Rokhl Feygenberg’s Childhood Memoirs in English
Rokhl Feygenberg’s Yiddish memoirs of her childhood years in the small Belarusian shtetl Lyuban, were published by Syracuse University Press, translated into English by Tamara T. Helfer.
Rokhl Feygenberg (1885–1972) became one of the youngest Yiddish authors when her autobiographical novel was released as a series in the literary magazine Dos lebn in 1905. In 1909 it was published as a book. Her romanticized childhood memoirs take place in the fictional village of Bulin, surrounded by wild swamps and forests, a typical scenery for Belarusian Jews in the late 19the century.
Helfer titled her masterful translation The Winding Road. Feygenberg’s original title was simply Di kinder-yorn (The Childhood). The book presents vivid descriptions of everyday shtetl life. Years laters after her debut childhood-based novel, Rokhl Feygenberg became one of the first few women who established themselves as professional Yiddish writers and journalists.