One thing I found refreshing about Bread Givers, by Anzia Yezierska, is its personal spin on understanding the immigrant way of life in the early twentieth century. After reading the two, dry, fact- based, historical books on NYC at the turn of the twentieth century; this novel made the ideas expressed in those books more real. From the beginning you already start to feel for young Sara as she describes her family’s financial struggles, and how they affect the mood of the house. It gives over a more visual and real understanding of the poverty of the immigrants spoken about in All the Nations Under Heaven. Bread Givers also gave me a better understanding of what made the Lower East Side, a place of attraction for those who were looking to create a new Bohemian neighborhood in American Moderns.

With all that being said, one thing that sparked my interest about Bread Givers is the delusions of Sara’s father, Reb Smolinsky. It seems to that it should be obvious to any sane person that Reb Smolinsky’s actions are completely immoral and wrong. However, he is so caught up in his religious beliefs that he can’t see it. He believes that he is doing what God wants and therefore, what human has right to question. I could be wrong, but it seems to me that this is an exaggeration of the facts. It is hard for me to believe that anyone could be so blind as Reb Smolinsky is when it comes to his family and money. Although I’m sure there must have been many cultural differences that led to friction between immigrant parents and their Americanized children, it is hard to believe such a case as this.

In conclusion, I felt that this book did a good job of bringing to light the personal day to day struggles of immigrants at the turn of the century, especially those of their Americanized children. However, I believe that Yezierska might have exaggerated the story a little too much in trying to get this feeling across.