Esther is the oldest child and convinces her parents that she needs to be sent to Cuba with her father. Poland is becoming a dangerous place for the Jewish people and it is expensive to get each person out. In Cuba she makes friends with many people and learns about their cultures while trying to preserve her own. Will she be able to find valuable work as a child that will help her to save her family? Will they be able to save enough in time to get them out of Poland? Could the Nazi’s possibly have found influence in Cuba?

The endearing and lovable main character is based on the author’s family history. It also provides a different setting and historical view from most stories about the Jewish people in World War II. A must-read middle-grade historical fiction novel.

Please note: This was a review copy given to us by NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. No financial compensation was received.

Thank you Netgalley and publisher for the eARC in return for my honest opinion.
WOW! An amazing epistolary novel that captures the love a young girl has for her family. Told through letters to her younger sister, Esther writes of her feelings and adventures of leaving Poland during the Nazi heighten regime to work with her father in Cuba to raise enough money to send for their entire family. This historical fiction novel is so engaging I read it in one sitting. This novel is based on the authors own grandmother's life and middle grade students will fall in love with the young girl's tenacity. I was a bit confused by the father coming off as weak, beaten down, distraught when the whole point was for him to work hard to bring the rest of the family to Cuba. I think his character could use a bit more depth, but it certainly does not take away from the novel. Also, some of the adventures seemed a bit far fetched to happen to a 12 year old girl. But, the story was enjoyable and kept my attention. Well done!

Having just finished reading an ARC of Ruth Behar’s Letters From Cuba and Linda Sue Park's Prairie Lotus, I was struck by the similarities between these books, although distant in time and place. Both girls, Esther and Hanna, yearn to become dress designers and are accomplished seamstresses. Both girls are motherless (although one is only temporarily motherless) and help their fathers to find success through their skill with needles. Both girls are faced with prejudice and cruelty, but also find the kind people in their communities. Because I have always loved sewing, especially as a young girl, I could see myself in these characters although we are very different. That is what makes a good book; the reader can relate although they may not be a pioneer, refugee, Chinese, or Jewish.

Esther’s father immigrated to Cuba as the persecution of Jews worsened in Poland pre-World War II. His goal was to work, save money and send for the rest of his family. As enough money was saved to send one family member to join him, Esther begged to be the one sent. Her father and mother eventually relented and she joined her father to help him work and save money so the rest of their family could join them.
I liked the premise of this story and did not realize Cuba was such a haven for the Jewish refugees. I did feel at times the storytelling aspect was a little stilted and convenient. Even as a Nazi sympathizer was introduced, that aspect of the story was glossed over and never really went anywhere. This is not enough of a reason not to read it, however. I just thought maybe the storytelling could have dug a little deeper.

This is a beautifully written book told through letters from a young Jewish girl who has left Poland to live with her father in Cuba at the onset of WWII. Twelve year old Esther is working hard alongside her father to raise enough money to send for the rest of their family before the Nazis invade Poland. The letters to her sister show that Esther is wise beyond her years and that she attempts to embrace life as a refugee to create a better future for her family. She is an endearing character that many middle grade readers will remember long after they finish the book.
Thank you to NetGalley for the advance e-copy of this book.

What stands out about this book is that it is written solely in letter form. Letters are written by brave and strong Esther, a Jewish girl from Poland, to her sister Malka. The catch is that she is actually fleeing her homeland of Poland to the country of Cuba as a refugee. Life in Poland is getting rougher and rougher because of the start of WWII, Nazis, and Hitler. Esther flees to Cuba where her father is working tirelessly to earn enough money to pay for steerage tickets for the rest of his family. He doesn't do well, but when Esther comes along and shows her ways of sewing stunning dresses she helps alleviate some of the stress on her father.

This letter format is different and unique to other historical fiction stories, but so is the story itself. Typically we read stories for Jews fleeing their country to the United States or Canada, but not to Cuba. Ruth Behar does a phenomenal job blending the history of this Jewish family along with other cultures of other characters like African and Chinese traditions. The feeling of hope was a huge theme in this story and it resonates with me and thinking about the real families that had to voyage through the unknown to find peace. I absolutely loved Ruth's work yet again. Lucky Broken Girl was just as beautifully crafted as this one!

Letters from Cuba is a firsthand account from a young girl, Esther, who joins her father in Cuba. The family is relocating here during the onset of World War II and Esther is the first one of her family to make the trip to join their father. This heartbreaking story is told through letters that Esther writes to her sister. The readers are privy to her inner most thought and feelings. We feel her fear, happiness, loneliness and excitement. We all can learn from this young girl’s tenacity and heroism. The heartfelt story will take the reader on the highs and lows of Esther’s adventurous trek to work with her father to reunite her family. Though tears and laughter, the reader will enjoy all the emotions of this brave young lady as she learns that you are never too young to save your family!

What a unique book! I loved this refugee perspective. Esther lives in Poland with her Jewish family towards the start of WWII. She joins her father in Cuba to make money to send to her family in hopes of them coming to join them. It is a hard journey from the start but the determination of this young girl and all of the amazing people she meets along the way is so hopeful to read about. It is written in letters to Esther's sister back in Poland, and share great honesty about what it is like to be Jewish in this time period, but in Cuba. This will be a must buy for student groups learning about refugees as well as an addition to the school library in general - middle grade students will love.

This story beautifully merges characters from very different backgrounds to show their commonalities along their cultural differences. Esther is a strong a determined girl from her long journey alone from Poland to Cuba, continuing throughout the story. I learned so much about many customs and cultures. This book would be an amazing opportunity to kick off a great inquiry project!

Based on the immigration history of the author's own family, Letters from Cuba, written by Ruth Behar, is a beautifully written book, told in the form of letters written by Esther, who has moved to Cuba to help her father, to her sister, Malka, who is still living in Govorovo, Poland. Esther and her father are working in order to save enough money to bring the rest of the family, including Esther's beloved Bubbe, to Cuba in order to escape the growing anti-Semitism in Eastern Europe. With lush and vibrant descriptions, the Cuba of 1938-39 comes alive for the reader through the eyes of Esther. While not completely escaping anti-Semitism, Esther and her father are welcomed into the village of Agramonte, and Esther's innocence and optimism soon begin to bridge cultural and religious differences. Life is not easy, and soon, Esther and her father must lean on each other and their new found friends to face the ever growing spread of anti-Semitism and the beginnings of World War II.