BECOMING EMILY NOVAK is a coming-of-age novel about a queer Jewish girl who finds her calling through the camera lens… and about the family that shapes her. It’s the story of how we sift through our inheritances to disentangle our own truths, and what that sifting means for the shape of our adulthood.

Publication date: January 31, 2023
ISBN: 979-8-9854265-4-0 (Trade Paperback)
Distribution: Ingram
buy now: Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Bookshop.org | Harvard Bookstore | IndieBound | Porter Square Books

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“Becoming Emily Novak is a nuanced and finely wrought look at the complex ways our families and histories shape us—and ultimately, how we each must choose our own identity and place in the world. An unforgettable story you won't want to put down.”
— Dorie Clark, Wall Street Journal bestselling author of The Long Game

“Emily's story—the untangling of messy memories and misunderstandings in search of bits of truth, and the complicated journey to adulthood, moving away then back to family—was profound and it kept me engaged until the end.”
— M-E Girard, author of Girl Mans Up and Then Everything Happens at Once

“Stein ambitiously writes about developments among members of a single clan over the course of decades and how their relationships grow, fracture, and heal…the struggles of the family as a whole remain compelling throughout. An…often engaging family saga.”
— Kirkus Reviews

“Becoming Emily Novak by Audrey Beth Stein is a heartwrenching coming-of-age story with themes of love and loss; there was not a chapter where I did not shed a tear or two.”
— Queer on the Street

“A beautiful and raw portrait of a woman trying to make meaning of love and family. The main character is a photographer, and from the very start, emotions and moments are articulated and captured in words with as much detail and precision as the images of a photograph. Depicting decades that existed before the intrusion of today’s technology, the embodied journey from past to present in Emily’s life takes us through situations that will feel familiar to those who lived through them, and may feel a bit alien to those who did not. The universal struggles with life and death and love, however, will be relatable to all. One of the most wonderful aspects of this work, in my opinion, is the understated and matter-of-fact take on the evolution of her sexuality. The queerness just is, without much fanfare other than what is necessary to navigate Emily’s life. Emily is entirely herself, and when she has questions or doubts or introspective thoughts, they are given weight and enough space to be heard, but they are met head-on and we are spared the relentless navel-gazing and sentimentality of most coming-of age stories. I recommend this book.”
— Deborah Lack, long-time reader and fan

“A heartfelt story about a young woman growing up and learning to be an adult, while trying to understand her family and all its complexities…very readable.”

“In the end this story turns out to be as ordinary or extraordinary as anyone's life. There are the fights with parents, the sibling who goes astray, the feeling that your family isn't quite what it makes itself out to be, growing up and growing away from home, falling in love and the inevitable tragedies that we all live through…It is a book about a young Jewish woman finding out who she is and who she will be in later life. It made me laugh and it made me cry. It is definitely worth a read.”

“A lovely read…”

“This will stay with me for a long time.”

“...a book I've been waiting for…”

“What this book does so well is capture the unspoken. The fraught, difficult family dynamics that affect *everyone,* not only the main players in a family drama.”

“[A] feel good read that I totally was surprised by and thoroughly enjoyed. This is a definite five star book…I will definitely be reading this again in the future.”

“A really fascinating character study of a Jewish family.”

“This was a different book. It wasn’t thrilling or exciting, but something about it felt very authentic.”

“[O]ne of my most gut-wrenching reads of the last few years…I think this book would be to anyone's liking, the pace is amazing, the narration keeps you engaged and Emily is a very likable character whose experiences and feelings everyone can somehow relate to. Yet, if you're a [twenty-to-thirty-year-old] woman this will hit you harder than anyone else.”

“Excellent writing and a story I’ll be thinking about for months to come.”