Read reviews of Holding My Breath: A Novel by Sidura Ludwig. Lilith Magazine Winter 2008-2009, review by Judy Gerstel Holding My Breath by Sirua Ludwig, a coming-of-age story set in Winnipeg's shtetl-like North End in the middle of the 20th century, brings to life a time and place with such detail, both sensual and factual, that someone who grew up in that time and place - like this reviewer, bort on the very same street where the protagonist lives with her family - find herself on nearly evey page...... CLICK HERE TO READ MORE JVibe November 2008, review by Mandy Cohen Sidura Ludwig's compelling debut novel, Holding My Breath, tells the story of Beth Levy's search for truth and understanding through piecing together stories and conversations she's heard about her family's past and allowing her imagination to fill in the missing spaces...... CLICK HERE TO READ MORE THE REPORTER 21 November 2008, review by Rabbi Rachel Esserman Beth Levy and Ruby Bronstein may have been born more than 25 years apart, but during the course of their young lives, they’ve faced similar difficulties. Two recent novels, Sidura Ludwig’s "Holding My Breath" (Shaye Areheat Books) and Nellie Hermann’s "The Cure for Grief" (Scriber), explore how these young women grapple with the losses and trials of family life while, at the same time, they struggle to discover what it means to be Jewish. Their stories also explore the fine shading between one’s true self and the self revealed to others..... CLICK HERE TO READ MORE Jewish Women International Fall 2008, review by Sandee Brawarsky A coming-of-age story in fiction, Holding My Breath by Sidura Ludwig (Shaye Areheart) is set in Winnipeg, Canada, beginning in 1947 and moving forward for three decades in the lives of two generations of powerful Jewish women. The novel, Ludwig’s first, is a traditional period piece told anew, in compelling style. The narrator, the youngest in the household, has eavesdropped on family conversations for years and spent her life piecing things together to tell the women’s hidden stories and her own. Ludwig, an award-winning writer who lives in Ontario, understands the way women speak, love and remember. THE NATIONAL POST 7 April 2007, review by Ruth Panofsky There is much to admire in Sidura Ludwig's debut novel, Holding My Breath, a coming-of-age story set in the mid-20th century: its powerful evocation of setting, compelling cast of complex female characters and affirming celebration of Jewish family life.... CLICK HERE TO READ MORE THE CHRONICLE HERALD, HALIFAX 31 March 2007, review by Mary Jo Anderson Holding My Breath (Key Porter Books, $22.95), a debut novel by Sidura Ludwig, a young writer originally from Winnipeg, is a polished work from a new voice in Canadian literature. It is evident why Ludwig was a recipient of the Canadian Author and Bookman Prize for most promising writer.... CLICK HERE TO READ MORE THE UNITER 22 March 2007, review by Ksenia Prints Good stories are those that allow the reader to curl up with the author's words under the blankets and be that cold, miserable kid from the Neverending Story for at least an hour. The aptly named Holding My Breath offers just that, with its comforting words almost rolling off the pages as the story of its heroine, Beth, unfolds.... CLICK HERE TO READ MORE THE JEWISH POST AND NEWS 7 March 2007, review by Joseph Leven Ludwig writes with a straightforward, free-flowing style. Her dialogues in particular sound real and believable. The characters keep on developing throughout the novel, showing us new sides of themselves as the story progresses.... CLICK HERE TO READ MORE THE WINNIPEG FREE PRESS 4 March 2007, review by Elizabeth Hopkins [Ludwig's] sensitive and detailed exploration of character, combined with her skill at evoking the specificities of time and place, create something to which everyone can relate.... CLICK HERE TO READ MORE THE GLOBE AND MAIL 3 March 2007, review by Ami Sands Brodoff Ludwig's setting, the North End of Winnipeg, is richly drawn without intruding on the calm, quiet story. Compelling historical events -- the aftermath of the war, the Russian launch of Sputnik and the assassination of Martin Luther King -- are kept at bay, underlining the insularity of the Levys' lives.... CLICK HERE TO READ MORE THE JEWISH INDEPENDENT 15 December 2006, review by Cynthia Ramsay Holding My Breath by Sidura Ludwig, which will be released by Key Porter Books in March 2007, is worth the wait... CLICK HERE TO READ MORE CLARE MORRALL Man Booker Prize Finalist, author of Astonishing Splashes of Colour I thought this was a perceptive and satisfying story. It is quietly compelling... CLICK HERE TO READ MORE MARGARET SWEATMAN Playwright, novelist, author of When Alice Lay Down with Peter This is a portrait of an era, a city, a family; a story lovingly told by a girl born into Winnipeg's post-War Jewish community... CLICK HERE TO READ MORE sidura.com - The official web site of Canadian author Sidura Ludwig ABOUT THE AUTHOR | ABOUT THE BOOK | PUBLISHERS NEWS AND EVENTS | READ REVIEWS | LINKS CONTACT SIDURA | RETURN TO HOME PAGE