MAGDA, STANDING

In Kessides’ debut YA historical novel, a young woman confronts xenophobia, her family’s struggles and strictures, the horrors of World War I, and an influenza epidemic.

Pittsburgh resident Magda Augustin is a bright 16-year-old with large ambitions. Unfortunately, her father decrees that she must drop out of high school—and probably give up her college dreams, as well—to take care of her sick mother and toddler brother, Richy. She’s crushed, but she seeks the help of her retired schoolteacher aunts, Minnie and Tillie, who offer not only tutoring, but also wise counsel. The question of the hour in their German enclave is whether the United States will enter the war in Europe; when it finally does, Magda’s brother Fred signs up to fight, as does her brother-in-law, while she volunteers as an assistant nurse with the Red Cross. She’s introduced to Fred’s friend Conrad Hecht, and readers know early on that they’re meant for each other. Between the one-two punch of the war and a flu epidemic, many around Magda don’t survive. But those who do patch together their lives and become stronger for it. Still, it’s a painful spiritual trade-off: “It seemed that if one thought too much about loving someone, they would soon be gone.” Kessides writes in an author’s note that the book was inspired by her own family history as well as the Covid-19 pandemic. Magda is an appealing protagonist, and the book, though told in the third person, presents the character’s sensitive perspective; sometimes she feels sorry for herself, but not for long, and then she feels guilty about it and resolves to do better. Above all, she’s revealed to be resourceful and understanding—a person upon whom no experience is lost. As a result, readers get a good, detailed sense of place as the book explores a brawny town of steel mills and foundries where clear skies were the exception, not the rule: “The usual dirty air had receded a little, allowing the sun to venture out in place of the resident winter gloom.”

An impressive first novel that effectively draws on the author’s family story.