First Line Friday: My Real Name is Hanna by Tara Lynn Masih #travelingsistersread #BookBloggers

Posted on by Brenda~Traveling Sister

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First Line Friday is hosted by Hoarding Books. were we share the first line or lines of a book we are currently reading or going to start soon.

Our first lines are to a Traveling Sisters Group read that Lindsay and I are going to be starting soon.

I will say my real name to you for the first time. Hanna Slivka. Don’t be scared. I am still your mother.


Goodreads Summary

Inspired by real Holocaust events, this poignant debut novel is a powerful coming-of-age story that will resonate with fans of The Book Thief and Between Shades of Gray.

Hanna Slivka is on the cusp of fourteen when Hitler’s army crosses the border into Soviet-occupied Ukraine. Soon, the Gestapo closes in, determined to make the shtetele she lives in “free of Jews.” Until the German occupation, Hanna spent her time exploring Kwasova with her younger siblings, admiring the drawings of the handsome Leon Stadnick, and helping her neighbor dye decorative pysanky eggs. But now she, Leon, and their families are forced to flee and hide in the forest outside their shtetele—and then in the dark caves beneath the rolling meadows, rumored to harbor evil spirits. Underground, they battle sickness and starvation, while the hunt continues above. When Hanna’s father disappears, suddenly it’s up to Hanna to find him—and to find a way to keep the rest of her family, and friends, alive.

Sparse, resonant, and lyrical, weaving in tales of Jewish and Ukrainian folklore, My Real Name Is Hanna celebrates the sustaining bonds of family, the beauty of a helping hand, and the tenacity of the human spirit.

About the Author

Tara Lynn Masih is editor of the Rose Metal Press Field Guide to Writing Flash Fiction (a ForeWord Book of the Year), The Chalk Circle: Intercultural Prizewinning Essays (winner of a Skipping Stones Honor Award; a New England Book Festival award; a Benjamin Franklin silver medal award; and a ForeWord Book of the Year Award), and author of Where the Dog Star Never Glows, a National Best Books Award finalist in the short story category. She is the founding series editor of The Best Small Fictions, and My Real Name Is Hanna, her debut novel for young readers and adults set in WW II Ukraine, is due out Sept. 2018 and received a 2018 SKIPPING STONES HONOR AWARD.

Tara received an MA in Writing and Publishing from Emerson College, and has published fiction, poetry, and essays in numerous anthologies and literary magazines, and her essays have been read on NPR and translated to dance. Several limited edition illustrated chapbooks featuring her flash fiction, along with poet’s farthing cards, have been published by The Feral Press.

Awards for her work include first place in The Ledge Magazine’s fiction contest, a finalist fiction grant from the Massachusetts Cultural Council, The Lou P. Bunce Creative Writing Award, multiple Pushcart Prize nominations, and Best New American Voices and Best of the Web nominations.

Tara was the assistant editor for STORIES literary magazine, and a regular contributor to The Indian-American and Masala magazines. She divides her time between Andover, MA, and St. Augustine, FL.

Have you read this one?  Want to read it? Please add your first line to a book you have started or going to start.  We love to hear from you!!!

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Published by Brenda~Traveling Sister

18 thoughts on “First Line Friday: My Real Name is Hanna by Tara Lynn Masih #travelingsistersread #BookBloggers”

    1. This does sound really good, Marialyce! I haven’t read too many books based on the Holocaust but that ones I have read I really enjoyed them. I might have to look into this one a little more too and read it with Brenda & Lindsay.

      Liked by 2 people

  2. Happy Friday!😊 Happy birthday tomorrow!😊💖🎂🎂

    My first lines come from a book I will be reading shortly, Unleashed by Donna Kauffman.

    Emma Lafferty’s life had gone to the dogs. Literally. And to the cats. And the parakeets, goldfish, hamsters, even the occasional potbelly pig. What it and her fledgling pet-sitting service hadn’t gone to was her bank account. Not enough, anyway.

    Have a great weekend and happy reading!😊📚💖

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Thank you so much, Susan!!! I hope you had a great weekend and happy reading to you too! Thank you for sharing your first lines!!!

      Liked by 1 person

  3. I’m featuring lines from Danielle Norman’s upcoming release Roadster on my blog.

    Here, I’m sharing lines from Keira Montclair’s Falling for the Chieftan. It’s her new historical time travel romance.

    “Allison Sutton’s feet hit water as she plunged into the murky liquid at the base of the cascading falls.”

    Happy Reading!

    Liked by 2 people

  4. Happy Friday! I”m featuring Starting From Scratch by Kate Lloyd on my blog, so here is a line from page 11:

    “A few minutes later I sat on the suitcase’s lid while Marta fastened the metal latches with gusto.”

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Thank you so much, Christina! I wish I had time to fit this one in with Brenda & Lindsay as it sounds so good!

      Liked by 1 person

  6. Not only is the first line very intriguing, but the synopsis has definitely got me interested. I do read a lot of Historical Fiction surrounding WWII and the holocaust. Thanks for sharing this one.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. I thought it sounded quite good as well, Carla! I used to not read too many Historical Fiction but lately I’m finding that I am really enjoying them especially when they are centered around the holocaust. I hope that you enjoy it if you decide to give it a go! 💜 Norma

      Liked by 2 people

  7. Happy Saturday!

    Yesterday on my blog, I shared the first lines from Cara Putman’s novel Delayed Justice. Here I will share the first line from the novel I’m currently reading, An Unpresentable Glory by Eleanor Gustafson.

    “On her return from church, Kileenda Jensen discovered a problem, and it had nothing to do with her name.”

    Hope you have an awesome weekend!!! 😀🧡📚

    Liked by 2 people

  8. I know I’m late for Friday, so happy Labor Day weekend! My first line is from Under Prairie Skies by Cynthia Roemer.

    “The sound of a spry whistle froze Charlotte Stanton in her tracks. She tightened her hold on her bucket of creek water, eyes narrowing.”

    Liked by 2 people

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