The writing level seems aimed at about a 10-year-old's level, but this is a pretty tough subject for children that young, especially when it comes to the description of the fire. Miriam witnesses people jumping to their deaths to escape the burning building, and helps identify a friend's body after the other girl dies in the fire. The final chapter of the book moves forward in time to the 1930s, to Miriam's young nephew who is growing up in Nazi Germany. Miriam and her husband bring her nephew to the US to live with them, saving him from the Holocaust, but the descriptions of anti-Semitism are very disturbing (as they should be, if you're going to write about 1930s Germany) and may raise questions about the Holocaust.

It is well-written and interesting, but a lot of young readers would be disturbed by the subject matter.

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I love historical fiction and have read several books about the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory. Touched by Fire is definitely one of the best I have read. It follows family the immigrates to the United States and does a wonderful job of showing the condition they had to work in to survive. Very

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poignant and well written.

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Miriam and her family begin their journey to the "Golden Land" of America by leaving behind the pogroms in Russia in the early 1900's and moving to Berlin. Miriam's father travels to New York ahead of the rest of the family to earn money for their passage. Two years later, their tickets arrive, but

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Miriam's baby sister is sickly and her younger brother Yuri refuses to leave. After Yuri purposely fails a health examination before boarding the ship to America, Miriam begins her solo journey to a new land. Miriam describes being herded like cattle through numerous health examinations, miserable living conditions on board the ship, and a strange new life of freedom in New York. She of course makes new friends along the way and eventually becomes an employee at the Triangle Waist Company. Workers are searched on their way out, bosses manipulate the clocks to get the most time out of workers, and working conditions are not safe, but Miriam is glad to have a job and earn her own money. A fire tears through the factory and puts lives, including Miriam's in danger.

Touched by Fire focused on the long and difficult journey immigrants of the early 1900's faced and also gave a glimpse into factory working conditions at the time and the tragedy that occurred at the Triangle Waist Company where many workers perished. The description of the fire is powerful and heartbreaking. An interesting epilogue to Yuri's story is included at the end. Yuri's resistance in coming to America, even though he would face persecution in Russia and Germany, was a unique perspective to see in this type of story. A brief afterword is also included giving information about the Triangle fire and characters in the book who were real people. This will appeal to fans of historical fiction and Dear America type books.

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This was a well written book about the Triangle Shirt Waist Building fire. As a young adult book I found it to weave historical information about turn of the century New York into the story without becoming too "preachy." The author also did an excellent job of describing the fire events and the

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pain they caused without being too graphic. I believe this is a general good read or a novel that could be used to introduce the historical topic.

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Russian born Miriam and her family endure persecution by pogrom in their village in the early years of the 20th century. They work hard to save the money to escape to Germany with a far-reaching goal of emigrating to the United States. After many struggles, set backs and much heartache, Miriam

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finally makes it to New York City where she finds work, good friends, and a new country to call home.

While Miriam and her family are fictional, the prejudice and violence they endure are nothing but, and their determination and struggles to start a new life in a country with seemingly endless possibilities has been experienced by emigrants for decades. I found the story telling a bit stilted at the beginning, but the reader cannot help but admire the courage and resourcefulness of Miriam and her family. Through Miriam's experiences we learn a little of the conditions of steerage passengers on the voyage over from Europe, the processing of emigrants arriving at Ellis Island, working and living conditions in 1911 New York. This is a wonderful young adult historical fiction book.

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Touched By Fire by Irene N. Watts

Historical fiction
Published September, 2013 by Tundra Books
Hardcover, 206 pages

This is the story of a young woman named Miriam Markovitz, whose family lived in Russia in the early part of the last century. Wanting to escape the horrible conditions under which they

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lived and the persecutions of the Jews, they moved to Germany and then to America.

I enjoyed the story and especially the fact that it told the tale of so many immigrants. It didn’t go into any details of the pogroms or anti-Semitism in Europe, but there are plenty of other places to find that. What it did tell was about the waiting, working, and separation of families for years in order to live a better life elsewhere. That is the basis of so many of our lives now, and a large part of the history of our country.

The book is written for young people and the writing is simple and clear. I would have liked a little more depth from Miriam’s character, but otherwise the book includes interesting and authentic people.

Although the cover and the back blurb make it seem as if the story is based on the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire, that is only a single incident in this story and occurs at the end. The real story is the emigration of Miriam and her family, and specifically her adjustment to her new places and friends.

Recommended for fans of historical fiction, especial YA.

The publisher sent a free copy of this book for a fair review. I will now be passing it on to other readers through my book club.

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This novel is well-written, but seems somehow unfinished. Watts does an admirable job with her first narrator--Miriam's observations and feelings about leaving various homes, settling into New York, and then working at the Triangle factory with her three best friends, is absorbing.

The fire itself

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is told in very graphic terms and it is not for younger readers. Curiously enough, it begs to have more of an afterstory than the epilogue gives the reader. The final chapter of the book, years later, told by Miriam's nephew does not flow with the rest of the story. It reads as if Watts was trying to fit everything she could into a single narrative of fixed length--and it just wasn't going to work.

I enjoyed the book, would recommend it to middle/junior high schoolers or older (because of the fire and its vivid telling). But it felt unfinished to me.

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A great read revolving around important historical events and the lives of immigrants in the US at the turn of the century. Very quick read for young teens and adult alike. Informative and entertaining.

Touched by Fire follows a young Jewish girl named Miriam and her family as they make the journey from Russia to America in the early 1900's. The story is meant for young readers but I enjoyed it regardless.

I got this book free from LibraryThing's early reviewers program.

I wanted to like this book more than I did. Certainly it's a worthy topic that hasn't been explored much in children's literature. However, I think the writing could have been a lot better, or the marketing could have been better. The

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event that the title and dust jacket refer to didn't even happen until like halfway through the story. Most of the book is about Miriam's life in tsarist Russia and then Germany, and having to deal with antisemitism.

Also, I knew that most immigrants at that time kept to their own. For a Russian girl to make friends with an Italian girl (who conveniently speaks German fluently) just like that seems implausible. Also, the characters tended to make speeches instead of proper dialog and they all sounded the same.

Kids are probably not going to notice this, and girls of the 9-to-12 group will probably like it well enough. I'm 28.

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Touched By Fire is the fictionalized account of the tragic fire in the Triangle Waist Company on March 25, 1911 in New York. Because of sloppy fire prevention rules, overcrowding, and non-existent fire drills, 146 people lost their lives. This fire led to many laws which served to protect workers

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in factories and high rise buildings in the future.

Miriam Markov fled Kiev in 1906 when pogroms brutalized and forced them to flee for safety. Miriam and her family escaped to Berlin, Germany lived and worked there in hopes of reaching "The Golden Land" in years to come. Papa leaves first and finds work in America, working and saving for the rest of the family to come across the ocean. When tickets are finally purchased and sent to Mama, Miriam's younger brother, Yuri refuses to go, forcing Mama to send Miriam on alone to greet Papa. In time, Mama and her little sister Devora joins them, but not before Miriam lives the horror of the Triangle Waist Company fire, which left her best friend, Malka, dead.

Touched By Fire makes the reader feel as if Miriam is sitting down with you as she tells her sorrowful story. Yes, it is sad, yet there is hope in her voice for all that could be hers in America. Her language and retelling is that of a young woman living in the early twentieth century. Historical facts, figures, and tidbits are strewn throughout the story as to make the story come alive.

Thank you to LibraryThing Early Reviewers, Irene N. Watts, and Tundra Books for this ARC copy.

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In TOUCHED BY FIRE, readers meet Miriam, a young Jewish girl whose family has been uprooted by the pogroms in Russia. She and her family dream of America, the Golden Land, where they will be free to live openly, safe from the Cossacks and their fires. Arriving in New York, Miriam discovers that the

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Golden Land is more complex than she imagined and that her job at the Triangle Waist Company will test her deepest strengths.

TOUCHED BY FIRE is a masterful text. The author is confident enough to move slowly, allowing readers a rich experience of history in several periods of Miriam's life — in Kiev, during the ocean crossing to Ellis Island, once settled in Manhattan's Lower East Side — yet inexorably building tension toward the story's climax. The crisis at the Triangle Waist Company is tensely written, but the author pulls back at the right moment for her readership. We are not left with grisly images but do feel a deep sadness and loss at the senselessness of the tragedy. The epilogue, which tempers historical darkness with hope and healing, will be comforting for younger readers and will provide some closure — and may prompt further questions from some readers, too.

I found this novel to be a compelling story; I really enjoyed reading it. Miriam is a gentle character who has the resolve to be brave when she must and to do the right thing for others and for herself. I think this novel would make an excellent choice for introducing upper elementary readers to foreshadowing, patterns of symbols, and awareness of (age-appropriate) literary language. This book should be in classroom and school libraries as well as public libraries. TOUCHED BY FIRE is a testament to the resilience of oppressed communities and to the individuals who fought so hard to build better lives in the United States and Canada.

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When Miriam's family flees from Russia to Germany, they work hard to save enough money for the family to travel to America one-by-one. After her dad settles in New York City he saves enough money to bring over Miriam, her mother and brother. At the last minute her brother refuses to get on the

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boat, leaving Miriam to travel on her own. Once settled in America, Miriam gets a job at the Triangle Shirt Waist Company. A year later, she is working when a fire starts, devastating the lives of many.

Overall I thought this was a great book. It was well written and the characters were interesting. I wish there was more content, the book just left me wanting more. I didn't particularly like the epilogue, it was written in a childlike voice, which just did not resonate with the rest of the story.

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Miriam's village is destroyed by fire during a pogrom in Russia and the family is forced into a ghetto in Kiev. Like so many others, her family dreams of moving to the Golden Land of America. The family moves to Berlin and, after years of saving, her father emigrates to America. He quickly finds

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work and saves until he can send for the rest of the family. But Miriam's young sister is too sick to go and her brother, Yuri, refuses. Finally, only Miriam goes. She finds work at the Triangle Shirtwaist Co. and is happy at the job although it is long hours. A year later, on March 25, 1911, a fire breaks out. It spreads rapidly and over 140 workers die.

Fortunately, Miriam survives. Still, she and her father are determined to bring the rest of the family over and continue to work hard until they do, all except Yuri, Miriam's brother who has always dreamed of being a soldier and has never wanted to go to America.

The book ends in a epilogue several years later and given in a new voice, that of Yuri's son. It is 1933 and Nazism has gripped Germany. Jews are openly hated, Jewish businesses are boycotted, and Yuri's half-Jewish son dreams of going to America. The story ends shortly after the infamous book burnings of April 6, 1933, meant to 'cleanse' Germany of all supposed anti-German sentiment.

I thoroughly enjoyed this YA historical fiction novel by Canadian author Irene Watts. Some of the history referenced in the book may be too disturbing for young children,especially the descriptions of the factory fire as many of the workers leapt from the high floors. However, for older children and for adults this is a very well-written look at some important historical events, because, as has been pointed out by people as diverse as Edmund Burke and Lemony Snicket, those who ignore the past are doomed to repeat it.

*I received this book from Librarything in return for an honest review. I would especially like to thank the publisher for sending me a hard-cover copy. I have learned to appreciate the portability of ebooks but nothing compares to the feel and smell of a paper book.

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I really enjoy reading historical fiction, especially when a book makes me want to learn more about a historical event. This book was like that; I ended up wanting to know more about the "Triangle Waist Company" factory fire of 1911. This book helped me to catch a glimpse of what it may have been

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like for European immigrants to travel by boat to North America. And this book is very well written! It's a book that I would definitely recommend.

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