Author: Armando Lucas Correa
Published by: Atria Books on May 7, 2019
Genres: Historical Fiction
Pages: 320
Format: Paperback, ARC
Source: Simon & Schuster Canada
Book Rating: 9/10
BERLIN, 1939. The dreams that Amanda Sternberg and her husband, Julius, had for their daughters are shattered when the Nazis descend on Berlin, burning down their beloved family bookshop and sending Julius to a concentration camp. Desperate to save her children, Amanda flees toward the south of France, where the widow of an old friend of her husband’s has agreed to take her in. Along the way, a refugee ship headed for Cuba offers another chance at escape and there, at the dock, Amanda is forced to make an impossible choice that will haunt her for the rest of her life. Once in Haute-Vienne, her brief respite is interrupted by the arrival of Nazi forces, and Amanda finds herself in a labor camp where she must once again make a heroic sacrifice.
NEW YORK, 2015. Eighty-year-old Elise Duval receives a call from a woman bearing messages from a time and country that she forced herself to forget. A French Catholic who arrived in New York after World War II, Elise is shocked to discover that the letters were from her mother, written in German during the war. Despite Elise’s best efforts to stave off her past, seven decades of secrets begin to unravel.
Based on true events, The Daughter’s Tale chronicles one of the most harrowing atrocities perpetrated by the Nazis during the war. Heartbreaking and immersive, it is a beautifully crafted family saga of love, survival, and redemption.
Review:
Vivid, stirring, and immersive!
The Daughter’s Tale is a gripping, moving story set predominantly in Germany and France during WWII, as well as present-day New York City, that follows the lives of the Sternbergs, a young Jewish family who at a time of horrific persecution and extreme brutality are forced to make unimaginable choices and heartwrenching sacrifices to keep those they love safe.
The prose is perceptive and descriptive. The characters are anguished, courageous, and resilient. And the plot using a past/present style unfolds chronologically into a tale of life, love, loss, family, friendship, injustice, guilt, self-identity, ancestry, war, bravery, and survival.
Overall, The Daughter’s Tale is a hauntingly tragic, insightful, heartrending tale that highlights the inconceivable hardships, suffering, and horrors endured during a heinous time in history and reminds us of the incredible power of familial bonds.
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Thank you to Simon & Schuster Canada for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.