The Trade Off

A Novel

By: Samantha Greene Woodruff

Narrated by: Helen Laser

A brilliant and ambitious young woman strives to find her place amid the promise and tumult of 1920s Wall Street in a captivating historical novel by the author of The Lobotomist’s Wife.

Bea Abramovitz has a gift for math and numbers. With her father, she studies the burgeoning Wall Street market’s stocks and patterns in the financial pages. After college she’s determined to parlay her talent for the prediction game into personal and professional success. But in the 1920s, in a Lower East Side tenement, opportunities for women don’t just come knocking. Bea will have to create them.

It’s easier for her golden-boy twin brother, Jake, who longs to reclaim all their parents lost after fleeing the pogroms in Russia to come to America. Well intentioned but undisciplined, Jake has a charm that can carry him only so far on Wall Street. So Bea devises a plan. They’ll be a secret team, and she’ll be the brains behind the broker. As Jake’s reputation, his heedless ego, and the family fortune soar, Bea foresees catastrophe: an impending crash that could destroy everything if she doesn’t finally take control.

Inspired by the true story of a pioneering investment legend, The Trade Off is a powerful novel about identity, sacrifice, family loyalties, and the complex morality of money.

©2024 by Samantha Greene Woodruff. (P)2024 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.

Critic reviews

“Bea Abramovitz is my kind of heroine: undaunted, full of grit, and savvy, with the temerity to stare down a barrier and then work her hardest until she’s found a way to break through it. Told with meticulous insight and the colorful language of the city streets, this is a thoughtful and eerily relevant examination of what it means to be a woman with big and bold yearnings.”—Allison Pataki, New York Times bestselling author of Finding Margaret Fuller

“Readers of Beatriz Williams and Fiona Davis will devour this original and inspiring story of female empowerment, vividly set against the looming shadow of the Great Depression.”—Pam Jenoff, New York Times bestselling author of Code Name Sapphire

“A profound look at sibling and family loyalties, capitalism, anti-Semitism, and sexism. My adrenaline ramped up just like it does before the closing bell. I couldn't turn the pages fast enough despite not wanting Woodruff's story to end.”—Renée Rosen, USA Today bestselling author of Fifth Avenue Glamour Girl

Excellent narration and storyline

I was intrigued by a story based on a real person from this decade. The storyline and narration did not disappoint!

The title doesn’t do it justice.

Captivating historical novel that I could stop listening to. Set in the time of my grandmother’s life!

My 2024 favorite

This is the best book I have listened to this year. I appreciate the depth of research undertaken by the author to capture the exquisite details of the fashion, the neighborhood, the relationships, and market dynamics which were woven together beautifully. After a few chapters, I could envision this becoming a limited series or movie.

Excellent

Engaging audiobook that held my attention completely with a timely story and well developed characters. Loved it!

So engaging!

I loved learning about the crash from a woman’s perspective. The narrator made the story come to life.