About BC Books Online
BC Books Online was created for anyone interested in BC-published books, and with librarians especially in mind. We'd like to make it easy for library staff to learn about books from BC publishers - both new releases and backlist titles - so you can inform your patrons and keep your collections up to date.
Our site features print books and ebooks - both new releases and backlist titles - all of which are available to order through regular trade channels. Browse our subject categories to find books of interest or create and export lists by category to cross-reference with your library's current collection.
A quick tip: When reviewing the "Browse by Category" listings, please note that these are based on standardized BISAC Subject Codes supplied by the books' publishers. You will find additional selections, grouped by theme or region, in our "BC Reading Lists."
Description
Ellie Gold is an orthodox Jewish teenager living in Toronto in the late eighties.
Ellie has no doubts about her strict religious upbringing until she falls in love with another girl at her grandmother's cottage. Aware that homosexuality clashes with Jewish observance, Ellie feels forced to either alter her sexuality or leave her community. Meanwhile, Ellie's mother, Chana, becomes convinced she has a messianic role to play, and her sister, Neshama, chafes against the restrictions of her faith. Ellie is afraid there is no way to be both gay and Jewish, but her mother and sister offer alternative concepts of God that help Ellie find a place for herself as a queer Jew.
Recommended Age, Grade, and Reading Levels
- Age:
- 12 to 18
- Grade:
- 8 to 12
- Reading age:
- 12 to 18
Awards
- Commended, CCBC Best Books for Kids & Teens, starred selection
- Commended, American Library Association (ALA) Rainbow Book List
- Commended, Association of Jewish Libraries (AJL) Sydney Taylor Book Award - Notable Books
Editorial Reviews
"A page-turner in which vivid description furthers the development of character and plot…In advocating for a heightened ecological emphasis in Judaism, Ellie displays genuine caring and shows that conscious, rather than automatic, responses are what keep any practice alive."
— Canadian Literature
"Thoughtful, quirky, and moving."
— Tablet Magazine
"Lieberman successfully develops her characters, and does not shy away from the lust commonly experienced by teenagers...An excellent work."
— TeensReadToo.com
"A complex and sensitive read for mature teens."
— The StarPhoenix
"How [Ellie] copes with the internal conflicts is beautifully and compellingly written by first time novelist Leanne Lieberman. Ellie's character is well rounded and refreshingly different from many female teen protagonists...As a Canadian novel focusing on coming out as a lesbian, this book should be included in a high school library collection."
— The Bookmark (BCTLA)
"Lieberman's confidence is impressive. She is in complete command of her material. Her work is like origami, in which meanings gently unfold. She treats Ellie's emerging eroticism with taste and delicacy."
— The Globe and Mail
"Presents us with several questions that we all have about growing up, and so, we make connections even if we are not Jewish...One searches for books like these in which one turns each page to find answers to age-old questions."
— Tri State Young Adult Book Review Committee
"Ellie is a memorable protagonist...any teenager, particularly girls whose family life centres on religion of any sort will connect with Ellie's story."
— CM Magazine
"In Gravity we ascend dizzying orgasmic heights and descend to the depths of adolescent agony. It is a novel one can only hope will find its synchronistic way into the hands of the many young people, especially gays and lesbians, who struggle in silence to reconcile their spiritual faith with their hearts' desire."
— The Rover
"Lieberman writes her protagonist seamlessly, in a first-person voice that is so raw and awkward and confessional that it's hard to imagine it isn't a memoir, let alone fiction."
— Forward
"Heartfelt - a must for Jewish and GLBT collections."
— Kirkus
"This novel explores the world of Orthodox Judaism...[a] powerful book."
— Resource Links
"A remarkably sensitive and credible portrait of a girl whose faith collides with her sexuality, and who refuses to compromise either."
— The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
"Gravity is so spot-on in plot, character and motivation that it could be both a novel and the screenplay it's very likely to become. This is a fascinating book - provocative, accessible and taking you where you probably haven't gone before."
— CD Syndicated
"Gravity is a compelling, well-written story that... leaves readers wanting more - and, rightly so, leaves them to draw their own conclusions about whether orthodoxy and homosexuality can coexist."
— The Jewish Independant
"There are few books that deal this frankly with the inner conflict of a religious teen trying to come to terms with her or his sexuality."
— VOYA
"Lieberman is a unique author who ably accomplished writing about a topic that isn't easy to discuss...The book was very appealing and I found it hard to put down."
— What If? Magazine
