description: Fleeing Nazi Germany in 1936, the Schwarts immigrate to a small town in upstate New York. Here the father—a former high school teacher—is demeaned by the only job he can gravedigger and cemetery caretaker. When local prejudice and the family's own emotional frailty give rise to an unthinkable tragedy, the gravedigger's daughter, Rebecca heads out into America. Embarking upon an extraordinary odyssey of erotic risk and ingenious self-invention, she seeks renewal, redemption, and peace—on the road to a bittersweet and distinctly “American” triumph.
language: English
title: The Gravedigger's Daughter
titlecomplete: The Gravedigger's Daughter
characters: Hazel Jones, Rebecca Tignor, Jacob Schwart, Niles Tignor
genres: Historical, Family, Novels, Literature, Literary Fiction, Historical Fiction, Fiction, Audiobook, Contemporary, Adult Fiction
ratings_count: 10615
awards: awardedAt: 1199174400000
name: Macavity Award
category: Sue Feder Historical Mystery, awardedAt: 1167638400000
name: National Book Critics Circle Award
category: Fiction
publisher: The Fourth Estate