Jan Lieberman (Children's Literature)
This story is based on Hesse's great-aunt Lucy's own experiences. In 1919, Rifka, 12, and her family flee Russia but Rifka has contracted scalp ringworm and is detained in Belgium where she must undergo treatment while the others are allowed to emigrate to the U.S. This is a coming of age story with a strong, intelligent, undaunted heroine. Later, her detainment on Ellis Island allows her to develop compassion for someone she considers an enemy. Told in letter format to her cousin Tovah, the spare style is powerful. Don't miss this! 1992, Holt/Puffin Bks, $14.95 and $3.99. Ages 11 up.

CCBC (Cooperative Children's Book Center Choices, 1992)
When a case of ringworm prevents Rifka from joining her Russian family as they emigrate to the United States, she spends nine months living in Warsaw, with her care overseen by the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society. During that time, and the following journey by boat to the United States, Rifka writes "letters" in the margins of a book of Pushkin to a cousin still in Russia, telling of her loneliness, fear and determination to join her family. Rifka's compelling story, relating her burgeoning maturity and ability to cope with her situation, is presented in letter format. CCBC categories: Fiction For Children; History. 1992, Henry Holt, 148 pages, $14.95. Ages 9-12.

Kirkus (Kirkus Reviews, 1992)
Beginning in Russia in 1919, this epistolary novel, based on experiences of the author's great-aunt, tells how 12-year-old Rifka Nebrot and her family fled the anti-Semitism of post-revolutionary Russia and emigrated to the US. The letters, each prefaced by a few telling lines of Pushkin, tell of the fear, indignities, privation, and disease endured as they traveled through Poland and into Belgium, where Rifka had to be left behind for several months because she was unacceptable as a steamship passenger: she had ringworm. Finally reaching Ellis Island, she was held in quarantine because the ringworm had left her bald--making her an undesirable immigrant because it was thought that she'd be unable to find a husband to support her. Eventually, Rifka talked her way into the country; her energy, cleverness, and flair for languages convinced officials that she wouldn't become a ward of the state. Told with unusual grace and simplicity, an unforgettable picture of immigrant courage, ingenuity, and perseverance. 1992, Henry Holt, $14.95. Starred Review. © 1992 Kirkus Reviews/VNU eMedia, Inc. All rights reserved.

Betsy Hearne (The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, October 1992 (Vol. 46, No. 2))
This epistolary novel chronicles twelve-year-old Rifka's journey from Russia to America, interrupted in Poland when she almost dies of typhus and in Belgium when the ringworm she has contracted on a freight train prevents her from boarding the ship with her family. From then on and through her stay on Ellis Island, she is alone except for the letters she writes to her cousin in the blank pages of a book of Pushkin's poetry. This device seems a little unbelievable, since Rifka's letters run to 145 pages, but the story itself is credibly developed and the voice convincing. Rifka's detainment leaves her realistically disillusioned about the immigrant experience: "You have to be perfect to come to America. I have this bald head and you, you have a crooked back. . . . We are not welcome." A number of novels have focused on the experience of Jews in Russia or new arrivals to the U.S.; this one is vivid in detailing the physical and emotional toll exacted for passage. R--Recommended. (c) Copyright 1992, The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois. 1992, Holt, 148p, $14.95. Grades 5-8.

Horn Book (The Horn Book Guide, 1992)
In 1919 Rifka and her family flee to America to escape the harsh treatment of Jews in Russia. The young girl documents their hardships in letters to her cousin, written in the blank pages of a book of Pushkin's poetry. Based on a true story, this moving account of a brave girl's experience brings to life the trials and horrors that so many immigrants experienced on their voyage to America. Category: Fiction. 1992, Holt, 148pp.. Ages 9 to 12. Rating: 1: Outstanding, noteworthy in style, content, and/or illustration.