Invisible Ink: A Family Memoir

by Martha Leigh

Martha’s parents were both extraordinary people living in extraordinary times. Ralph was a brilliant, poor Jew from the East End. Edith, also Jewish from a bourgeois family in Central Europe was a gifted pianist. They met as students in Paris in 1937 and were separated by the war. Their intimate, emotional and sometimes humorous correspondence throughout the war led to marriage in 1945. Each bore scars. She, from escaping the Nazis, he from childhood tragedy. Overshadowing them both was a secret that burdened Ralph for most of his life. After the war he became the world expert on Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Edith devoted herself to her piano, performing and teaching. Invisible Ink is a compassionate, astute and ultimately uplifting portrait of their relationship.

The author has also unearthed many other stories: her uncle’s heroism and pioneering work in medicine, her grandmother and cousin’s miraculous escapes from the holocaust. These are threads entwined in the greater tapestry of social and political history of the twentieth century. In discovering the truth about her family, Martha has also taken an inner journey towards understanding herself.

191 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 16, 2020

About the author

Hello everyone!
I have written 2 books. The most recent is my family memoir Invisible Ink. My first book was an oral history about people who grew up in Wapping in the East End of London during the early part of the 20th century. I worked as GP in that part of London for 30 years and based the book on interviews I conducted with local people , some of whom were my patients.
I have also contributed to a book about General Practice for medical students.
I grew up in Cambridge and studied English Literature at York University. After gaining my degree I decided to train as a doctor. I suppose what connects these two apparently unrelated things is an interest in people.
I am a keen amateur musician. I play the piano and the bassoon and have done a lot of singing in my time too.
I live with my husband and several elderly cats in Stoke Newington, North London.We keep bees and are very fond of our garden.

Reviews

[em · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a surprise for sure. I found this novel by chance and the blurb intrigued me enough to pick it up, but the writing is what kept me going. Leigh perfectly weaves the story of her family through decades, stitching together this scattered family across Europe. The research and time that went into this is not missed, through countless letters and documents we learn of her family's history, their happiest moments and darkest days. She writes this all with compassion and warmth, bringing these family members to life. There's bravery in telling her parents story, the raw and honesty that comes along with uncovering ones past. This was impactful, drawing on the importance of family but more importantly, love and acceptance. A wonderful memoir that I'm glad to have read.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for kindly providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review. #NetGalley#InvisibleInk. All opinions are my own.

[Helen Marquard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Parents are so close to each of us, and yet they can spring surprises, sometimes during their lifetimes, and sometimes after they have died. They come when letters are unearthed and perused, and tales are told, and the greater is the potential for surprise when parents have struggled through external disruption and internal conflict. Choosing to follow the trails needs courage and an openness to admit unfamiliar aspects of these central figures in one’s life. When Martha came upon a wry joke left by her father in and amongst his many papers saying “This page is written in invisible ink“, she felt compelled to find out more.
Martha Leigh’s parents had to take critical decisions as they navigated their individual lives through the fall-out of European politics in the 1930s and 1940s. Martha takes us from Czernowitz, a much disputed town which used to be just inside the Austro-Hungarian Empire, close to the Russian border, and is today in Romania, through occupied France, Vienna, Switzerland, Germany, and London, before the family settled in Cambridge. Her mother, a passionate concert pianist and teacher, and her father, a don whose work in assembling the entire correspondence of and about Jean-Jacques Rousseau remains the definitive oeuvre, kept a few secrets.
Through her journey, Martha is able to find what lay behind the reference to invisible ink. It is an absorbing story, skilfully told, and one that triggers questions and rumination - a wholly worthwhile read.


Merged review:

Parents are so close to each of us, and yet they can spring surprises, sometimes during their lifetimes, and sometimes after they have died. They come when letters are unearthed and perused, and tales are told, and the greater is the potential for surprise when parents have struggled through external disruption and internal conflict. Choosing to follow the trails needs courage and an openness to admit unfamiliar aspects of these central figures in one’s life. When Martha came upon a wry joke left by her father in and amongst his many papers saying “This page is written in invisible ink“, she felt compelled to find out more.
Martha Leigh’s parents had to take critical decisions as they navigated their individual lives through the fall-out of European politics in the 1930s and 1940s. Martha takes us from Czernowitz, a much disputed town which used to be just inside the Austro-Hungarian Empire, close to the Russian border, and is today in Romania, through occupied France, Vienna, Switzerland, Germany, and London, before the family settled in Cambridge. Her mother, a passionate concert pianist and teacher, and her father, a don whose work in assembling the entire correspondence of and about Jean-Jacques Rousseau remains the definitive oeuvre, kept a few secrets.
Through her journey, Martha is able to find what lay behind the reference to invisible ink. It is an absorbing story, skilfully told, and one that triggers questions and rumination - a wholly worthwhile read.

[S E · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought this book on spec after hearing Martha Leigh speak about it at my local library, along with the authors of two other books related to the Holocaust, but wasn't sure how I would feel reading it. Would I be doing so out of a sense of worthiness? My doubts were quickly dispelled when I started what I found to be a touching account of family life. The author's measured tone belies the emotion underpinning so much of this wonderful, moving family history. She paints a rich and involving portrait of her parents, not to mention other inspiring family members such as her maternal grandmother and uncle, who was a heroic figure in his own right. The book operated at different levels, including the wider context of the horrors inflicted by the Nazis, but at its heart was the inner lives of two parents who each made their own unique contributions to the world.

[Michelle Kidwell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Invisible Ink
A Family Memoir
by Martha Leigh
Troubador Publishing Ltd.
Matador
Biographies & Memoirs | History | Nonfiction (Adult)
Pub Date 16 Dec 2020


I am reviewing a copy of Invisible Ink through Troubador Publishing/Matador and Netgalley:


Martha’s parents were extraordinary people who lived during extraordinary times. Ralph was a brilliant but poor Jew who lived on the East End. Edith who was also Jewish and came from bourgeois family in Central Europe, was a gifted pianist. They had met as Students in Paris in 1937 and then became separated by the war. They wrote letters to one another during their separation letters that were intimate, emotional and sometimes humorous correspondence throughout the war led to marriage in 1945.




They both bore scars. She, from escaping the Nazis, he from childhood tragedy. Overshadowing them both was a secret that burdened Ralph for most of his life. After the war Ralph would become the world expert on Jean-Jacques Rousseau, while Edith devoted herself to her piano both performing and teaching.




Invisible Ink is an intimate look at Martha’s Parents relationship, and how it came to be.





The author not only uncovered her parents love story, in going through the pages of correspondence and other writings to create this book, she uncovered too her Uncle’s Heroism as well as his pioneering work in medicine, as well as her grandmother and cousin’s miraculous escapes from the holocaust.





Discovering the truth about her family has also allowed Martha too take an inner journey towards discovering who she is.



I give Invisible Ink five out of five stars!


Happy Reading!

[Ionia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book. It was relatively easy to keep up with the names of those involved and the story is pretty amazing by the time you get to the end of the book. This a real look at the things people went through during the 1930's and 40's and how life changed for all involved.

It was easy to connect with this book because the author made it feel personal, although some sections were more exciting than others. I think this would be a good choice for anyone who is looking into this fascinating period of history, regardless of it being more of a family memoir than a history book. There is a lot of valuable insight in these pages.

The relationship between the two main people is strained at times, difficult and made more difficult by the circumstances they find themselves in, but there is a deep level of respect shared for one another and that was the best part of this account for me. I feel like that's something we can, and should, all learn from.

This book is worth reading, give it a try.

This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher, provided by NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

[Gill James · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an interesting account of the lives of Martha Leigh's parents and other relations. It also give us some valuable insights about life in the late 1930s and 1940s, particularly for Jews and homosexuals. There are a lot names for the reader to retain and at times the style is rather dry. A fascinating read nevertheless.

[Professor Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A moving account of the wartime experiences of A European Jewish family during the Holocaust years. Meticulously researched, this book also tells the story of Martha Leigh’s parents’ love affair as her father struggled to come to terms with his homosexuality. This personal story has wider implications as a study of dislocation, rootlessness and the impact of trauma. The book ends by describing Leigh’s return to the old family homes and what she found there - fascinating.

[Cory Beyer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. When I read the summary for this book, I was thinking it was a book of letters written back and forth during the war between two in love. This book is actually written more like a research project from the daughter of said lovebirds. It was more a list of facts than a love story. It was ok. #invisibleink #marthaleigh

[Martha Leigh]

Sorry, I did not mean to enter on Goodreads that I was reading my own book!