I promised Papa I would survive to tell our story
I was recommended this book by a colleague and I was pleasantly surprised. This is completely different from Vanessa's other works that I've read. Long-listed for the Carnegie Award I think it is a real shame it didn't make the short-list.
Told from the viewpoint of Hanna as her family experience first hand the persecution of Latvian Jews by the Nazi Party. Hauntingly written, you feel completely invested in the story from the start. Expertly told Hanna and her families story is full of shocking moments that leave your heart in your mouth and a tear in your eye.
As a History student I studied the Holocaust as my specialist subject at university. However, I did not do as much on the systematic persecution of the Latvian Jewish population. Unlike many a non-fiction book on the Holocaust this brings to the forefront the emotional upheaval, turmoil and utter fear that the Jewish people must have felt during the persecution. The story is poignant, thought-provoking and had it made the short-list (as it should) I think it would have been in contention to win.
Heart-wrenching page turner - Must Read!
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