THE PRUNING

A NovelBy Ora Murphy   Ora Murphy’s heartwarming contemporary romance novel, The Pruning, follows Ruth Anasco in her struggle to find her roots and establish an identity for herself and her children. Brought up by distant adoptive parents, Ruth remains unclear about her heritage until she meets the daughter of a prominent Jewish family at a boarding school in Spain. The family invites her into their home, treating her as their own and inspiring her to practice Judaism. More than 20 years later, still passionate about Judaism, she applies to begin the official conversion process. Awaiting the results of her application with apprehension, Ruth meets Samuel, a man whose whole identity is tied to his Jewish roots. As their love story evolves, cracks begin to appear when the question of identity arises. In flashbacks, readers also learn of Ruth’s first marriage to Hector, an egotistical painter who is physically and emotionally abusive. When she leaves him ten years later, the story recoun