Ambershore: A Memoir of a Latvian-Jewish Woman

Ambershore is the autobiography of Rhoda Gurevich, a woman of Latvian Jewish heritage who survived the horrors of history. In this memoir, Gurevich chronicles her charmed early life in the cosmopolitan capital of Riga, Latvia, which took a nightmarish turn following the occupation of Latvia by the Soviet Union, the invasion by the Nazis, and the annihilation of most of the country’s Jewish population. Hers is a story of wits, luck, and survival, combined with a passion for culture and humanity that instilled Rhoda’s life with dignity during some of civlizations darkest eras. Along with the tale of her journey from Riga to the United States, where she immigrated with her family in the 1970s, Ambershore gives a rare account of life in Latvia before, during, and after WWII, from the culinary riches of the Central Market and authentic Latvian Jewish recipes, to the details of the Russian occupation and Latvia’s independence. Readers will feel each bump, setback, and triumph in Rhoda’s journey.