Marching to Zion, by Mary Glickman (2013)
This historical novel delves into the struggles of Jews and African-Americans in the early half of the 20th Century. The book begins when Mags Preacher, a young African-American woman, leaves her home in the rural countryside and moves to St. Louis, Missouri. She has dreams of learning the beauty trade so she can open a salon back in her hometown. The first person she encounters upon arriving in St. Louis is Magnus Bailey. The only job she can get is working with Mr. Fishbein, a Jewish refugee who runs a funeral home that serves the Black families in the town.
Fishbein had fled Eastern Europe amid the pogroms that killed his wife and child. When he left Europe, he brought with him his adopted daughter, Minerva, known as Minnie. She had lost her family in the violence against Jews. Seeing her family killed experiences as a very young girl caused her to be a very troubled young woman after arriving in America.
Mags is happily working at the funeral home and eventually marries George McCallum, the manager, and they live in a small apartment attached to the funeral home. After the violent race riots in St. Louis in 1917, Fishbein’s funeral home is totally destroyed. Fishbein and Mags barely escape with their lives, but George is killed. Mags then disappears from the story.
The novel moves from Mags Preacher to the very troubled love story between Minnie, a fiery red-head Magnus. Interracial relationships were criminal offenses at the time. Fishbein, Minnie and Magnus move from St. Louis to Memphis to looking for a safer place to live. The novel describes life for Jews and African-Americans during the Depression through the mid-1930s. Fishbein realizes that there is no safe place for Jews in America, especially for his troubled daughter and her lover, Magnus.
After I finished the book, I realized that Mags Preacher, the young woman at the beginning of the story had completely disappeared. What happened to her?
Read: August 8, 2023
3.5 Stars
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