Becoming Emily Novak

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Pub Date 31 Jan 2023 | Archive Date 31 Jan 2023

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Description

A coming-of-age novel about a queer Jewish girl who finds her calling through the camera lens… and about the family that shapes her.                  

Emily Novak's younger brother Zack is the rebellious one in their family. Ivy-League-bound Emily witnesses Zack's journey from behind her camera, cowed by the weight of her parents' confusing expectations and the aftermath of an extended family schism she doesn't want to think about. An unexpected college heartbreak with a woman sends Emily even further into a cocoon.

As Emily struggles over two decades to find the courage to make her own choices, she observes that her brother's adventures are bringing him a confidence that she envies. She's also aware of the rising cost of Zack's decisions... as well as her own.

Can Emily find a way to be faithful to both herself and the people she loves most? And if she dares to ask the questions, stand her ground, and let her heart open again, might she even find something good?

BECOMING EMILY NOVAK is the story of how we sift through our inheritances to disentangle our own truths, and what that sifting means for the shape of our adulthood.

A coming-of-age novel about a queer Jewish girl who finds her calling through the camera lens… and about the family that shapes her.                  

Emily Novak's younger brother Zack is the...


Advance Praise

“Stein ambitiously writes about developments among members of a single clan over the course of decades and how their relationships grow, fracture, and heal…the struggles of the family as a whole remain compelling throughout. An…often engaging family saga.”
— Kirkus Reviews

Becoming Emily Novak is a nuanced and finely wrought look at the complex ways our families and histories shape us—and ultimately, how we each must choose our own identity and place in the world. An unforgettable story you won't want to put down.”   
— Dorie Clark, Wall Street Journal bestselling author of The Long Game

“Emily's story—the untangling of messy memories and misunderstandings in search of bits of truth, and the complicated journey to adulthood, moving away then back to family—was profound and it kept me engaged until the end.”
— M-E Girard, author of Girl Mans Up and Then Everything Happens at Once

Becoming Emily Novak by Audrey Beth Stein is a heartwrenching coming-of-age story with themes of love and loss; there was not a chapter where I did not shed a tear or two.”
— Queer on the Street

“A beautiful and raw portrait of a woman trying to make meaning of love and family. The main character is a photographer, and from the very start, emotions and moments are articulated and captured in words with as much detail and precision as the images of a photograph. Depicting decades that existed before the intrusion of today’s technology, the embodied journey from past to present in Emily’s life takes us through situations that will feel familiar to those who lived through them, and may feel a bit alien to those who did not. The universal struggles with life and death and love, however, will be relatable to all.  One of the most wonderful aspects of this work, in my opinion, is the understated and matter-of-fact take on the evolution of her sexuality. The queerness just is, without much fanfare other than what is necessary to navigate Emily’s life. Emily is entirely herself, and when she has questions or doubts or introspective thoughts, they are given weight and enough space to be heard, but they are met head-on and we are spared the relentless navel-gazing and sentimentality of most coming-of age stories. I recommend this book.”
— Deborah Lack, long-time reader and fan

“Stein ambitiously writes about developments among members of a single clan over the course of decades and how their relationships grow, fracture, and heal…the struggles of the family as a whole...


Available Editions

EDITION Paperback
ISBN 9798985426540
PRICE $21.95 (USD)
PAGES 240

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Average rating from 18 members


Featured Reviews

Thank you NetGalley for the e-ARC I received of this book. It will be released to the public on Jan 31.

The best word to describe #BecomingEmilyNovak by #AudreyBethStein is "moving." This coming-of-age, slice-of-life novel follows Jewish, competitive, good girl Emily Novak from high school to adulthood. Emily finds herself behind the lens of a camera, and her constant forays into photography document her family as a whole.

What this book does so well is capture the unspoken. The fraught, difficult family dynamics that affect *everyone,* not only the main players in a family drama. For example, Emily's mom has a falling out with her sister Ninian. Everyone is affected, including Emily, and her loyalties are divided. Is she allowed to miss her cousins? How should she manage the Not-Mom who appears in the wake of her grandparent's death? These are the truths that most of us have lived but don't like to think about - the childhood traumas that did not necessarily "rate" in our minds or that we simply accepted as normal.

Emily's younger brother, Zack, refuses to follow the rules. He drinks, he smokes, he dates non-Jewish girls. He isn't interested in continuing Jewish rituals post Bar-Mitzvah. He doesn't attend college, let alone an Ivy League school, as Emily does. Emily continues to maintain a relationship with Zack even when their parents are at their wits end as to what to do with him. And Emily's photography continues to document important moments as she grows and becomes.

This is a portrait of a messy, confusing entry into adulthood- without the certainties that other generations may have felt. Emily and Zack both live their Judaism and their lives authentically, even though they may not resemble the lives or commitments of generations past. My only quibble with the book was that the ending felt abrupt and unfinished- which may have been deliberate in that Emily is still "becoming" even when we close the back cover.

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A really fascinating character study of a Jewish family. I really enjoyed the progression of this book and how it followed the family so intricately.
Wonderful writing!

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When I requested the arc for this book I had absolutely no idea what I was about to dive into. This book, which I picked because it was tagged as lgbtq+, turned out to be one of my most gut-wrenching reads of the last few years.

The main character's journey hit way too close to home. Growing up in a religious environment, with parents that love you but can't help but need more and more from you, grief and what it does to those who stay, how to face death time after time after time, knowing it will wreck both you and your family. GOD. I felt Emily's grief in every single one of her sentences. I felt it like a child does when they can't really understand it and I felt it like a lost young woman does when she's been through more and more yet feels as clueless as when she started her journey.

Religion, grief, family, life expectations... nothing can hit harder than these topics to another young woman like me who, just like Emily, is still on her journey. The contrast between her and her younger brother, who by the end has lived through his chosen adventures, studied, gotten married, had two children and is now going to die, is stark. Her story brings solace to anyone who still hasn't found their footing yet and is still in their trial-and-error phase.

Don't misunderstand me, I think this book would be to anyone's liking, the pace is amazing, the narration keeps you engaged and Emily is a very likable character whose experiences and feelings everyone can somehow relate to. Yet, if you're a 20-30yo old woman this will hit you harder than anyone else.

Overall, I would definitely recommend this. It had honestly been a long while since a book made me feel SO MUCH.

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