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A review by karenleagermain
The Postcard by Anne Berest
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Wow. I started the audio version yesterday and just couldn't stop listening.
The memoir starts with a mystery that is not solved until the final pages of the book. Anne Berest becomes obsessed with a postcard that was sent to her mother. The postcard contained the names of four family members that died during the Holocaust. These are the author's great grandparents, great aunt, and great uncle. Berest's grandmother was the only person in her family that survived. There is no other identifying information on the postcard and Berest's grandmother has already died.
Using her mother's research, Berest pieces together her family history in an attempt to understand who might have sent the postcard. While thinking about her family history, Berest also thinks about what it means to be Jewish in contemporary times.
The primary themes are remembering the past, bearing witness to the past, and remembering those who have died. Although this is about one family, the scope is enormous and this is an important story, reminding the reader to never forget what happened during the Holocaust.
One more note, The Postcard is a translated work, originally written in French. It's published by Europa Editions. I mentioning this because Europa Editions publishes incredible books and I think it's important to read books published in different countries.
The memoir starts with a mystery that is not solved until the final pages of the book. Anne Berest becomes obsessed with a postcard that was sent to her mother. The postcard contained the names of four family members that died during the Holocaust. These are the author's great grandparents, great aunt, and great uncle. Berest's grandmother was the only person in her family that survived. There is no other identifying information on the postcard and Berest's grandmother has already died.
Using her mother's research, Berest pieces together her family history in an attempt to understand who might have sent the postcard. While thinking about her family history, Berest also thinks about what it means to be Jewish in contemporary times.
The primary themes are remembering the past, bearing witness to the past, and remembering those who have died. Although this is about one family, the scope is enormous and this is an important story, reminding the reader to never forget what happened during the Holocaust.
One more note, The Postcard is a translated work, originally written in French. It's published by Europa Editions. I mentioning this because Europa Editions publishes incredible books and I think it's important to read books published in different countries.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Genocide
Moderate: Addiction
This is a memoir of a woman researching her family who died in the Holocaust. It has many graphic depictions of violence in the concentration camps, including murder. It's not gratuitous, but an important part of history, yet not easy to read.
There are a few chapters depicting opium addiction.