Ruth Rotkowitz was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1949 to Jewish Holocaust survivors who fled Vienna, Austria when Hitler came to power. This legacy has informed her research and her writing. Ruth earned a B.A. and M.A. in English and has taught on both the college and high school levels, in New York and New Jersey. As a freelance writer, she has published fiction, nonfiction, and poetry in anthologies and literary journals. She has also served as a staff writer and member of the editorial board of the (now defunct) Woman's Newspaper of Princeton, where her feature articles garnered numerous awards. She and her husband moved to Arizona in 2009, and Ruth became involved with the Phoenix Holocaust Association. In her volunteer work for this organization, she gives book talks in the Phoenix area, including for the adult education program at Arizona State University, on Holocaust-related books. Her debut novel, ESCAPING THE WHALE, has been released April 11, 2020. Featuring a protagonist who must deal with her own painful family legacy along with the frightening news involving the Iran hostage crisis of 1979-1980, the novel follows her struggle to be "normal" and present as normal in her job and love life. At some point, she will have to realize that she cannot continue with her act. Ruth believes the novel will appeal to lovers of literature, history, and psychology, as well as lovers of an old-fashioned growing-up story!
