Serendipity's Footsteps

by Suzanne Nelson

Overview

A single pair of shoes connects lives across different times and places in an unforgettable journey—a story of strength, love, bravery, memory, and the serendipity that binds us all together.
 
Dalya is the daughter of a cobbler in Berlin, and though she is only fifteen, she knows she will follow in her father’s footsteps. Then, one violent November night, she is forced into a concentration camp, and must leave behind everything she knew and loved . . . including the single, gorgeous pair of shoes she was finally allowed to craft for herself.
 
Meanwhile, Dalya’s beloved shoes take their own journey to America. When they wind up in a secondhand shop, they enter the lives of Ray and Pinny, two modern-day orphans who couldn’t be more different. Ray is jagged around the edges in every possible way, with music her only escape. Pinny believes in the More of life . . . and she doesn’t want the fact that she has Down syndrome to stop her from living her dreams.
 
One pair of shoes intertwines these lives in ways as moving as they are memorable.
 
“Addresses racism, morality, discrimination, and self-esteem, all with exceptional tact and sensitivity. This uplifting story depicts the best and worst in humanity and the true strength of the human spirit.” —School Library Journal

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780385392129
Publisher:	Random House Children's Books
Publication date:	11/10/2015
Pages:	368
Product dimensions:	5.80(w) x 8.40(h) x 1.40(d)
Lexile:	780L (what's this?)
Age Range:	12 - 17 Years

About the Author

Suzanne Nelson dreamed of being a “riter” since kindergarten, before she was even old enough to spell the word. She’s published several novels for young readers. After spending eight years as a children’s book editor in New York City, she lives with her family in Ridgefield, Connecticut, where she is constantly on the lookout for abandoned shoes. Although she doesn’t own as many shoes as Imelda Marcos, she does own a handmade pair decorated with peacock feathers. She is currently working on her next novel, The Freedom Dress. Find out more about Suzanne at SuzanneNelson.com and at @snelsonbooks.

Editorial Reviews

09/07/2015
A leitmotif of shoes underpins Nelson’s novel, which unfolds over more than 60 years, jumping from the Holocaust to contemporary orphanage life in Texas, with stops in several other places and eras, including long sections in 1940s New York. The book opens in November 1938 in Berlin, when 15-year-old Dalya, daughter of a Jewish cobbler, and her family are taken to a concentration camp, leaving behind a precious pair of shoes. From there, Nelson follows Dalya through her long life while directing a much narrower lens on two runaway orphans, Ray and Pinny. These three prove to be the story’s focus, but many secondary figures are also highlighted; sometimes breaks between individuals’ tales are so long that flipping back to previous installments is necessary. Nelson (The Sound of Munich) ties up all the threads adroitly, if a little too neatly, with a heartwarming conclusion in New York City in 2013. An extensive author’s note explains the inspiration for the book and offers historical background, plus sources for further information on some of the topics explored. Ages 12–up. Agent: Ammi-Joan Paquette, Erin Murphy Literary Agency. (Nov.)

Publishers Weekly

Dayla’s mother and father were talented shoemakers in Berlin and proud to teach her the complex skills of their trade. Then, one night in November 1938, Dayla’s family, neighbors, and dear friends are arrested by the Gestapo and taken to Sachsenhausen. The soft pink, hand-embroidered shoes she had just completed were left behind, hidden under the floorboards, waiting for the family’s return. Almost seventy years later, Ray and Pinny, two girls from Smokebush Children’s Home in Texas, find themselves headed to New York City with a pair of soft pink, hand-embroidered shoes Ray found in a thrift store. There are a few main characters readers will come to know well and a crowd of secondary characters that only make brief appearances. The story is presented in a variety of time periods that jump forward and back, slightly confusing the flow of action. Highlighting the experiences of Pinny, a young woman with Down syndrome, and the story of a work camp survivor who found her way to America before the War was over give the book a deeper meaning and depth. Complex friendships and a little romance add easy appeal. Unraveling the mystery of how Dayla’s shoes connect these women at such different stages of life makes for a satisfying ending. Reviewer: Stacey Hayman; Ages 12 to 18.

VOYA, December 2015 (Vol. 38, No. 5) - Stacey Hayman

10/01/2015
Gr 10 Up—Can a pair of shoes have a profound effect on a person's life? For Dayla, Ray, and Pinny, a specific pair of shoes connects them through time and place over decades and continents. One is the only member of her family to survive the atrocities of Nazi Germany and begin life anew in the United States. One is a troubled orphan who has been in and out of foster care and has decided to run away and start over in New York. And lastly, one is a quirky idealist with mild Down syndrome who believes that New York holds the answer she has been seeking. With this novel, Nelson weaves an original and unique story line using shoes as the focal point that drives the plot. The story unfolds and evolves through the alternating points of view of Dayla, Pinny, and Ray as they overcome tragedy and despair in their lives. Nelson addresses complex themes such racism, morality, discrimination, and self-esteem, all with exceptional tact and sensitivity. This uplifting story depicts the best and worst in humanity and the true strength of the human spirit. VERDICT An inspiring additional purchase for mature readers.—Donna Rosenblum, Floral Park Memorial High School, NY

School Library Journal

2015-08-31
A pair of handmade shoes travels through time, transforming the lives of those who come into contact with them. When 15-year-old Dalya Amschel begins work on her future wedding shoes, she never dreams that she will end up in a concentration camp and that the embroidered pink satin footwear will have a wild odyssey of their own. The shoes travel from Germany to Ohio to Connecticut to Texas and finally to New York. While the narrative shifts among multiple tales, characters, and time periods can be distracting and uneven and the repeated shoe theme becomes heavy-handed at times, the novel eventually settles into a natural rhythm, and the stories come together by the end. Nelson's characters are engaging—from Dalya, Henry, and Aaron in the World War II-era saga to Ray and Pinny in the more contemporary South—and are notable for including among the shoe-wearers sensitive portraits of a teenager with Down syndrome as well as a young boy exploring gender and sexual identity. An absorbing convergence of coming-of-age stories as well as a thoughtful meditation on shoes and all that they witness and represent. (author's note) (Fiction. 12-16)

Kirkus Reviews