Broken Strings

＂It’s 2002. In the aftermath of the twin towers, ... Shirli Berman is intent on moving forward ... She auditions for the lead role in Fiddler on the Roof, but is crushed to learn that she’s been given the part of the old Jewish mother ... rather than the coveted part of the sister ... Deciding to throw herself into the role, she rummages in her grandfather’s attic for some props. There, she discovers an old violin in the corner--strange, since her Zayde has never seemed to like music ... Showing it to her grandfather unleashes an anger in him she has never seen before, and while she is frightened of what it might mean, Shirli keeps trying to connect with her Zayde and discover the awful reason behind his anger＂--Dust jacket flap.

ERIC WALTERS is one of Canada’s best-known and most prolific writers of fiction for children and young adults. His books have won over 120 awards, including thirteen separate children’s choice awards, as well as the Africana Children’s Book Award, the UNESCO Award for Literature in Service of Tolerance and The Christopher Award. His books have been translated into thirteen languages. He lives in Guelph, Ontario, and is the co-founder of Creation of Hope, a charity that provides care for orphans in the Mbooni district of Kenya. In 2014 Eric was named a Member of the Order of Canada. His most recent novel is Elephant Secret, which is his hundredth published book. Visit him online at ericwalters.net and on Twitter: @EricRWalters.

KATHY KACER’s award-winning list of Holocaust fiction and non-fiction for young readers includes The Secret of Gabi’s Dresser (winner of OLA Silver Birch Award), The Diary of Laura’s Twin (winner of the National Jewish Book Council Award [US] as well as the Canadian Jewish Book Award), Hiding Edith (winner of the OLA Silver Birch Award; the Sydney Taylor Book Award [Association of Jewish Libraries], Notable Book for Older Readers; and the Yad Vashem Award for Children’s Holocaust Literature [Israel]), and To Look a Nazi in the Eye (a Sydney Taylor Honor Book for Teens). Her books have been published and translated in twenty countries. She is the child of Holocaust survivors, and the parent of two actors and musical theater performers. For more information, please see: www.kathykacer.com.