Joyana Peters

It is 1909 and Ruth, her sister Ester and her mother arrive in New York City. Harsh treatment of the Jewish people had made life in Russia unbearable for the Feldman’s. Four years earlier, her father headed to the United States with the plan that the rest of the family would join him when he had the money to pay for their passage. Also with her father was Abraham, the man Ruth was expected to marry and Abraham’s father. Once the Feldman’s are reunited, they all settle into a tenement apartment on the Lower East Side. Ruth and Abraham hope to marry soon and young Ester enters school. Abraham helps Ruth get a job at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory where he is employed. While Abraham is happy to keep his head down and work for his wages, Ruth is abhorred by the poor treatment of the workers and gets involved with those working to organize change. The families struggle with trying to retain their culture and heritage while learning the language and lifestyle of Americans.

Most people are aware of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory and the fire that occurred on March 25, 1911. It remains one of the deadliest disasters in U.S. history, with 146 preventable deaths. So before reading even one page, it is apparent this is not going to be a happy story. But author Joyana Peters, in an impressive debut novel, reminds us of this tragedy by creating a fictitious family impacted by the fire. A family we get to know and care about. The Feldman’s represent the many immigrants who came to the U.S. seeking a better life which included religious freedom. Peters did an excellent job researching the period and the actual Triangle Factory with its cramped work spaces. The streets of their neighborhood come alive with crowds, pushcarts and the sounds of many languages.

If you’re walking through New York’s Greenwich Village and find yourself at the corner of Washington Place and Greene Street, look for NYU’s Brown Building (formerly the Asch Building) and remember the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory. This book is a moving homage to its victims.

While The Girl in the Triangle is filled with sadness, there is also joy and hopefulness.

Rated 4.25 stars.… (mais)

Overall this was a solid historical fiction book for me. I've always been super interested in the Triangle factory fire, and I was excited to read it. I loved reading about Ruth's family, and the background of their time in Russia. This is time in History that I'm not super familiar with, and I enjoy opportunities to learn new things. The characters were engaging, and I was invested in the outcomes of their stories. The only real negative for me was that the copy I recieved had some type of error, and I was missing almost the entire chapter of the actual fire from Ruth's perspective. I could still finish the book without those details, but it left a hole for me. I definitely think I'll read other books by this author in the future, because I see a lot of promise here!… (mais)

Ruth, her sister, and her mother finally made it to America to join the men who had left them behind in Russia.

They all lived together in one apartment, and all the men and Ruth worked even though her father and her fiancée were against it.

Ruth worked in the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory where she and many other immigrants worked for pennies seven days a week and for nine-hour days.

THE GIRL IN THE TRIANGLE is a marvelous debut. The characters are very well developed, and the story line is very well researched.

The famous Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire slowly brought changes to workplace safety and unions.

Ms. Peters kept my interest because of the personal side of the characters and the plight of the immigrants and the factory workers.

The fire was a horrible incident that could have been prevented had the doors not been locked and had there been ladders that reached to all the floors and not just to the sixth floor...the shirtwaist factory was on higher floors and deadly to everyone who jumped from the windows to escape the horrendous heat and flames.

Historical fiction fans and fans of women's fiction will enjoy THE GIRL IN THE TRIANGLE.

I was looking up Clara Lemlich and the owners of the factory Isaac Harris and Max Blanck who literally got away with murder.

The book also addressed the love of family and keeping religious and family traditions from fading away as well as women protesting for rights.

A well-researched, educational, difficult-to-put-down read. 5/5

This book was given to me by the author in exchange for an honest review.… (mais)

I read about the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire in history class - years ago - but this book makes it all very real and even more tragic. This is a debut novel by this author and not only is it well researched but the characters are well written and many of them are based on real people.

It's 1909 when Ruth, her mother and sister arrived in New York City to reunite with their father and Ruth's fiancé. It had been four long years since the men left Russia to go to America and find jobs so that they could bring the rest of their family. For Ruth it's been a long time since she's seen Abraham and is worried whether he will still love her or if America has changed him. He worked at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory and she soon goes to work there to help her family. She soon makes new friends and gets involved in the strike for better working conditions. Her new life creates problems with her sister and Abraham. After so many years in Russia she feels that she can finally work to make changes - and she wants those changes NOW.

This fast paced novel is about love in a family no matter the circumstances. It's also about the lives of immigrants, the fight for rights for women and the working class and the corruption of the rich that make more money by the terrible working conditions in their factories. There is another theme about the need to keep parts of your culture intact when you move to a new country. Many of the immigrants left their old customs behind as they began to Americanize their lives.

The author told the story in chorological order and started each chapter with how many days it was until the fire which increased the apprehension to find out if any of the characters survived. This debut novel was so well written that I'm looking forward to future books from this author.… (mais)