Books like Beyond the Pale by Elana Nachman/Dykewomon
Born in a Russian‑Jewish settlement, Gutke Gurvich works as a midwife before immigrating to New York’s Lower East Side with her partner— a woman who passes as a man. Their path intersects with Chava Meyer, a girl they embraced at birth, who is orphaned in the 1903 Kishinev pogrom. Chava arrives in America with her cousin Rose’s family; the two girls start work at fourteen and, as they endure the era’s oppression—anti‑Jewish sentiment, the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire, suffrage debates, and socialist activism—develop a deep bond and search for a community where they feel truly accepted. Set against the backdrop of Russia and early twentieth‑century New York, the novel explores immigration, lesbian love, Jewish identity, and the era’s progressive movements through richly detailed narrative.
First publish date: 1997
Genre: LGBTQ+ Fiction/Lesbian Fiction
Authors: Elana Nachman/Dykewomon
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