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When French troops occupy the Italian port city of Ancona, freeing the city's Jews from their repressive ghetto, it unleashes a whirlwind of progressivism and brutal backlash as two very different cultures collide. Mirelle, a young Jewish maiden, must choose between her duty—an arranged marriage to a wealthy Jewish merchant—and her love for a dashing French Catholic soldier. Meanwhile, Francesca, a devout Catholic, must decide if she will honor her marriage vows to an abusive and murderous husband when he enmeshes their family in the theft of a miracle portrait of the Madonna. Set during the turbulent days of Napoleon Bonaparte's Italian campaign (1796–97), Beyond the Ghetto Gates is both a cautionary tale for our present moment, with its rising tide of anti-Semitism, and a story of hope—a reminder of a time in history when men and women of conflicting faiths were able to reconcile their prejudices in the face of a rapidly changing world.
When French troops occupy the Italian port city of Ancona, freeing the city's Jews from their repressive ghetto, it unleashes a whirlwind of progressivism and brutal backlash as two very different cultures collide. Mirelle, a young Jewish maiden, must choose between her duty—an arranged marriage to a wealthy Jewish merchant—and her love for a dashing French Catholic soldier. Meanwhile, Francesca, a devout Catholic, must decide if she will honor her marriage vows to an abusive and murderous husband when he enmeshes their family in the theft of a miracle portrait of the Madonna. Set during the turbulent days of Napoleon Bonaparte's Italian campaign (1796–97), Beyond the Ghetto Gates is both a cautionary tale for our present moment, with its rising tide of anti-Semitism, and a story of hope—a reminder of a time in history when men and women of conflicting faiths were able to reconcile their prejudices in the face of a rapidly changing world.
Due to publisher restrictions the library cannot purchase additional copies of this title, and we apologize if there is a long waiting list. Be sure to check for other copies, because there may be other editions available.
Due to publisher restrictions the library cannot purchase additional copies of this title, and we apologize if there is a long waiting list. Be sure to check for other copies, because there may be other editions available.
About the Author-
Michelle Cameron is the author of Napoleon's Mirage (She Writes Press 2024), a sequel to the award-winning Beyond the Ghetto Gates (She Writes Press 2020). Other books include Babylon: A Novel of Jewish Captivity, a finalist in religious fiction in the 2024 Next Generation Indie Book Award (Wicked Son, 2023); The Fruit of Her Hands: The Story of Shira of Ashkenaz (Simon & Schuster's Pocket Books, 2009); and In the Shadow of the Globe (Lit Pot Press, 2003), named Shakespeare Theatre of NJ's 2003-04 Winter Book Selection and performed at the Stella Adler Studio's Shakespeare Benefit. A director of The Writers Circle, Michelle teaches creative writing to children, teens, and adults in New Jersey and virtually.
Reviews-
A historical novel set in Italy at the end of the 18th century explores the plight of persecuted Jews and the possibility of religious tolerance. Mirelle d'Ancona is a young Jewish girl in Ancona, Italy. Despite her family's business success--her father owns a well-regarded ketubah workshop--she suffers from the same restrictions onerously placed on all Jews in Italy in 1796. She is prohibited from leaving the Jewish ghetto at night. And she cannot venture outside without wearing the yellow armband that marks her second-class citizenship, a humiliation not attenuated by her otherwise privileged existence: "She found it difficult to reconcile her comfortable life with the nightly imprisonment to which she and her neighbors were subjected." Her father, Simone, pushes for her to marry Signor Morpurgo, a sensible choice considering the businessman's wealth. But Mirelle pines for Christophe Lefevre, a French soldier under the command of Napoleon while he marches through Italy. Christophe is not only part of an invading military force, but also a Roman Catholic. Meanwhile, a Catholic named Francesca Marotti causes a stir when she claims to see a painted Madonna look down on her and shed a tear, a miraculous moment some interpret as a sign to take up arms against both the French and the Jews. Francesca is no friend of the Jews, but she doesn't share her husband Emilio's murderous contempt for them either. He's pulled into a conspiracy to pulverize the Jewish community organized by Cardinal Ranuzzi. Cameron delicately details Francesca's crisis of conscience, torn between the anti-Semitic venom of her husband and the church to which she's devoted and the example of Jewish decency a young French soldier, Daniel Isidore, provides. The author paints a vivid tableau of the historical period with impressive rigor and authenticity. In addition, Cameron provocatively wonders if, while prejudice is eternal, past ages were better equipped to manage it. Nevertheless, the story is a stirring one that never didactically lectures readers. A gripping peek into a bygone Italy and an astute look at the era's prejudice.
COPYRIGHT(2020) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. (Online Review)
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Bahrain, Egypt, Hong Kong, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the Sudan, the Syrian Arab Republic, Tunisia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen
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