shelovedtoread's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this book - much more than I expected to from the description!
True story: I started reading it in the morning before work, got totally sucked in, called out of work, and read the whole thing in one day.
I wasn’t really in the market for another Holocaust book and luckily this wasn’t that. While parts of it take place during WWII, the Holocaust itself wasn’t the focus.
Hope is a recent divorcee and mother of a teenage girl. She runs her family’s bakery and not very well. Her grandmother Mamie has dementia and sends Hope on a mission to Paris before Mamie’s memory completely leaves her. The book alternates between the current timeline in Boston, New York and Paris, and the 1940s mostly in Paris.
I’m trying to figure out what I liked so much about this book and honestly have no idea. I liked all the characters but didn’t find any all that compelling, however the writing made up for it. The author has a lovely style and the imagery she developed was so easy to see. The ending was a bit predictable but very sweet so I didn’t really mind. I definitely connected as a Jewish woman. And with an interfaith family, I so appreciated the care the author gave toward acceptance and understanding.
I’m looking forward to reading more by Kristin Harmel and would highly recommend this book.
True story: I started reading it in the morning before work, got totally sucked in, called out of work, and read the whole thing in one day.
I wasn’t really in the market for another Holocaust book and luckily this wasn’t that. While parts of it take place during WWII, the Holocaust itself wasn’t the focus.
Hope is a recent divorcee and mother of a teenage girl. She runs her family’s bakery and not very well. Her grandmother Mamie has dementia and sends Hope on a mission to Paris before Mamie’s memory completely leaves her. The book alternates between the current timeline in Boston, New York and Paris, and the 1940s mostly in Paris.
I’m trying to figure out what I liked so much about this book and honestly have no idea. I liked all the characters but didn’t find any all that compelling, however the writing made up for it. The author has a lovely style and the imagery she developed was so easy to see. The ending was a bit predictable but very sweet so I didn’t really mind. I definitely connected as a Jewish woman. And with an interfaith family, I so appreciated the care the author gave toward acceptance and understanding.
I’m looking forward to reading more by Kristin Harmel and would highly recommend this book.
misstwild2's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
relaxing
fast-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
3.5
upchurchka's review against another edition
5.0
Phenomenal story of a family who finds that their oldest living relative escaped from nazi Paris with the help from Muslims. Find that mamies old love and brother are still alive and come back to the cod after being found by hope in Paris and nyc.
rkeefer1011's review against another edition
emotional
sad
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
ksatyanathan's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
tense
fast-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
kawthar114's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
jof's review against another edition
4.0
No mínimo surpreendente, provavelmente já tinha lido algumas reviews, mas a vantagem de ter memória de peixe é que já não me lembrava, por isso quando comecei a ler o livro era só sobre uma pastelaria e um segredo de família, não imaginava as voltas que a história ia dar!
A história não é credível de todo, a começar pelo facto de que em França todos falam inglês, digo -vos eu que lá vivo há 7 anos, não é de todo verdade. Mas é um bom romance, e arrancou-me muitas lágrimas. Não sei se propositadamente ou não, mas fica muito patente o desconhecimento dos americanos sobre a história, em particular a segunda guerra mundial, que provavelmente muitos pensam que só começou em Pearl Harbor, só que não... acaba por ser uma boa forma de introduzir o tema, de forma mais leve que a moda de agora de pôr o nome Auschwitz na capa. Gostei também da componente inter-religiosa que desconhecia e a qual me despertou a curiosidade para explorar mais.
A história não é credível de todo, a começar pelo facto de que em França todos falam inglês, digo -vos eu que lá vivo há 7 anos, não é de todo verdade. Mas é um bom romance, e arrancou-me muitas lágrimas. Não sei se propositadamente ou não, mas fica muito patente o desconhecimento dos americanos sobre a história, em particular a segunda guerra mundial, que provavelmente muitos pensam que só começou em Pearl Harbor, só que não... acaba por ser uma boa forma de introduzir o tema, de forma mais leve que a moda de agora de pôr o nome Auschwitz na capa. Gostei também da componente inter-religiosa que desconhecia e a qual me despertou a curiosidade para explorar mais.