Synopses & Reviews
Based on the life of the author’s thirteenth-century ancestor, Meir ben Baruch of Rothenberg, a renowed Jewish scholar of medieval Europe, this is the richly dramatic fictional story of Rabbi Meir’s wife, Shira, a devout but rebellious woman who preserves her religious traditions as she and her family witness the rise of anti-Semitism in Europe.
Raised by her widowed rabbi father and a Christian nursemaid in Normandy, Shira is a free-spirited, inquisitive girl whose love of learning shocks the community. When Shira’s father is arrested by the local baron intent on enforcing the Catholic Church’s strictures against heresy, Shira fights for his release and encounters two men who will influence her life profoundly—an inspiring Catholic priest and Meir ben Baruch, a brilliant scholar. In Meir, Shira finds her soulmate.
Married to Meir in Paris, Shira blossoms as a wife and mother, savoring the intellectual and social challenges that come with being the wife of a prominent scholar. After witnessing the burning of every copy of the Talmud in Paris, Shira and her family seek refuge in Germany. Yet even there they experience bloody pogroms and intensifying anti-Semitism. With no safe place for Jews in Europe, they set out for Israel only to see Meir captured and imprisoned by Rudolph I of Hapsburg. As Shira weathers heartbreak and works to find a middle ground between two warring religions, she shows her children and grandchildren how to embrace the joys of life, both secular and religious.
Vividly bringing to life a period rarely covered in historical fiction, this multi-generational novel will appeal to readers who enjoy Maggie Anton’s Rashi’s Daughters, Brenda Rickman Vantrease’s The Illuminator, and Geraldine Brooks’s People of the Book.
Review
"Michelle Cameron deftly gives dramatic voice to the Jewish women of the Middle Ages. The Fruit of Her Hands is suspenseful, soulful, and plain wonderful. It takes us to the heights of scholarship and imagination." -- Ruchama King, author of Seven Blessings
Review
"Michelle Cameron delves into one of the darkest eras of the Jewish past and brings forth a deeply compassionate and thoroughly gripping story of a woman whose fate is inextricably bound up with that of her people. Meticulously researched yet richly imaginative, it will keep you spellbound until the last, enthralling page." -- Eva Etzioni-Halevy, author of The Triumph of Deborah
Review
"The Fruit of Her Hands lets the reader experience first-hand the tragic end of hundreds of years of Jewish presence in medieval France through the voice of its passionate and learned heroine. This novel shows us that women, too, can bear witness to history." -- Maggie Anton, author of Rashi's Daughters
Synopsis
A thirteenth-century historical novel about a rabbi's wife who perseveres amid rising anti-Semitism in Europe.
Synopsis
Crafting a richly textured, absorbing novel based on the life of her ancestor, renowned thirteenth-century Jewish scholar Meir ben Baruch of Rothenberg, Michelle Cameron paints a page-turning and deeply personal portrait of Judaism in medieval France and Germany. Imagined through the eyes of Rabbi Meir's wife, Shira, this opulent drama reveals a devout but independent woman who struggles to preserve her religious traditions while remaining true to herself as she and her family witness the rise of anti-Semitism in Europe.
Raised by her widowed rabbi father and a Christian nursemaid in Normandy, Shira is a free-spirited, inquisitive girl whose love of learning shocks the community. But in Meir ben Baruch, a brilliant scholar, she finds her soul mate and a window on the world of Talmudic scholarship that fascinates her.
Married to Meir in Paris, Shira blossoms as a wife and mother, savoring the intellectual and social challenges that come with being the wife of a prominent scholar. After every copy of the Talmud in Paris is confiscated and burned, Shira and her family seek refuge in Germany. Yet even there they experience bloody pogroms and intensifying hatred. As Shira weathers heartbreak and works to find a middle ground between two warring religions, she shows her children and grandchildren how to embrace the joys of life, both secular and religious.
A multigenerational novel that captures a hitherto little-known part of history with deep emotion and riveting authenticity -- and includes an illuminating author's note and a Hebrew glossary -- The Fruit of Her Hands is a powerful novel about the enduring spirit of the Jewish people.
Synopsis
Cameron pens a novel set in the 13th-century about a rabbi's wife who perseveres amid rising anti-Semitism in Europe.
About the Author
Michelle Cameron discovered the inspiring story of Rabbi Meir ben Baruch while tracing her family tree. She lived in Israel for fourteen years and served in the Israeli Army, and currently lives with her family in Chatham, New Jersey. This is her debut novel.