Welcome to Litsy!

What to say about this book? I was so mad at first that the family stayed in France and it did such a good job showing how evil the Nazis were in hiding what they had planned. Of course they didn‘t believe the worst would happen. Unbelievably sad and sobering. I thought I‘d read all of the WWII books by this point but I‘m glad I read this one too.

“You remember when I told you the Russians could have more than one first name?” she asked me.
“Yes, like in the novels. ‘You end up getting lost in it.‘”

Still confused by #TheBros #HashtagBrigade

Lunch at work. At 16% on this book and really mad at Ephraim right now!

Unpopular opinion: I thought this was ok not outstanding. Yes, an important story, especially for the author (this is her family and family history) and the times we‘re living in (antisemitism is on the rise again, Jews and Jewish authors and artists are boycotted - again). But I couldn‘t connect to the characters and the big mystery/the big reveal of who wrote the postcard fell flat for me.

Hey, #europacollective Littens - this looks great! And it‘s free!

Hopefully the link below works:

https://www.bookpassage.com/event/anne-berest-postcard-online

Unfortunately the timing doesn‘t work for me (it‘s way past my bedtime here in the UK!) but hopefully some of you can make it.

What can I say about this book?! The Littens know what they're talking about. I couldn't put it down until I *had to* because it was so distressing. And then I picked it up again. It's taken me ages to write even this paltry nothing of a review.

What I don't understand is how the whole of Litsy seems to have read it, but I was first in the holds queue at the library. 🤷

I'm going back in.
I had to put this book aside for a few days because it was so distressing, and rightly so.
Picking up another book meanwhile just felt disrespectful.
So here we are...

#SpringSkies Day 29: My #FavBkOfMarch or #FaveBookOfMarch - our #EuropaCollective pick.

It took me a month to read this harrowing & beautiful “biofiction”.I had to put it down at several points,as evil in the past & present merged.I resumed reading when I recovered & felt strong again.
A must, must read.
#generationaltrauma “ I carry within me, inscribed in the very cells of my body, the memory of an experience of danger so violent that sometimes I think I really lived it myself, or I‘ll be forced to relive it one day.”
Please read!

https://info.echoesandreflections.org/silent-witnesses-bystander

I finished this today -it was very hard for me personally to read. I generally do not read fictional Holocaust stories because there are so many nonfiction deserving of my witness. The enduring impact of trauma is hard to describe. This comes close. Much more to say but … I‘m tired of trying to explain why this matters. In other weird news this was on the shelf in our public library. No holds, no one taking it out. Librarian didn‘t recognise it ..

Soooo good! Best book I have read this year! What an amazing story! #europacollective

Enjoying my day off ( PD Day because of the eclipse) so I‘m cracking open Snow White, I hit the grocery store with every other person going out before the solar eclipse show starts, now for some sushi and Lego. I LOVE this story, I want to inhale it but I need to savour it

Bag 3 of Wildflower Bouquet while I listen. This book 🤯💔

#FirstLineFridays
I‘m at 68% and I‘m so moved.

Not my usual type of audio ( I usually do non-fiction) I‘m obsessed with this story and because it‘s talking to me, I‘m talking back to it #europaeditions #europacollective

Mesmerizing. Brutal. Poignant. And so very important. I am so glad I read this book.

#EuropaCollective

My hold FINALLY came in so it was time for a walk. This brutal photo is of our boulevard grass that I‘m trying to turn into a wild garden. Some of my gifted and transplanted plants seem to be finding their way back 💚💚💚 I think it might be time to clean up the ‘beds‘ #europacollective

#SpringSkies Day 1: This was our #BkClubRead #BookClubRead for #EuropaCollective for March which I enjoyed tremendously.

Another excellent choice by #EuropaCollective
Very well written book about a dark time in our history, the Holocaust, and how it impacted the author and her family. Identity, antisemitism, loss, legitimacy are themes present in this book. When trying to find the author of the postcard, she actually learns about her lost relatives, she talked about their aspirations, which is quite touching. And the end... just a well-needed slap in the face.

I‘m posting early because what I‘m currently reading will not bump Enter Ghost from the top spot for this week. I think my reading mojo is coming back and it‘s partly due to these fantastic books and the #WomensPrize longlist.

Love your graphics and the ease of choosing a favorite over a whole weekly book report. @Read4life I won‘t post them but have gone back and made January and February so I will have a great reference for 2024.

“Nature isn‘t just scenery,” he would say. “It‘s not around you, but within you. It is inside you, just as you are inside it.”—Uncle Boris
#naturalitsy #litsolace

Myriam & Vincente hike up a steep slope to hide out in “The Hanged Man‘s House.” There they make beds out of Spanish Broom. With so much horror, trauma, heartbreak & generational bone deep, cellular sorrow, this image of beauty spoke to me.

The first half of this book, following a Jewish family as they try to avoid the Russian purges and eventually end up trying to navigate the hell of the Holocaust, is heavy and affecting but definitely something I‘ve read before. The second half, however, is incredible, from exploring being Jewish in our current era to the desperate attempt to find family members at the end of WWII. It‘s a powerful read.

Heart breaking. Absolutely adds significantly to cannon of holocaust literature. Astoundingly personal. Should be required reading to understand life and the human heart. Potent in the writing. The names, the names - the pull of generations in our lives. So relevant to today. Emotional dna. #europacollective is the cover photo Noemi?

#EuropaCollective pick for March: deserving of all the accolades it has received, from critics & our Litsy book group. finished reading it last night while on a 6 hour layover in Istanbul from Bologna en route to Abu Dhabi. Found the perfect spot in the lounge after I took a shower. Harrowing and thoughtful, the memoir depicts the aftermath of Holocaust in a way no other book has for me. The contemporary conversation about racism was raw & honest.

I finally received my copy. Looking forward to starting this one.

As others have said, this is an incredible novel, & Berest has captured what it must have been like to live through the Holocaust in Europe, surviving from day to day, the heart pounding terror of near escapes and the numbing sameness of hiding/not drawing attention, of not knowing what has happened to family & friends, but holding out hope that they‘re still out there, somewhere. Terrifying and devastating in equal measure.
#EuropaCollective

Sometimes all you can do is listen to the echoes of the silence.

I have been saving this #europacollective March selection for my long drive to Ohio. I am about a third in and haven‘t gotten to anything about the postcard, but I am engrossed in the background of the family members. What a stunning portrayal of the collective and individual denial of the world in the early days of the holocaust.

Litsy made me do it! #bookmail

Honestly, I don't know what I can add to the rave reviews from the #EuropaCollective for this book. If you have been wondering if it really is that good, just know that it is.

Catching up with #EuropaCollective on this amazing book. It's so captivating and engrossing. I'm only on chapter 4. 😊
@mcctrish @Caryl @GatheringBooks @tpixie @kspenmoll @Gleefulreader @LeahBergen @TheBookDream @DrexEdit @Sapphire @TheKidUpstairs @Aimeesue @TrishB @Deblovestoread @charl08

Oh my goodness, that ending! The whole book was fantastic -- poignant, compulsively readable, wonderful characters -- but the ending was so beautiful. I've told my mom and sister they need to read it, too. I think the most powerful part, for me, was when she addresses the idea of “only being Jewish when it suits her.“ The ever-present fear she described was so palpable. #EuropaCollective

I don‘t think there‘s anything to add to everyone‘s reviews. A totally engrossing, poignant read. Made even more poignant when you know it‘s based on facts. That cover just stirs up so many emotions too.
A brilliant read.

I can‘t find the words to describe how profoundly good and important this book is. Told as fiction, it is the story of the author‘s own experience when her family receives an anonymous postcard with the four names of family members that were killed during the Holocaust. #europacollective ⬇️

I‘m not certain if you can access this article. I‘ll copy a few parts I thought were interesting about the author and her Great Gma. This photo shows something that amused me. I was trying not to look up all these addresses in the book and then the authors character also mentioned she did not need all the street addresses. Her mom Said they were all important though. 👇

#europacollective

The first 45% of this book was read a few chapters a day but yesterday I couldn‘t put it down. Whether it‘s due to the power of the book or a change in my slumpy status remains to be seen. But the book is powerful. It fleshed out some of France‘s history for me and gave me more understanding of what it means to be Jewish not just the history of the holocaust. On page 462 it talks about how “1925 and 1950 weren‘t so very far apart” and how ⬇️

Quite simply the best WWII novel I‘ve read. This book is compelling and emotional while firmly rooted in the place and time it is set, both in occupied France and the present-day narrative. I loved the way the author handled the generational impact of the trauma suffered by the Jewish community both as a result of the Holocaust and how antisemitism continues to this day.
#europacollective.

#ItTakesAllKinds Day 7: #War is just about to happen in this story and I feel a sense of impending doom. The foreshadowing here is strong. Loving our #EuropaCollective pick for the month.

“I carry within me, inscribed in the very cells of my body, the memory of an experience of danger so violent that sometimes I think I really lived it myself, or that I‘ll be forced to relive it one day. To me, death always feels near…I am the daughter, and the granddaughter, of survivors.”

Powerful storytelling. All-consuming and profoundly moving. Wholeheartedly recommend.

#EuropaCollective

#motherdaughterread
I‘m engrossed in The Postcard!

1) I just left Auschwitz, devastated.
2) Right now The Shire, green and peaceful.

@Eggs Thanks for the tag! 💜

Want to play @mcctrish @bthegood @staci.reads

I cannot put this book down! Life keeps getting in the way of my reading! We are waiting for our food to come at the Thai restaurant and I‘m sneaking in a few sentences. 🤫 My family is not impressed 😝 #europacollective

#europacollective

I‘m reading at least 5 other books at the same time, but they were all immediately forgotten once I started this, and I read it in only a few hours.

It‘s not an easy read, particularly the first third of the book, but I loved the writing style. The links between ‘then‘ and now were incredibly compelling, and very worrying.

I‘m sure this will be up there with my favourite books of 2024.

#EuropaCollective - just received my copy for the March pick, and only a few pages in, but seems truly promising. It‘s a serious chunkster though.

So happy I got to start this book this evening for #europacollective. It‘s already pulled me right in. @mcctrish @GatheringBooks @tpixie @kspenmoll
 @LeahBergen @TheBookDream @DrexEdit @Sapphire @TheKidUpstairs @Aimeesue
@Tamra @Chelsea.Poole @squirrelbrain @Cathythoughts @BarbaraBB @CSeydel @Sparklemn @JuniperWilde @julieclair @AllDebooks @charl08

ALWAYS, always,there is new formation to learn.In all my years of studying history,reading & discussing WWII nonfiction and fiction,I have not come across anything regarding this Parisian exhibit, THE JEW AND FRANCE, (9/5/1941 to 9/15/1942) during the German occupation of France.A film version of the exhibition came out in French cinemas in 10/1941. https://perspectives.ushmm.org/item/film-of-france-and-the-jew-exhibition #europacollective

“Luminous and gripping” (book sleeve) perfect description of the book‘s effect and its writing, and I am only on page 15. #europacollective #TBR

#BookReport 10/24

I had an excellent week. I loved the tagged book, which combines the holocaust with the mystery of a postcard, sent years later. I also enjoyed Happiness Falls and Snow Road Station. The only disappointment was one I had high expectations of: O Caledonia.