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A Beautiful Book, Review

If I were a critic for a reputable paper or magazine, my quote pulled from the review would be this: "THE LOST WIFE" is a devastating book filled with relentless beauty and grace."  The author, Alyson Richman, would be praised for managing to set a story against horrific events surrounding the Holocaust, with rich prose that somehow evokes timeless elegance and wonder.

How can a book detailing some of the atrocities of the Terezin ghetto inspire the reader to imagine the limitless beauty that only art can instill?

Josef and Lenka, our two narrators are young and in love at the start of World War II.  They are living in Prague, one a medical student, the other an art student.  Fearing rumors about the treatment of Jews in the surrounding areas, the two rush to marry to start their lives together.  Events occur to separate the two, and the unfolding story is told from their alternating perspectives.

Sixty years pass and we learn at the outset that Lenka and Josef are reunited, by happenstance.  Would you recognize your first love after 60 years of absence?  Would you have made the same choices that Josef and Lenka did as the German occupation started to bear down on their community?

THE LOST WIFE is an unforgettable book.  Please join us for an ONLINE discussion with author Alyson Richman on June 13th at 7:00 p.m. at http://www.gothamnetworking.com/goth/index.php/books/


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