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lexcellent's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Genocide, Hate crime, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Police brutality, Antisemitism, Dementia, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, War, and Deportation
florajb2068_hy's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
This Book by Anne Berest, was Stunning, an in depth investigation of family tragedy, deeply moving and very emotional, and it grips you till the very last page. Its haunting, and will leave you reflecting on humanity . 5 ⭐
Content Warnings
Graphic: Genocide and War
irtimidkluhs's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Powerful exploration into the life and suffering of a Jewish family, as well as the horrendous suffering, fallout and shame in Jewish communities following the holocaust.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Genocide
sielke's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Genocide and Deportation
amburns118's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Genocide, Hate crime, Antisemitism, Grief, and Deportation
Moderate: Addiction, Rape, Sexual violence, Suicide, Torture, and Dementia
michellecurtis983's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Genocide, Violence, Antisemitism, and Deportation
thelibraryskeeper's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
A mysterious postcard arrives with no return information with the names of Anne's great grandparents and their children inscribed. While researching who could have sent the postcard, the fate of her family is revealed. It's stories like this that allow memories to stay alive and present in our lives. While this book is certainly challenging, I highly recommend reading it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Genocide, Antisemitism, and Murder
Moderate: War
lillygm's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Genocide, Antisemitism, and War
Moderate: Sexual assault
cassafrassandfries's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Though she calls it a novel, this is so thoroughly researched and so deeply personal that it should really be called a memoir. In January of 2003, Anne’s mother receives a postcard to the Berest family home. It’s tucked in with the expected holiday cards, but is anything but expected. On the front is a picture of the Opera Garnier in Paris. On the back the postcard is addressed to Anne’s maternal great-grandparents and their children. The catch - Ephraim, Emma, Noemie, and Jacques were all killed at Auschwitz over 60 years before that card was delivered. Fifteen years after this mysterious postcard is dropped into Anne and her mother’s lives, Anne is moved to discover who sent it and why. This mystery-memoir is a stunning depiction of Nazi-occupied France. With meticulous research from her chain-smoking mother, Anne delves into the brutal realities of Hitler’s Europe, she follows the ghosts of her Rabinovitch family in their sojourn from Russia, through Palestine, and ultimately their deaths in Germany. All the while grappling with the historical and present-day context of what it means to be Jewish.
I purchased this at Completely Booked in Murrysville, in preparation for a book club discussion on this fantastic novel. This book shattered me. It’s separated into four sections, the first a memoir-like history of the Rabinovitch family and their travels from the early 1900s up to the point of the second world war. It ends with (no spoiler here) the deaths of Noemie, Jacques, Ephraim, and Emma at Auschwitz. The second part delves into Anne’s own relationship with being a Jewish woman with little obvious connection to the Jewish faith and customs. This was a deeply personal portion of the book that was in one way telling the story of how she begins to unravel the mystery of the postcard, but even more so how she unravels the complexities of being a Jewish woman raised without much connection to being Jewish. The third part is quite short, and is really just two letters between Anne and her sister, as they reflect on being namesakes to their maternal grandmother, Myriam (the only of the Rabinovitch family to survive) and their maternal great-aunt, Noemie (the one killed at Auschwitz). The last part is Myriam’s tale of survival under the Vichy Regime, and then German-occupied France. Culminating in the discovery of who sent the postcard to Anne’s mother, more than 60 years after the people it was addressed to were killed. I learned so much about this historical context of this time period, of how the rounding up and killing of Jews took place without much intervention from the French government, of how pervasive the propaganda was during this time, of what happened after the war… Anne minces no words and the horrors of the Holocaust are bluntly depicted. I also loved the interjection of modern day conversation between Anne and her mother. The growth of that relationship through this book made it not just historically interesting, but intensely personal, too. Throughout the book I found myself deeply moved by the story of the Rabinovitch family. I found myself wondering what it must be like to read this as a Jewish woman. I found myself heart broken by Myriam’s realizations on life, death, and womanhood. This book was all together shattering and hopeful in the most odd way. But mostly it was a reminder that horrors can creep into society in ways that can be overlooked - until they can’t. It was a reminder that the suffering of ‘a group’ is suffering of individual humans with lives, futures, dreams, and family generations that are stopped in their tracks. Anne’s writing is stunningly beautiful and difficult to put down. My only deterrents with this book was some of the overly abundant detail included in tangential parts of the story - but even those, Anne managed to make them feel some how very important to the overall saga. Truly loved this and can’t recommend it enough.
I purchased this at Completely Booked in Murrysville, in preparation for a book club discussion on this fantastic novel. This book shattered me. It’s separated into four sections, the first a memoir-like history of the Rabinovitch family and their travels from the early 1900s up to the point of the second world war. It ends with (no spoiler here) the deaths of Noemie, Jacques, Ephraim, and Emma at Auschwitz. The second part delves into Anne’s own relationship with being a Jewish woman with little obvious connection to the Jewish faith and customs. This was a deeply personal portion of the book that was in one way telling the story of how she begins to unravel the mystery of the postcard, but even more so how she unravels the complexities of being a Jewish woman raised without much connection to being Jewish. The third part is quite short, and is really just two letters between Anne and her sister, as they reflect on being namesakes to their maternal grandmother, Myriam (the only of the Rabinovitch family to survive) and their maternal great-aunt, Noemie (the one killed at Auschwitz). The last part is Myriam’s tale of survival under the Vichy Regime, and then German-occupied France. Culminating in the discovery of who sent the postcard to Anne’s mother, more than 60 years after the people it was addressed to were killed. I learned so much about this historical context of this time period, of how the rounding up and killing of Jews took place without much intervention from the French government, of how pervasive the propaganda was during this time, of what happened after the war… Anne minces no words and the horrors of the Holocaust are bluntly depicted. I also loved the interjection of modern day conversation between Anne and her mother. The growth of that relationship through this book made it not just historically interesting, but intensely personal, too. Throughout the book I found myself deeply moved by the story of the Rabinovitch family. I found myself wondering what it must be like to read this as a Jewish woman. I found myself heart broken by Myriam’s realizations on life, death, and womanhood. This book was all together shattering and hopeful in the most odd way. But mostly it was a reminder that horrors can creep into society in ways that can be overlooked - until they can’t. It was a reminder that the suffering of ‘a group’ is suffering of individual humans with lives, futures, dreams, and family generations that are stopped in their tracks. Anne’s writing is stunningly beautiful and difficult to put down. My only deterrents with this book was some of the overly abundant detail included in tangential parts of the story - but even those, Anne managed to make them feel some how very important to the overall saga. Truly loved this and can’t recommend it enough.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Genocide
lostinthelibrary's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I wasn't sure at the start but this book really grew on me. There are a lot of themes around identity, citizenship generational trauma, family relationships and more. Although it does jump around a lot, once I got the hang of it I appreciated the present characters reflecting on the past (although I was always keen to get back to Miriam's story.) the scenes at the concentration camps and of detainees returning to Paris were visceral and a highlight of the novel . I feel like I learnt a lot more about a period of history that can be overdone in literature and it all felt very personal to the author (potentially semi-autobiographical given that she shares a name with the protagonist). I did become less invested in the mystery of the postcard as the story went on but the way it was concluded was just perfect! Overall a very worthwhile read that I look forward to discussing with my book club.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Genocide, Xenophobia, and Antisemitism