L
ike many Ashkenazi Jews,
author Ellen Gelerman
grew up with superstitions
passed from generation to gener-
ation. One of the most prominent
was that of the evil eye, kein ayin
hara.
Learning about the famous
Jewish saying, which translates
to “no evil eye,
” from her parents
and grandparents, Gelerman, a
Long Island native now residing
in Milford, decided to base her
second published novel on the
long-standing superstition.
Jewish YA (young adult) novel
The Hand of Miriam was recently
debuted to 110 professionals
at the Jewish Book Council
Network event in New York. Now,
Gelerman is ready to introduce
the 235-page book to the rest of
the world.
The novel centers around
Miriam Saperstein, a 12-year-
old girl who meets a mysteri-
ous elderly woman in her new
Brooklyn neighborhood. She
begins to believe a story that
they’re both descendants of an
ancient line of Jewish matriarchs
capable of protecting others from
the evil eye.
Yet is the story superstition or
something much more? Readers
will have to find out whether
amulets and blessings are enough
to shield Miriam and the elderly
woman from real evil.
INSPIRING GENERATIONS
Gelerman, 62, never anticipated
writing a YA novel, yet the story
seemed to write itself.
The Hand of Miriam was meant
to be an adult fiction book, but
when she realized the story would
work best when told in first-per-
son perspective from the main
character — a 12-year-old girl
— the book was written in a way
that made sense for a younger
audience.
“I built this girl very much on
me,
” explains Gelerman, who
often crafts characters out of little
pieces of her history. As a secular
Jew who grew up in a Reform
household, Gelerman built
Miriam around that world. With
many ancient traditions — and
superstitions — fading with each
generation, she hopes Miriam can
teach younger audiences about
their heritage and history.
“Young Jewish readers are one
or two generations removed from
those superstitions,
” Gelerman
explains. “There are numerous
books about shtetl life and biblical
life, but the availability of books
for young people that aren’t about
struggles and trials [is limited].
”
She calls The Hand of Miriam an
“uplifting and empowering” book.
“I think it’s exciting for young
women in particular to know they
have that power,
” she says.
A LOVE FOR WRITING
The Hand of Miriam isn’t
Gelerman’s first foray into author-
hood. Her debut release, The Book
of Hannah, was the winner of the
Chick-Lit category in the 2021
NYC Big Book Awards. She was
also a featured local author at the
69th annual Detroit Jewish Book
Fair in 2020.
As a true adult fiction book,
The Book of Hannah delves into
the trials and tribulations of an
infertile 55-year-old woman’s
unexpected first pregnancy.
Ironically, it took Gelerman nine
months to write the story (as did
The Hand of Miriam).
Gelerman, inspired by requests
from readers, is currently work-
ing on the sequel to The Book
of Hannah that she hopes to
complete within the next few
months. Its working title is Full
of Grace.
Like many authors, Gelerman
grew up writing. She wrote
short stories in school as a child
and later majored in English at
Indiana University. “It’s the kind
of degree you get when you love
the written word and you want
to absorb as much of it as you
can,” she says.
Gelerman built her career in
advertising copywriting — prod-
uct information and telemarket-
ing scripts — but discovered her
true love in fiction writing when
she retired in her 40s. Her hus-
band’s career also brought her to
the Metro Detroit area about 12
years ago.
“I was able to let my imagina-
tion run wild,
” she says of fiction
writing. “It took me a while to
adjust [to life in Michigan], and
one of the things that helped me
adjust is my writing.
”
While there are various super-
stitions across different commu-
nities and cultures, Gelerman felt
a kinship with the ones she had
grown up with — and looks for-
ward to sharing those traditions
with young Jewish and non-Jew-
ish readers who pick up The Hand
of Miriam.
“We have survived and thrived,
”
she says of Jewish life, “and this is
a continuation of that.
”
New YA Novel
Tackles Jewish
Superstition
44 | JULY 6 • 2023
The Hand of Miriam introduces
young Jewish readers to the legacy
of the evil eye.
ASHLEY ZLATOPOLSKY CONTRIBUTING WRITER
ARTS&LIFE
BOOKS
Ellen Gelerman