They Went Left
Product ID: 304391334
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★ Booklist ★ Bookpage ★ The Bulletin ★ Publishers Weekly ★ Shelf Awareness ★ SLC ★ SLJ “CRUCIAL.” —The New York Times Book Review In the rubble of a broken continent, a girl must solve a mystery whose answers could rebuild her family—or break her completely, in this New York Times bestselling, critically acclaimed tour de force historical novel from Monica Hesse, author of Girl in the Blue Coat. Germany, 1945 . The soldiers who liberated the Gross-Rosen concentration camp say the war is over, but nothing feels over to eighteen-year-old Zofia Lederman. Her body has barely begun to heal, her mind feels broken. And her life is completely shattered: Three years ago, she and her younger brother, Abek, were the only members of their family to be sent to the right, away from the gas chambers of Auschwitz-Birkenau. Everyone else—her parents, her grandmother, radiant Aunt Maja—they went left. Zofia's last words to her brother were a promise: Abek to Zofia, A to Z. When I find you again, we will fill our alphabet. Now her journey to fulfill that vow takes her through Poland and Germany, into a displaced persons camp where everyone she meets is trying to piece together a future from a painful past: Miriam, desperately searching for the twin she was separated from after they survived medical experimentation. Breine, a former heiress, who now longs only for a simple wedding with her new fiancé. And Josef, who guards his past behind a wall of secrets, and is beautiful and strange and magnetic all at once. But the deeper Zofia digs, the more impossible her search seems. How can she find one boy in a sea of the missing? “This is not just a story about death and survival—it’s also about choosing to live on, even in the face of genocide, trauma and devastating loss. And what could be more relevant to our world today?” —Sharon Cameron, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Light in Hidden Places , writing in The New York Times "A heartbreaking, gorgeously written story...The ending left me breathless and awed by its expression of enduring love."― Jewell Parker Rhodes, New York Times bestselling author of Ghost Boys Review: Unpredictable - Thought it was predictable but I was wrong. Surprise ending. Worth the read! Review: A little different from many WWII books as the pain goes on. - I actually was able to read almost all of this novel on a rainy Saturday. Set after the end of WWII, it tells the story of a young girl who survived the holocaust with physical and mental scars but resiliency that allows for survival. Determining what was real events and what were mind games was challenging. A good book, in general, but tough to read.
| Best Sellers Rank | #34,647 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #11 in Teen & Young Adult Holocaust Historical Fiction #13 in Teen & Young Adult European Historical Fiction #28 in Teen & Young Adult Historical Romance |
| Customer Reviews | 4.5 out of 5 stars 1,512 Reviews |
B**D
Unpredictable
Thought it was predictable but I was wrong. Surprise ending. Worth the read!
L**L
A little different from many WWII books as the pain goes on.
I actually was able to read almost all of this novel on a rainy Saturday. Set after the end of WWII, it tells the story of a young girl who survived the holocaust with physical and mental scars but resiliency that allows for survival. Determining what was real events and what were mind games was challenging. A good book, in general, but tough to read.
G**L
Easy read
Excellent read. Emotional
R**E
Well written, surprise ending.
This novel is captivating. The details are excellent and do not give away the ending prematurely.
C**.
Still in awe over this book!
My new favorite book! I couldn't put it down, and when I did.... Jaw to the floor and still pondering over this book days later! I want more like it!
T**N
The strength of love is powerful
I listened to the audiobook, which was well-done. The story was intriguing, and you could tell early on that Zofia is struggling with her memory about the events that happened to her during the Holocaust. How do you force your brain to revisit trauma? I admired Zofia's tenacity in finding what family she could. I don't want to give any spoiler alerts, but I liked the message of 'choose love.' In the end, I think Zofia does...but to the extent she feels able. This story is a reminder of the depravity of WW II, but also the strength and love that some humans showed one another as well. I enjoyed listening to it.
J**E
Absolutely heartbreaking, but so beautifully written.
I have not read a book that made me this emotional in years. I was already ugly crying halfway through the book, and once I started part 3 I finished the book in the same night, and the punches just kept coming. I've highlighted so many sections from the book- some beautiful passages & just as many heartbreaking ones. The plot twist I saw coming a mile away, and I one that absolutely knocked me off my feet... This was just an amazing work of art through & through. 100/10 recommend, just have tissues nearby.
M**E
Not her Best
I loved The Girl in the Blue Coat. This book is much grimmer, and because the character has some mental issues, the thought processes and fears expressed by the main character are a little hard to follow, and frustrating for me at times. It’s worth sticking with, but I did have to make myself keep plowing for a few chapters. It has a good message and ends well, but if asked if I would recommend to a friend, I’m not sure what my answer would be.
T**V
Page-Turner, great great read
Amazing read.. couldn’t put it down!
E**N
Every single person needs to read and feel this book.
The author is so true in the afterword where she says most books about the Holocaust end at liberation but actually there is so much more to the stories of the survivors after the war that we rarely hear. The pain and torment they must have gone through, after distracting themselves so long with the act of staying alive to then be alive but have all of the horrible memories come back with a vengeance, be hidden or replaced, or a combination, is unimaginable - however, this book goes some way to capturing it. Zofia's story is the story of so many, and a story so many more of us cannot fathom. To lose everything and everyone, and then come out of it and hold on to a reason to keep living, most of us have the privilege of not having to experience this, but the importance of listening to those that have resonates throughout this book. The author brings the pain, the joy, the confusion and every other emotion alive, leaving the reader exhausted but it is so worth it!
A**E
A book everyone should read
A great book that shows the life after a horrible war and how families desperately tried to find missed family members. Really good researched and has a great plot! I really recommend it.
A**R
Well written
I love when I read a novel about WW2 and it comes at things from a whole different perspective than anything I've read previously. I've never given a lot of thought to how families who were ripped apart by the Holocaust found each other again. This book gives a credible and well written account of exactly that. Very well done.
M**.
Thought provoking
Very good read. Makes you think.
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