Sonia Bazar's new book unveils the hidden secrets and forgotten lives of Montreal's Back River Jewish cemetery

Sonia Bazar, an artist and poet, is reaching out to any Jewish Canadians whose relatives are buried in the historic Back River Jewish cemetery in Montreal. She's looking for people whose fascinating stories were buried along with their bodies, in hopes that more Jews will visit the beautifully macabre landmark.

During the pandemic, in search of outdoor inspiration, Sonia Bazar decided to visit Montreal's Back River cemetery, a historic Jewish site in the city's east end. The souls resting in Back River date back 130 years, to the first waves of Jewish immigrants who arrived from Eastern Europe.

Bazar looked into some of the 6,000 Jewish people who are buried in the Back River site—including her own relatives, who endured hardships and tragedy Bazar had never heard about before. It is the final resting place for generations of Montreal families who escaped Russian pogroms and the First World War, who helped the city's Jewish community grow and flourish.

She transformed those stories into a new self-published book of poems and photos called Pathways, launching March 23 at a live event hosted by the Museum of Jewish Montreal. For a sneak preview and insight into her artistic process, Bazar joins The CJN Daily on the day of her book's debut.

What we talked about:

• You can reach Bazar with stories by visiting soniabazar.net
• Read the full obituary for Juila Koschitzsky at thecjn.ca
• Find out more about Sonia Bazar’s new book and the launch at the Jewish Museum of Montreal
• Buy Pathways at blurb.com

Credits

The CJN Daily is written and hosted by Ellin Bessner (@ebessner on Twitter). Victoria Redden is the producer. Michael Fraiman is the executive producer. Our theme music is by Dov Beck-Levine. Our title sponsor is Metropia. We're a member of The CJN Podcast Network. To learn how to support the show by subscribing to this podcast, please watch this video.