It’s not every day that your student writes a novel.
But that’s exactly what my student, eleven-year-old Tova Ornstein, set out to do.
You see, Tova wanted to do something meaningful for her Bat Mitzvah. And while she learned Parshat Shelach with her grandmother, and also participated in the Matan program, Tova is a reader and a writer. So she wanted to create. To craft something.
And she did!
Check out Tova’s middle-grade historical fiction, a retelling of the biblical story of Devorah the Prophetess (which is available for purchase on Amazon! Go buy a copy, then leave her a review.) This book, in Tova’s words, can be summarized as follows:
Little is known of Devorah, one of only a few prophetesses in Jewish history. What was her childhood like? What was the story behind her rise to leadership? What were the relationships that drove her and the Jewish people's successful emergence from the oppression of Sisra and his army? This retelling of the classic biblical story from The Book of Judges blends historical facts from the Torah and commentaries together with imaginative ideas of her childhood, friendships, and relationships. Follow the personal growth of this remarkable woman as she becomes the leader of the Jewish nation.
I had the pleasure of having a firsthand view as Tova grappled with the project. I was lucky enough to serve as her writing coach. Together, over Zoom, Tova and I learned through Judges 4 & 5. Then we learned selected meforshim [commentaries] and midrashim [aggadic tales]. We discussed all of it and took notes on all of it. Based on that research, Tova decided she wanted to imagine Devorah’s childhood and how she came to be chosen as a prophet. I helped her organize her vision so that it would be achievable. Tova wrote, edited and proofread her book. Then she asked her beta readers to go through it and give her feedback. She edited further, and finally published it. She’s twelve years old and the author of a book that anyone can buy!
To say I’m proud of her would be an understatement.
This is what it means to own your Jewish learning. To be so excited about it that you turn it into something that matters to you, and that you want to share with others. It was such a pleasure today to celebrate Tova’s Bat Mitzvah and to see people marvel at her accomplishment. But, because it was Tova, it wasn’t only about her. She also asked everyone to bring in some books to donate to a charity called Hindi’s Libraries (learn more about it via this video.) Like any reader, Tova wants to share the joy she gets from books with others.
Dear reader - she has succeeded.
This is awesome on so many levels! I am going to get this - and share it with my family and friends. How inspirational!
This looks great! I just ordered a copy.