by Pam Jenoff
Its the beginning of WWII in Krakow, Poland. Emma and Jacob are a young Jewish couple, recently married when the Nazis invade. Emma is forced to fend for herself after Jacob disappears underground to help with the Resistance Movement. She lives with her parents in the ghetto until the resistance workers rescue her, give her a new identity as a Catholic girl named Anna and send her to live with Jacob's wealthy aunt outside the city. Things get interesting when Emma nervously accepts a secretarial position working for a high ranking Nazi commander, in the hope that she will be able to find a way to help the resistance. Although she loves her husband deeply, Emma finds herself strangely attracted to the Kommandant and she realizes that both her identity and her marriage vows could be compromised at any moment.
Publishers Weekly gave this novel a starred review and called it "a breathtaking debut." Maybe the fact that I've read so many Holocaust memoirs made me a tougher critic here but I thought it was just okay. The plot is interesting, the characters are courageous but it just isn't very believeable and it doesn't feel bleak enough. A book like this should make you cry or feel something and I didn't. It's an interesting novel if you like historical fiction mixed with chick lit and your expectations aren't too high.
Its the beginning of WWII in Krakow, Poland. Emma and Jacob are a young Jewish couple, recently married when the Nazis invade. Emma is forced to fend for herself after Jacob disappears underground to help with the Resistance Movement. She lives with her parents in the ghetto until the resistance workers rescue her, give her a new identity as a Catholic girl named Anna and send her to live with Jacob's wealthy aunt outside the city. Things get interesting when Emma nervously accepts a secretarial position working for a high ranking Nazi commander, in the hope that she will be able to find a way to help the resistance. Although she loves her husband deeply, Emma finds herself strangely attracted to the Kommandant and she realizes that both her identity and her marriage vows could be compromised at any moment.
Publishers Weekly gave this novel a starred review and called it "a breathtaking debut." Maybe the fact that I've read so many Holocaust memoirs made me a tougher critic here but I thought it was just okay. The plot is interesting, the characters are courageous but it just isn't very believeable and it doesn't feel bleak enough. A book like this should make you cry or feel something and I didn't. It's an interesting novel if you like historical fiction mixed with chick lit and your expectations aren't too high.
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