Told in the slow pace of a Hasidic story, Trail of Miracles is the story of Gittel, born in the lands of Ukraine, daughter of a Torah scholar and daughter-in-law of the famous Maggid of Mezeritch. Written as a first person memoir, the story focuses on Gittel's account of a life in shadow, a pioneer of her own kind, married as a 12-year old who decided to follow the dream of her youth and go all by herself to Jerusalem.
The Jerusalem she discovered is a faint copy of her dreams but it is the last step of her ladder towards self-discovery and the litmus test of her ability to take over her destiny. Always living in the shadows of men, not encouraged to learn enough because not a boy, she is there all on herself, anonymous, her past left far behind but strong enough to start over and over again. Because this is life, swimming through hardship.
The writing is beautiful, the words creating beautiful images, talking in dreams that you need to take a break from the book to decipher. Gittel is sharing her experience from the bottom of her heart and at a great extent it is not easy to see her account as familiar as it resonates with some opinions regarding the women's role in religious communities. Only the individual example can demonstrate that there is room for balancing roles.
My only disappointment is that the story finishes too early, exactly when I was in the perfect mood to discover new stories.
Rating: 4 stars
Disclaimer: Book offered by the publisher in exchange for an honest review
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