Review for "A Well-Read Woman: The Life, Loves, AND Legacy of Ruth Rappaport" by Kate Stewart

A Well-Read Woman: The Life, Loves, and Legacy of Ruth Rappaport by Kate Stewart
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I felt going into this read as though I had heard of Ruth Rappaport before… maybe I did? Maybe I didn’t? Either way, I am so glad I’d chosen this as one of my First Reads Picks, and here’s why…

(From her Amazon Author Profile) Kate Stewart is a third generation librarian whose work has included working at the Library of Congress (just like Ms. Rappaport did until she retired). After an invite to an estate sale (that of Ruth’s home after her death), Ms. Stewart finds a slightly obsessive need to know more about this fellow librarian who traveled the world, never married and built a life for herself- post-Holocaust. Let me just say- I would’ve done the same thing. In another life, I would’ve and/or might’ve been a librarian as well, as is evidenced in my voracious appetite for books, knowledge, researching, and cataloging… yeah, I can relate.

This biography read as part documentary and part extended conversation with a friend who was telling me a story about someone they had a fascination for, and how they themselves related to that person in their own life.

I went into this book just wanting to hear the story of a woman named Ruth Rappaport, a librarian, who somehow inspired another woman enough to have a book written about her. What I got was a strong and stubborn, rebellious woman’s lifetime, well-researched and brought to life in the space of 350+ pages.

Ruth Rappaport’s life began as a young Jewish girl, right before the Holocaust began. She survived by a choice she made, to leave as a young girl, thereby taking her life into her own hands. From there, she remained her own person for her entire life, even up until she died- on her own terms. Her life wasn’t as colorful and exotic as some biographies you might read, but for a woman of her time, her tenacity was admirable and noteworthy.

The author included excerpts from Ruth’s diaries as well as other sources, such as an interview about the Holocaust she’d recorded shortly before her death. From the many sources, Ruth’s voice speaks out bravely and brazenly. Some gems I highlighted were like this one, where a 6-year-old Ruth is at a Zionist meeting (pre-WWII) and speaks up amongst all the adults present against the argument of Dying a Hero FOR your country, “What’s so great about dying for your country? Isn’t it more important to LIVE for it?” This quote is followed up with Ruth’s recollection of that moment, “I thought that was a pretty astute comment from a six-year-old.”

So did I Ruth.

As Ruth tells it, to sum up, her life… “My whole behavior is strictly existential. Meet what comes.”

And that’s just what she did.

As an additional, well-appreciated bonus, Ms. Stewart added at the end, 19 Life Lessons/Words of Wisdom, gleaned from Ruth’s lifetime/story. I’m currently hanging a typed-up version of (them) on my office wall.

In closing, if you’re looking for EPICNESS… sorry, this isn’t epic. It is, however, a damn good story. Again, it’s a biography, and where a lot of bios can be told with a dryness that makes it hard to get through, I didn’t find that an issue in Kate Stewart’s book. Of course, I happen to LOVE books and reading and history and women who can happily throw a middle finger up at the rules and Patriarchy, and live the life THEY want. If that’s not something you can relate to or aren’t interested in reading about, then skip this one.

Btw, the books that made a difference in Ms. Rappaport’s life are mentioned throughout the story, but they’re NOT the focus, by any means.

If you, like me, can appreciate the kind of woman I described, then read this. Grab a coffee, settle in, take a few cigarette breaks if necessary (Ruth was a chain smoker), and this can be read in an afternoon… it’s that fluid and engrossing. 10 stars if it was possible. Thank you, Kate Stewart, for bringing Ms. Rappaport into my home, my heart, and my mind.


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