Ravenscraig
Winner of the Carol Shield Winnipeg Book Award
Pitching rich against poor in a brawling, raucous saloon town, turned boom town, Ravenscraig is a romantic, historical family saga set in Winnipeg at the turn of the 20th century.
Known as the “Chicago of the North” for its fine architecture and palatial homes, Winnipeg is the place to be to make or increase a fortune.
Brilliant and charismatic, Rupert Willows is among the best of liars. Not even his wife knows his true identity. Rupert boldly schemes his way into the ranks of the elite circle of men who run the city as it rises to become the financial capital of Western Canada and fastest growing city on the continent. True power and vast riches can be his, as long as his secret stays buried.
North of the tracks that divide rich from poor in Winnipeg, Zev Zigman mounts a desperate struggle to bring his family out of tsarist Russia to settle in the overcrowded squalor of Winnipeg’s North End. His young niece, a plucky orphan, arrives from London and risks everything when she hides her Jewish roots to enter the world of “The English” as Maisie, the new maid at Ravenscraig.
Scandal, romance, and the Titanic tragedy will determine the fates of both families as their lives become entwined in this award winning novel.
Ravenscraig Book Trailer
Praise for Ravenscraig
“Where “Ravenscraig” excels, and no doubt why it has become an immediate best-seller locally, is in its description of Winnipeg at the turn of the 20th century and certain key events that are probably unknown to most readers.
For instance, a major typhoid outbreak in 1905 becomes a centerpiece of the novel. In her description of the horrible living conditions of the bulk of the immigrant population in Winnipeg, Krawchenko Altner does a fine job of evoking the misery that accompanied life for so many of our grandparents and great-grandparents.
At the same time the level of corruption in which Winnipeg’s Anglo Saxon leaders engaged is also quite astounding and is brought to life on the pages of this book. “Ravenscraig’ devotes a fair bit of space to the issue of red-light houses in the city and how it was that police and elected officials not only turned a blind eye to the prostitution that was conducted so openly, those same officials profited hugely from its practice.”
—Bernie Bellan, The Jewish Post and News
“As a newcomer to Winnipeg, I had everything to learn from the gripping true stories – the phenomenally fast growth of Winnipeg at the turn of the 20th century, political and business intrigue and the ways of life for the rich and poor of the city. It was always a treat to see how Altner brought real people into the lives of the Willows and Zigman families.
The imagined characters, living in these exciting times, are connected to two families, one wealthy and part of Winnipeg's high society, the other new Jewish immigrants. The homes and luxuries, and also the stresses and concerns, of the wealthy characters from British backgrounds were new to me, and fun to discover.
The stories of Jewish immigrant families, starting with their dangerous lives in Ukraine, to their poverty in Canada, through to their gradual success, are very familiar. It's a story I never tire of hearing, because it's the story of my own family – my grandmother crossed a river carrying her son to sneak across a border, thought she had started a secure new life in a different part of Europe, then had to start all over again in Canada.”
—Jane Enkin, Winnipeg Jewish Review
Readers’ Reviews
A masterpiece. Ravenscraig grabbed me, shook me, and never let me go. I devoured it in only two sittings. Thoroughly researched and brilliantly crafted, it is a story that every Canadian should read and then pass on to every immigrant, every Jew, and every American they know. It is a story that could only bring good things to the world.”
Lee Harrison, Montreal
Absolutely fabulous!”
Donna Turner, Regina
“This is a beautiful, romantic story, in the grand tradition of Margaret Mitchell’s Gone with the Wind. I loved it.”
Karen Boxer, New York
“This book is amazing in its depiction of late 1800s and early 1900s Winnipeg. The city was a hotbed of immigration and this book accurately depicts the history and immigration of a Jewish family from the "old country" to Winnipeg. The other side of the coin is the depiction of a wealthy family becoming one of the movers and shakers in the rapidly growing city. Throw in a tie to the Titanic sinking of 1912 and you have an amazing read. The dichotomy between the poor and the wealthy along with the rapid expansion of a city that is the Chicago of the North gives you an insight into what makes the modern city the ethnic melting pot that it is today. Fascinating and educational as well as entertaining.”
Shell Beckwith, Winnipeg
“It brings back fond memories for me especially the reference to Winnipeg’s Selkirk Avenue. I found myself looking forward to getting back to reading it every chance I got until I finished it.”
Laurie Mainster, Winnipeg
From The Author’s Mail
I was one of the judges for the Carol Shields Award. I just wanted to (finally!) say what a beautiful book you wrote. So compelling, a pleasure to read, and so meticulously researched! It was well-deserving of the prize. Mazel tov!
Sidura Ludwig, author of Holding My Breath, Toronto
I lent my book to my 82-year-old father who just returned it today. He's a German immigrant who was a Winnipeg transit bus driver his entire working life in Canada and spent many a year driving in the north end. He LOVED your book, and that's high praise from someone who doesn't have English as his first language. Best wishes,
Heidi Bock
I finished your wonderful book this evening on the way home from the lake. As a Jewish Winnipegger I knew that I would love RAVENSCRAIG from the first time I heard about it...(I actually do not remember if it was a review in the Jewish Post, Free Press, or CBC Radio).
Having Grandparents who immigrated here from Eastern Europe about 20 years after your Ravenscraig characters came to the Golden Land I can appreciate the Jews who were the first and how horrible it was for them at the beginning. By the time my family arrived here, I would think that a lot of groundwork must have been done and although poverty-stricken they must have had more of a support system in place than your immigrants did.
I love the story of the allotment of acreage for those willing to farm. I love the story of the Zigman Family and how everything turned out so well for them, especially Maisie.
Ravenscraig is a wonderful saga. It even prompted me to take a slow joy ride through Armstrong’s Point, which I have never paid much attention to in the past.
Thank you Sandi for providing me with such a good story.
Anyway, I would love to know if you ever consider writing a sequel...I would love to know the future of all of the families and individuals. I actually believe that your story would make a great television miniseries. Thanks for hearing me out! Enjoy life! When you are back in Winnipeg and you get hungry during the day I would love to invite you to my Deli for a sandwich and a bowl of soup,(another reason I love the Zigman family).
Marla Bernstein - Winnipeg Bernstein’s Deli
“I was reading Ravenscraig while in line at the grocery store cash register and I was so taken with the story, I had tears. The manager offered me a chair, so I could weep in comfort while I finished the chapter.”
Janet, Montreal
