Page 41 - Devil's Arithmetic by Jane Yolen

'' Chaya was sick, not me."
He continued smiling, as if humoring her.
Hannah drew in a deep breath and sighed. "My mother
is afraid of snakes," she said at last.
"There are not many snakes in Lublin!" Shmuel
chuckled.
"I'm not from Lublin," Hannah said. "I'm from New
Rochelle. And I'm not Chayaj I'm Hannah." When
Shmuel's eyebrows rose up and lines furrowed his brow,
he looked so fierce Hannah moved back a step. "Of
course," she said quickly, "there aren't many snakes in
New Rochelle either. And Chaya is my Hebrew name,
.
not Chanah, because of a friend of Aunt Eva's. And . . "
"Lublin is a big place, I am sure," Shmuel said,
scratching his beard, with a gathering urgency. "And
surely I am not familiar with every avenue and street,
having been there only twice in my life."
"New Rochelle is not in Lublin, wherever that is. It's
a city all its own," Hannah cried.
"Since when is a street a city?"
Hannah could feel her voice getting louder, like Aar-
on's when he was scared, and a panic feeling was grip-
ping her chest. "New Rochelle is, too, a city. It's in
New York."
"Nu?"
Suddenly remembering Gitl's boyfriend Avrom, she
shouted, "In America!"
"And Krakow is in Siberia. I get it. A joke to help
me forget about my marriage fears." He laughed. "Lub-
lin in America and Krakow in Siberia. Though dear
Gitl would say it most certainly is that far to both of

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