The Smartest Woman I Know: Review and Giveaway

Growing up in NYC, I had wonderful friends, many of whom were Jewish. During my years in junior high school, I often accompanied my Jewish friends to their grandparents' apartments after school, where I was treated to delicious snacks such as ice cold grapefruit soda and pretzel rods. Although I was a Gentile, I was always made to feel welcome, especially by their grandmothers, who offered me encouragement as I grew into a young woman, and I began to wish I had my own Jewish grandmother. (My own grandmothers were Armenian; one was loving and the other was hypercritical.) The Smartest Woman I Know is an ode to Jewish grandmothers everywhere, and to one in particular.

"THIS STORY IS MOSTLY about Ettie, all 4'10" of her. She was one of the smartest women I ever knew, even though she never made it past the third grade."
~The Smartest Woman I Know, Ilene Beckerman

While growing up in the late 1940s, author Ilene Beckerman lived with her grandmother, Lillie, nicknamed Ettie, and her grandfather, "Mr. Goldberg", for six years, while her older sister, Tootsie, lived with them for a year (until she got married). During this time, Ettie continued to work seven days a week at Goldberg's candy and stationery store, and Ilene, called Gingy, experienced firsthand the guidance and practical wisdom of her grandmother (''what you put in your stomach will make you feel better than what a man with a beard and an accent tells you about your mother"), which is lovingly shared in this funny, charming book. The Smartest Woman I Know features clever illustrations and photos, and is a lighthearted tribute to the author's grandmother. It brought back good memories from my own school days in NY--I love the city and always will. In my neighborhood in NY, we had a popular candy store called Stein's (not far from the pizza shop), that I visited all the time for red licorice rolls, LifeSavers, chocolate wafers, and other goodies (memory's selective--I mostly remember the candy, but they also carried other items, maybe even stationery like the store in the book). This book felt familiar and warm, and I spent part of a leisurely afternoon savoring it, and thinking quietly about my own past.

Terrific news! The publisher, Algonquin, is very generously offering a giveaway of this book to three lucky readers (U.S./Canada only).

• To enter this giveaway, simply leave a comment.
• For another chance at winning, become a follower of this blog, or let me know that you're already a follower, or that you subscribe in Google Reader.
• For an additional chance, post about this contest on your blog, Facebook, or Twitter.
• For one more chance at winning, tell us about a smart woman you admire in your own life.

Enter by 5PM PST on Monday, November 7. Three winners will be randomly selected and announced on Tuesday, November 8. Good luck!


Special thanks to Lisa from TLC for sending me this book. For more reviews, please visit TLC's book tour for The Smartest Woman I Know.