Kendal Hagler

Solomon's Baby Kendal Hagler

An abandoned baby left on a doorstep in 1967 Brooklyn is found by Golda Raizel Shainbaum, a kind, simple and pious Jewish woman. Her childlessness has made her an outcast in her ultra Orthodox community, where family is everything. Despite her desperate desire for a baby of her own, Golda Raizel will not sacrifice her beliefs or law-abiding nature, but must leap over a myriad of moral, ethical and legal hurdles in an effort to have her prayers for a family answered. But who is this baby? Who left him on her doorstep and why was he left there for her to find? Golda Raizel sets out on an adventure to discover the truth about the baby left in her care, encountering obstacles that she never dreamed would ever cross her righteous path. Shira Levitan is a pretty, young woman, living in contemporary New York City. Pure chance leads her to an encounter with Golda Raizel as an old woman. She tells Shira her story, and with it, sets off a tidal wave of research, speculation and emotion. Shira must learn what happened to this baby and discover the truth of his parentage and the subsequent life he has led as result of his abandonment. Just as King Solomon had to determine the true mother of a baby whose parentage was in dispute, Golda Raizel has to make decisions without knowing the child's origin. Acting on the baby's behalf, she tells Shira what happened on every step of her heart-wrenching journey. Shira must disentangle the complexities of Golda Raizel's life to not only answer her own questions about the baby, but also to help her sort out the difficulties Shira is facing in her own life.