The Endless Steppe : Growing up in Siberia

Exiled to Siberia

In June 1942, the Rudomin family is arrested by the Russians. They are "capitalists — enemies of the people." Forced from their home and friends in Vilna, Poland, they are herded into crowded cattle cars. Their destination: the endless steppe of Siberia.
For five years, Ester and her family live in exile, weeding potato fields and working in the mines, struggling for enough food and clothing to stay alive. Only the strength of family sustains them and gives them hope for the future.

During World War II, when she was eleven years old, the author and her family were arrested in Poland by the Russians as political enemies and exiled to Siberia. She recounts here the trials of the following five years spent on the harsh Asian steppe.

Esther Hautzig is the author of many books for children and adults. The Endless Steppe is an autobiographical account of her childhood in Siberia. It was a 1969 National Book Award nominee and an ALA Notable Children's Book of 1968. It also received the 1969 Jane Addams Children's Book Award and the 1971 Lewis Carroll Shelf Award. Mrs. Hautzig is also the author of Riches, an original Jewish folktale, which was a finalist for the 1993 Jewish Book Award. She lives in New York City.