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Chronicles is a collection of short pieces styled as a memoir. It tells the story of an immigrant family's struggle to find a place in mainstream American life. It was not always easy.

The book takes us back some fifty years to life in a small enclave in Brooklyn, N.Y. populated mainly by middle-class Jewish families; thence to a time before, during and just after World War II. It reeks with the old-fashioned flavors of a time when home and hearth were everything. The pungent aroma of chicken soup all but leaps off the page.

Life is complicated for the family in question during The Depression when the sole bread-winner must turn to the Rackets for a livelihood — at that time one of the few ways available to make ends meet.

Mrs. Gladstone, a senior citizen, began her writing career at age 60. Now — ten years later — she is a columnist for The North Shore Woman's Newspaper where she is the voice for her contemporaries. Her column is called Older and Wiser. Last year she gave us Benjamin's World, a story for cat lovers of all ages. Benjamin tells of his adventures and misadventures in "kitten thought"— a language you will readily understand. Her books are beautifully illustrated by Candace Staulcup.

Ms. Gladstone writes with Taproot — Long Island's Community of Older Writers — from whom she has recently been honored with the Laura Fox award for memoir. Her books are published by Biographical Publishing Company and are available in all online bookstores.

Reviews:

David Bouchier, columnist, the NEW YORK TIMES: Shari Gladstone chronicles Jewish immigrant life in Brooklyn more than sixty years ago, when children more-or-less minded their parents and family ties were everything. The sometimes painful process of assimilation is shown vividly in these witty and charming stories. The author tells us about the Melting Pot of the thirties without sentimentality or resentment - holding up a mirror to the struggles of minorities wanting to be accepted into modern American society.

Enid Graf, Executive Director, TAPROOT, Long Island's Community of Older Writers: Without a doubt, Ms. Gladstone is one of Taproot's best writers. Here she summons up an earlier time in a small Brooklyn neighborhood where young girls assert their high spirits, women are revered for their delicious cooking and men are forgiven their gambling and their schnapps. These are wonderful, warm-hearted stories told with a vivacity that will enliven your spirit. L'chaim.

Carole Heffley, Editor and Publisher, THE IRREGULAR, Easton, Pennsylvania: Readings these tales is like peeping through a keyhole and eavesdropping on ordinary, but charming, snippets of life. Ms. Gladstone recreates bits and pieces of her past and hands it to the reader as slices of life served on a silver platter.

Dr. Charlene Babb Knadle, Suffolk County Community College: Shari Gladstone delights in telling the family secrets that troubled and enriched her youth. In so doing, she delights us, too, with a voice that has the timeless quality of an old-fashioned storyteller.