"I do not talk to dirty boys." The girl was defiant, her dress dusty, her scarf askew; tendrils of burnished copper hair escaping onto her face. She would not stand by as her brother defended her honor. She would defend herself. So begins the story of Batsheva Hagiz, the spirited daughter of a Jewish merchant dynasty in 12th Century M?laga. Her life is set by tradition, with schooling in languages,...