When the Angels Left the Old Country

Published in 2022, When the Angels Left the Old Country is Sacha Lamb’s debut novel. It is a YA fantasy novel that follows the adventures of the demon Little Ash and angel Uriel as they travel to America with their new friend Rose in hopes of finding and saving Essie, a girl from their small shtetl, or village. As an unlikely friendship grows among Little Ash, Uriel, and Rose, the novel explores how they overcome their differences and shape their identities despite the many challenges and dangers of immigration.

Lamb graduated from Simmons University in Boston and is a 2018 Lambda Literary fellow in young adult fiction. Lamb uses Jewish folklore in When the Angels Left the Old Country to help contextualize the challenges of Jewish immigrants coming to America. The novel is the winner of the Stonewall Book Award and the Sydney Taylor Award.

This guide refers to the first edition hardcover published in 2022 by Levine Querido.

Content Warning: Both the source text and this guide contain descriptions of violence, prejudice, and antisemitism.

Plot Summary

In a shtetl (village) so small that it is known only as Shtetl, the demon Little Ash and his friend the angel sit in a synagogue and study holy texts, arguing over whether to follow the example of the town’s young people and go to America;  the demon argues in favor of the journey. Their argument is interrupted by Samuel the Baker, who announces that his daughter, Essie, left for America and has not been heard from since. Little Ash convinces the angel to look for Essie. The two follow her trail to Warsaw to question Reb Fishl, the man who coordinated her journey.

Meanwhile, in a nearby shtetl named Belz, Rose works with her friend Dinah to earn enough money to travel to America. Rose loves Dinah but does not fully realize the romantic nature of her feelings. When Dinah decides to stay in Belz and marry a local boy, Rose is devastated.

In Warsaw, Little Ash and the angel find Reb Fishl. As a demon, Little Ash can perceive all the sins that the man has committed and realizes that Reb Fishl is an evil man who exploits those who want to go to America. (The angel and demon later learn that Reb Fishl mires would-be immigrants in ruinous debt in exchange for arranging their passage, and he also renders them beholden to an equally unscrupulous business partner in America, Mr. Boaz.) Now, Little Ash and the angel follow Reb Fishl home, and when Reb Fishl tries to kill them, Little Ash eats his soul. Afterward, the two search Reb Fishl’s room and find tickets to America, along with a copy of the Talmud that belonged to a rebbe (rabbi) who fell victim to Reb Fishl’s scams. The angel resolves to deliver the Talmud to the rebbe’s family in New York.

Upon boarding a ship in Hamburg, Little Ash and the angel befriend Rose. On the voyage, the angel meets the ghost of the rebbe from Belz in a dream. The rebbe asks the angel to adopt the name that is listed on the papers they took from Reb Fishl’s house. This will allow the rebbe’s soul to bond with the angel’s so that the rebbe can reach his daughter in America. He wants to reunite with his daughter, Malke Shulman, so that she can say a prayer for him; this must be done within a certain time frame, or he will become a dybbuk—a malevolent spirit that brings bad luck.

The angel agrees and adopts the name Uriel, becoming more human as time goes on. Learning of their goals to find Malke and help Essie, Rose commits to helping Little Ash and Uriel. When they arrive at Ellis Island, Uriel is permitted to enter, but Rose and Little Ash are detained. Uriel meets Malke and delivers the bad news about her father’s death. The ghost of the rebbe jumps from Uriel to his daughter. Uriel returns to Ellis Island and finds a way to help Little Ash and Rose enter the country. The three then join Malke Shulman and her husband, Isaak, who are striking against Mr. Boaz, Reb Fishl’s accomplice, because the factory he owns is oppressive. He would not let Isaak’s mother take time to recover from an illness, and she died. (Unbeknownst to the characters, Isaak’s mother has since become a dybbuk.) The Shulmans also reveal that Essie works as Mr. Boaz’s accountant and lives at his house. Later, Rose, Uriel, and Little Ash follow Mr. Boaz to a dance hall and learn that he owes money to a dangerous gangster named Mr. Sullivan. Mr. Boaz suggests that Mr. Sullivan kill Isaak, the leader of the strike, so that his factory will resume making profits.

The next day, they learn that Mr. Boaz is throwing a party for his daughter, and Rose plans to gain an invite so that she can find Essie. Later that night, Little Ash and Uriel sneak into the factory to try and find Mr. Boaz’s account ledgers and expose his crimes. They sense the presence of a dybbuk and do not find the ledgers. Mr. Sullivan discovers them and chases them away. The next day, the strike is in full force, and Little Ash infiltrates the Boaz house and makes contact with Essie. She agrees to help them infiltrate the house during the party so that they can find the ledgers.

When they return to Malke’s, they learn that Mr. Sullivan apprehended Isaak and is holding him in his gang’s headquarters. When Uriel and Little Ash break in and find Isaak, they are startled to find that he is possessed by the dybbuk—the spirit of the rebbe, who did not reach his daughter in time to avoid becoming a malevolent spirit. The dybbuk attacks Little Ash and Mr. Sullivan, and Uriel breaks up the violence by starting a fire.

The next day at the party, Rose lets Little Ash and Uriel into Mr. Boaz’s house. Rose finds Essie locked away in the servant’s quarters, and Uriel and Little Ash encounter the dybbuk of Mrs. Shulman, Isaak’s mother, who wants revenge on Mr. Boaz for the circumstances of her death.  Little Ash convinces her to let them get justice for her family. Mr. Sullivan arrives and takes Little Ash and Uriel captive. He also captures Essie and Rose. Though they did not find the ledgers, Uriel does find a small book that details Mr. Boaz and Reb Fishl’s illegal activities.

Mr. Sullivan throws them all into a cell alongside an unconscious Isaak. The dybbuk of the rebbe is killing Isaak, so Little Ash allows the rebbe to possess him instead. They break out, and while Rose, Essie, and Isaak escape, Uriel and the now-possessed Little Ash chase Mr. Sullivan to the river. Little Ash fights with him, and they both fall into the river. Later, Little Ash returns and tells Uriel that Mr. Sullivan is dead and the dybbuk gone. That night, Rose finally realizes her romantic feelings for Essie. They kiss. Mr. Boaz mends his ways, and Rose forgives Dinah for staying behind. Meanwhile, Little Ash and Uriel take their place in the back of Malke and Isaak’s bookshop and continue their studies, hopefully forever.