1Lower East Side, Manhattan
New York City
May 1883
The spring morning sunlight pierced the darkness of the musty room of the Manhattan tenement on Ludlow Street in the Lower East Side of Manhattan. Twelve-year-old Lev Kambotchnik shifted uncomfortably in his chair. Once again, he braced for another conflict with his father, Rabbi Zvi Kambotchnik. Over the past year, these conflicts were occurring more frequently. They centered mainly around the rabbi’s frustration over the young boy’s behavior. “Be a scholar,” he always exhorted his son. A boy destined to become a rabbi shouldn’t behave the way he did. Young Lev gave his father the impression that he merely tolerated his studies. His mind always seemed to be elsewhere.
Rabbi Kambotchnik also had other concerns. His son would frequently
