Authors Announcing Their Work

[Jan]

A discussion thread for authors who would like to introduce their own books

[Barbara]

Greetings -- and thanks to Jan for starting this discussion thread.

I wanted to introduce my "mosaic novel" -- in other words, a collection of interrelated short stories -- The History of Soul 2065, which just came out in June, published by Mythic Delirium Books. It's science fiction/fantasy through a Jewish lens...

[Phyllis]

Hi. "My Name is Rebecca: A Novelette," is the story of a father and his sons who emigrated from Russia to the United States in the early 1900s, living in New York and then settling in Wisconsin. The reader accompanies the family as they leave behind their homeland to escape persecution and poverty, searching for religious freedom and a better life. They bring not only their beliefs and traditions to America, but they also bring the story of their family to pass down to future generations.

I initially decided to write this story as a tribute to my mother's family who came from Russia in the early 1900s. As I wrote, I realized it is a tribute to all who came for a better life, and still are--and that's all of us. The book describes the journey to America, the process at Ellis Island, and the Lower East Side of New York. Although it is historical fiction, I included some stories that I heard while growing up.I t is available on Amazon in ebook and paperback formats.

[Stacey B]

Hi.
Evidently, the moderator for this group is taking an extended leave of absence.
Please don't let that put anyone off.
Jan is working to keep this going with a little help from her friends.

[Jack]

He Does Not Die A Death of Shame

Please allow me to introduce my Jewish South African novel.

It compares and contrasts anti-Semitism in 20th century Europe with the apartheid era in South Africa.

It traces the early life of Dan Ginsberg. He is forced to leave Lithuania because of anti-Semitism. It follows his struggles to find a foothold in South Africa. Debora Becker is born in a small South African town. She suffers the abuse of her single mother and the prejudices of the local Jewish community. Dan and Debora marry but their lives are blighted by the horrors of the Second World War.

Their son, Zak grows up in the shadow of his parents' sad histories. He seeks solace from his Zulu nanny, Zanele and befriends her son Simon. Awareness of the Second World War, his Jewishness and the status of the black population, slowly infiltrate Zak's consciousness.

Simon has spent an idyllic childhood in rustic Zululand. At high school, he realizes for the first time, that he is a second-class citizen.

The story follows the lives of the two young men in apartheid South Africa. Their destinies become inexorably intertwined in their pursuit of what is right.

Zak studies the art of saving lives. Simon learns the craft of destroying lives. Both are drawn into the anti-apartheid struggle. The one acts because his ancestors were victims, the other because he himself is a victim.

If you find this interesting, you can find a few excerpts on my Goodreads blog.

Thank you.

reply | edit | delete | flag *

[Florence]

Hello,

I posted about my book, "The Butcher's Daughter: A Memoir" some time ago and want to give you an update. " The Butcher’s Daughter: A Memoir" offers an unflinching account of what it means to be the daughter of Holocaust survivors. In short chapters and with lyrical prose, the memoir brings the reader back into a post-war New York world, back into a house sheltering secrets, and then further back into wintry Polish forests where partisans and whole families co-exited, and where her parents survived.

Since it's publication, "The Butcher's Daughter: A Memoir" has garnered several awards, among them 2018 Kindle Book Award for Nonfiction. and most recently the 2019 shortlist for the international Rubery Book Award.

I hope you will consider it for your group.
Please feel free to reach out to me with comments or questions.

Thank you,
Florence Grende

[Jan]

Florence wrote: "Hello,

I posted about my book, "The Butcher's Daughter: A Memoir" some time ago and want to give you an update. " The Butcher’s Daughter: A Memoir" offers an unflinching account of what it means t..."

Hi, Florence, and thank you for the update! I did just check out some of the reviews, and they are positive. Congratulations on your awards.

This is an interesting group in that it's been going on about five years yet with an absentee moderator who pops in (or has been popping in) to add 12 months worth of books each year, and only she can add books. So there is that to consider. Also the issue of its being hard to read too many Holocaust books or too many just-announced books. But I'm just a member speaking out and realize books need to be announced. 👍 In fact, did you update on Jewish Book Carnival as well?

All the best wishes to you and to the others announcing their books here!

[Florence]

Jan wrote: "Florence wrote: "Hello,

I posted about my book, "The Butcher's Daughter: A Memoir" some time ago and want to give you an update. " The Butcher’s Daughter: A Memoir" offers an unflinching account o..."

Hi Jan,
Thanks for your fast response and for filling me in on the details of your group. I will take a look at Jewish Book Carnival.

Happy reading to you and the group!
Florence

[Jan]

You're welcome, Florence.

And there have been some book discussions, a welcome occurrence!

[A.]

Hirsch Street Press is proud to announce a debut novel by Scott M. Neuman (author of the Nazi, the Princess, and the Shoemaker).

Agent of Vengeance (currently on pre-order, will be available on October 3, 2019)



https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07...
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4...

NSA agent Ronald Fletcher's life is turned upside down after a terrorist attack on a beach in Israel, and he won't stop until he brings those responsible to justice. But is he prepared to face the dark secrets he'll uncover?

• The ultraviolent terrorist group known as "the Plague"
• An underground Nazi city, birthplace of the Fourth Reich
• Silver spheres containing the ultimate weapon of mass destruction
• The world's most notorious assassin, stalking his every move

In this international game of intrigue, the stakes are high, the gloves are off, and all the players have the same motivation: cold, hard vengeance.

[Stacey B]

"A"- Congrats on your new book.
I love Israeli thrillers- am going to pre-order it today.
Your other book, The Nazi, The Princess and The Shoemaker was good.
Do foresee a sequel?

[Judy]

Resilience: One Family's Story of Hope and Triumph Over EvilHi, I'm pleased to announce release of my new book.
Resilience: One Family’s Story of Hope and Triumph over Evil, is the story of my family, from village life in rural Hungary in the pre-antibiotic era (which had a profound impact), through the Holocaust, and on to their rebuilding their lives and families in the U.S.

Resilience is not "just another Holocaust book." It is unique in several ways:
It is also a personal memoir of my journey to learn, reconcile with, and share their stories, many of which were previously hidden from me.

Resilience also calls attention to the parallels between what happened in Europe in the 1930s and the current rise in nationalism and antisemitism in our country. In doing so, I am fulfilling the promise I made to my mother to share our family’s experiences and to honor their memories.

The book is based on my interviews with nine family survivors and eight of their children. My relatives had a breadth of experiences. I also show them not solely as victims, but as multi-dimensional, strong people with rich lives before and after the Holocaust.

In both my writing and speaking now, I also am trying to help people gain an appreciation of how hope, kindness, connection, gratitude, and small gestures helped those who suffered; and understand the lessons we need to learn so that history will not repeat itself.

The response to the book has been very positive. You can see reviews on drjudystone.com

I hope you will take a look and share with friends. Thank you.

[Stacey B]

Dr.Judy wrote: "Resilience: One Family's Story of Hope and Triumph Over EvilHi, I'm pleased to announce release of my new book.
Resilience: One Family’s Story of Hope and Triumph over Evil, is the ..."

Hi. I just purchased your book, then went on to your website.
You are quite impressive, Dr. !!
I had to shake my head when I read your specialty is "Infectious Disease", and saw you want to teach the importance of tolerance.
For me, any form of hate, such as antisemitism including any acts of terrorism, is ...literally an infectious disease.
As I said yesterday, I was fascinated by just the synopsis of your book.
Any gesture or act of kindness can go a long way for someone, and for some, a lifetime.
Rebuilding ones life is hard enough, and yet that much more difficult in a new country with all the unknowns.
I am involved in a program called "Lone Soldiers".
It revolves around soldiers in Israel who come back shellshocked, hopefully not hurt too bad, just to find out they have no job, home, family or support system. They knew tolerance, but had to fight for it.
and they- will be called back again to the reserves.
I am looking to reading the book.-
Genealogy is also an interesting subject.
Is there anyone in your family who is/was a Dr. in Hungary?
Thank you for your time in reading this.

[Jack]

He Does Not Die A Death of Shame

I have previously taken the liberty of introducing my Jewish South African novel dealing with anti-Semitism and apartheid on this feed.

I would now like to inform the group that the book has received excellent reviews on Amazon and Goodreads as well as in both The Jerusalem Post and The Jerusalem Report.

The Jerusalem Post review can be read here:
https://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Book-re...

The other reviews can be read on my Goodreads blog.

The book is now also available on Kindle.

Thank you.

[Jan]

Thanks for including that review, Jack! I gave it a quick read already.

[Rhonda]

I just want to say as a reader who only wrote psychological and psycho-Educational reports by the dozen per week I love all the book premises that are listed and plan to read them all. As a Jewish Doctorate who has recently retired and now only cares for my dad and ill Maltipoo, I feel the reading of books with a Jewish theme keeps keeps me close to my religion and to my mama who passed three and a half years ago.

Thank you all
Dr Rhonda Solomon
rhs.psychologist@gmail.com

[Stacey B]

Rhonda, Hi
I am not the moderator, as she is MIA. :)
Glad you are enjoying the reads.
Hopefully you have been following some of the discussions where some members suggested more books to read. Jan and I took it on and posted a list of books others want to read. The only one who can "formally add books to the shelf is the moderator.
Jan has been making shelf topics per book for the discussions.
We would love to hear more from you to help keep this group alive.!!!
Thrilled you feel an "Ah-Ha" moment of your mother and religion when reading jewish themed books.

[Jan]

Rhonda wrote: "I just want to say as a reader who only wrote psychological and psycho-Educational reports by the dozen per week I love all the book premises that are listed and plan to read them all. As a Jewish ..."

What a validation for these authors and for the Jewish Book Club. Thanks, Rhonda. 🌼

[Julie]

Hope this is okay to post here. I don't see any other thread to announce book events....

My debut fiction, The Book of Jeremiah: A Novel in Stories, came out in May, and I have several book events coming up in the next two weeks. Would love to meet some of you in person, if you're anywhere nearby.

Sunday evening - Oct 27 - in Wilmette, IL (more details here)

Monday evening - Oct 28 - at Temple Sholom in Chicago

Wednesday evening - Oct 30 - "Evening of Jewish Fiction" at Congregation Kehillath Israel in Brookline, MA. Together with Rachel Barenbaum (A Bend in the Stars), moderated by Judith Rosenbaum, Executive Director of the Jewish Women's Archive

Sunday evening - Nov 3 - at the Why There Are Words reading series at the Bowery Poetry Club in NYC

Wednesday evening - Nov 6 - at Congregation Beth Israel in W. Hartford, CT

Thursday evening - Nov 7 - at Bet Am Shalom Synagogue in White Plains, NY

More details here or on my Facebook page

Will be a whirlwind trip but I've got to pack a lot in b/c I live in Israel!

[Jan]

Julie wrote: "Hope this is okay to post here. I don't see any other thread to announce book events....

My debut fiction, The Book of Jeremiah: A Novel in Stories, came out in May, and I have sev..."

Welcome, and, yes, this is the right spot. Best of luck with your book tour and getting the word out! I see good reviews on Goodreads.

[A.J.]

Hi. I am a new Author and I have just released my second book called Abraham. Historical fiction/Jewish.

Here is a quick synopsis:

Hiding under a bed in an abandoned apartment, the morning after the soldiers killed his sister right in front of him, Abraham hears the cries of a baby coming from somewhere in the apartment. He finds a baby German girl, starving, ashen and cold, wrapped in a Nazi flag. Abraham believes that he is the soul living survivor of his family, not knowing that his father is alive and has been moved to the Ghettos. The story travels alongside both of them, their journeys of survival, their trials and horrors of this war. Abrahams life becomes about survival and keeping this baby alive and safe, while Abba (Abrahams father) is drawn deeper into the darkest side of the human condition. It is a heartbreaking journey of hope, set in wartime Poland, Germany and Austria. Although the characters are fictional, most of the accounts within are real. The Author interviewed Holocaust survivors and was given permission to interweave their stories into the life of Abraham and his father Abba. Somewhere off in the distance of this story, there exists the faintest light, that rises up throughout the slow and sad ache of darkness that surrounds them, giving both the characters and the reader - hope!

Please have a look and I hope you enjoy.
Abraham

[Ed]

My new thriller, "The Antiquities Dealer (A David Greenberg Mystery)," centers on a skeptical Jewish gallery owner who is recruited by a former love, Miriam Solomon, a member of an ancient Israeli society, to find a missing relic - the last nail from the Crucifixion. Why this nail has so much significance to the society, and to Miriam, is what drives this complex and layered mystery, taking David from St. Louis to Israel and back, as he and Miriam evade murderous religious fanatics of all stripes. Quite a mishegas!
- Ed Protzel
The Antiquities Dealer

[Jan]

To all members of this group: this is the place to interact with the authors who have told us about their books -- ask questions, etc. -- should you choose to do so -- here on the Authors Announcing Their Work discussion thread. 📙 This is where you'll find them if you scroll back up! 📚 📖 🙂

[Lewis]

I have just completed a draft of the sequel to my novel A FLOOD OF EVIL, which I want to be readable as a stand alone novel. Several GoodReads friends who read AFOE have agreed to be early readers of the sequel, but I would also like to send it to 2-3 readers who have not read AFOE to see if it works as a stand alone. If you're interested, please contact me at lmwkwhome@gmail.com. Thanks.

A Flood of Evil

[Stacey B]

Congrats on your upcoming book.
Im sure it will be as good as AFOE.
When do you for see it published?

[Lewis]

Stacey wrote: "Congrats on your upcoming book.
Im sure it will be as good as AFOE.
When do you for see it published?"

It's hard to say how long the editing process will take ... but my hope is to publish early in 2020

[Heidi]

My first mystery novel THE HOUSE ON MAPLE STREET has just been released. Thank you for reading!

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4...

[Stacey B]

That is wonderful. Congrats to you!!!!
Hope it is a success!!!! :)
Am going to look at it first chance I get.

[Ed]

Learned about this group by an announcement about The Jew Store. I had noted that a "Jew store" is featured in my upcoming novel, Something in Madness, the final book in my historical fiction DarkHorse Trilogy. In the story, set in 1865 Mississippi, the owner of the store is murdered for treating the newly freed blacks equal to whites. The theme of "otherness" is at the heart of the entire trilogy.
Ed Protzel

[Stacey B]

Thank you for the introduction.
I just now bought your book "The Antiquities Dealer".
When will your newest book , Something in Madness be released?
The title of the book alone , always seems to catch the eye of so many people. I am curious if you read it?

[Ed]

Not yet, Stacy, but it's on my list. I've been swamped working with the publisher to get Something in Madness out – not long now :) If you read my bio you'll see why social justice is so personal for me and my writing. Today's polarization speaks to the need more than ever it seems. Let me know how you like Antiquities Dealer. I may send David Greenberg on a new quest!

[Stacey B]

Ed wrote: "Not yet, Stacy, but it's on my list. I've been swamped working with the publisher to get Something in Madness out – not long now :) If you read my bio you'll see why social justice is so personal f..."

Ed- I think its wonderful that you are helping the St. Louis JCC with profits from your two books.
Kudos to you!!!!

[R.L.]

My short story collection, We Love Anderson Cooper, was released this past July. It features outsiders, from a boy who comes out in his bar mitzvah speech, to an artist who is shunned because of his unusual appearance and inks tattoos that come to life. One of the stories, "The Infidelity of Judah Maccabee," aired on NPR's Hanukkah Lights in 2016. NPR.org ran this lovely review of the book. https://www.npr.org/2019/07/25/744990...
In my humble opinion, the collection would make an excellent Hanukkah gift and the hardcover is on sale on several giant online retailers. Thanks!

[Ed]

Sounds fascinating and inventive, R.L.

[Stacey B]

Ah, R.L.
I have been waiting to see a new book from you. :)
Congrats!!!!
Going to buy it now.
Hopefully I will see you again in May?

[Stacey B]

I want to clarify my previous comment above. My mistake for not responding in correct order of sequence.
I had read the review on NPR. Great!!
But.... I forgot you had another book coming out in June 2020 called
"Other People"s Pets"
Looking forward to reading it.

[Susan]

I loved “Anderson Cooper “ and heartily agree that it would make a wonderful Chanukah gift. I’ve recommended it to all of my friends.

[Stacey B]

Susan, you are so right. "Anderson Cooper" is a great book.
Love the author!!

[Jack]

The group might be interested in this review of my book:
https://www.politicsweb.co.za/opinion...He Does Not Die A Death of Shame

[Ed]

Sounds fascinating, Jack. My novels also express "bildungsroman" in the emotional growth of grown men, both in the case of the cynical David Greenberg (The Antiquities Dealer) and the hustler, Durksen Hurst (The Lies That Bind, DarkHorse Trilogy). Need to check yours out.

[Jack]

Thanks Ed.
There's also a Jerusalem Post review here:
https://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Book-re...
and others on my Goodreads blog, if you're tempted.
I'll certainly check your books out.

[Stacey B]

Hi Jack- I read the review from Dec. 2nd, 2019 written by Jeremy Gordin in politicsweb.co.za/opinion.
What a great review!!!
The book is right up my alley.
FYI- I just clicked on the link you recently posted for the another review written in the JP.
That link keeps coming up as "error"- at least on my computer.
No worries- I just downloaded your book "He Does Not Die a Death of Shame".....
and will write my own review :)
Thank you!!!

[Ed]

Jack wrote: "Thanks Ed.
There's also a Jerusalem Post review here:
https://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Book-re...
and others on my Goodreads blog, if you're tempted.
I'll certainly check your books out."

Jack - fyi -the Jerusalem Post link is broken.

[Stacey B]

Ed wrote: "Not yet, Stacy, but it's on my list. I've been swamped working with the publisher to get Something in Madness out – not long now :) If you read my bio you'll see why social justice is so personal f..."

Ed-
I am close to finishing your book "The Antiquities Dealer".
So far, it's great.

[Ed]

Thanks! Hold onto your seat :)

[Jack]

Ed wrote: "Jack wrote: "Thanks Ed.
There's also a Jerusalem Post review here:
https://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Book-re...
and others on my Goodreads blog, if you're tempted.
I'll certainly check your books out...."


Thanks for the info Ed.
Strange it does not work.
Here is he full text:


THE JERUSALEM POST

Book review: When Jews fight for others
By LESLIE SUSSER
10/15/2019

He Does Not Die a Death of Shame by Jack Hoffmann.


Jack Hoffmann’s novel is an exploration of moral conduct in extremis.

He has written two tales: The first a family saga ranging from protagonist Zak Ginsberg’s Lithuanian antecedents, nearly all of whom become early Holocaust victims, to Zak’s father Dan and uncle Len, who leave Europe in time to begin new lives in racist South Africa. It is the archetypal story of South African Jewry with its almost exclusively Lithuanian origins.

The narrative opens in 1920 with Zechariya, Zak’s great-grandfather after whom he is named, successfully delivering a Christian child in squalid conditions. Quixotically tilting at a pervasive antisemitism, Zechariya wants the goyim to know that, in the absence of the sick village midwife, they were helped by a Jew. But after the birth, the drunken Lithuanian father can find just two words for the man who gave his son life: “Filthy yid!”

The Ginsbergs are not religious. For them, the essence of Judaism is not in rite or ritual but in moral action, for example in helping to preserve human life. As the Talmud teaches: “He who saves a single life, saves the world entire.”

Inspired by Zaida Zechariya and the family’s humanist outlook, Dan Ginsberg’s ambition is to become a physician. But his academic dreams are dashed when a late 1920s upsurge of antisemitism back home leaves the family unable to continue supporting his studies in distant Strasbourg. Acting on his father’s advice, he leaves for South Africa to join his brother Len.
There he sets up a successful business and marries for love. But when he learns of the annihilation in 1941 of the entire family left behind in Lithuania, he grows cold and distant. The marriage suffers.

Partly as a result, Zak, born in December that year, develops a close relationship with the black African “servant,” (housemaid-cum-nanny), Zanele, almost like mother and son.

This untrammeled black-white bond frames a second tale which brings to the fore the moral dilemmas facing Jews in Apartheid South Africa. It follows the converging paths of Zak and Mpande Gumede, Zanele’s biological son, leading with tragic inevitability to their violent deaths. They meet first as young playmates oblivious of South Africa’s institutionalized color bar, when in the early 1950s, Mpande makes a rare visit from Zululand to be with his mother.

The focus shifts from one to the other until their paths cross again two decades later, when Mpande, turned hardened anti-Apartheid terrorist/freedom fighter, exploits Zak’s deepest inner conflicts, forcing the brilliant young surgeon to decide how far to go in assisting the black liberation struggle, the goals of which he backs.

THE BOOK’S title, He Does Not Die a Death of Shame, is taken from Oscar Wilde’s poem “Ballad of Reading Gaol.” In Wilde’s universe, all men are morally tainted (“each man kills the thing he loves”) but nearly all escape unpunished. The few who are jailed for whatever offence, in Wilde’s case homosexuality, are the ones a cruel and arbitrarily conformist society deems shamed.

Hoffmann takes Wilde’s vision a step further, beyond social mores. Both Zak and Mpande are tortured to death in captivity by a sickeningly vindictive state authority. But, in Zak’s case, and we assume in Mpande’s, too, they do not “die a death of shame,” steadfastly refusing to betray “the cause” or compromise their integrity even at pain of death.

The novel challenges Jewish liberals trapped within the Apartheid system (or for that matter within any other repressive social structure) to make moral choices. Do Jews, themselves long-suffering victims of discrimination, have a special responsibility to fight a regime that dehumanizes, disenfranchises and victimizes others? If so, is it enough, as Zak initially does, to make a significant professional contribution, initiate small gestures for social change and treat whites and blacks equally? Or is it incumbent upon Jewish humanists to go further and fight for change through non-violent political action or, as Zak eventually does, by aiding and abetting random acts of urban terrorism?

For Hoffmann, the choices are never simple, the degree of morality relative and dependent on very specific circumstances.
In Apartheid South Africa, most Jewish liberals simply left. Over 60,000, around half the Jewish population, emigrated to more democratic pastures, arguing that they wanted no part of the evil system for themselves or their children. Some came to Israel, as Jews choosing their own ethnic battleground for freedom.

Like many of his generation, Zak Ginsberg may well have ended up living and working abroad. After passing his final exams, he is about to take up a prestigious hospital post in London. But then comes Mpande’s fateful nocturnal knock on the door, sucking Zak into the maelstrom of urban terrorism and, at the same time, highlighting the chance nature of his involvement.
Had there been no knock on the door, Zak would have been able to live out his life abroad with few moral qualms. But once it came, given his overwhelming sense of the injustice of the system, he feels morally bound to transport a large quantity of explosives assigned for urban bombings. After his arrest, he sees the only honorable path in resisting his torturers at every turn, even though it means losing both thumbs, never being able to operate again and, ultimately, death. This in Hoffmann’s terms, is how he “becomes a man.”

In the wider scheme of things, Zak’s heroic sacrifice does little for black liberation. Violence played a negligible role in Apartheid’s undoing. It collapsed in the face of international isolation, economic stress and growing domestic recognition of the system’s inherent evil.

For Hoffmann, himself a South African-born surgeon, Zak’s moral predicament clearly poses a nightmarish personal test. But the fact that Zak’s choices cause so much suffering for so little gain, such waste of great promise, suggests a final twist: a retrospective justification for South African Jews of conscience finding other ways to help the cause or other causes to help.
The novel’s epic proportions, sharp political context and Hoffmann’s keen eye for detail make for an engrossing and enlightening read.

[Jack]

Stacey wrote: "Hi Jack- I read the review from Dec. 2nd, 2019 written by Jeremy Gordin in politicsweb.co.za/opinion.
What a great review!!!
The book is right up my alley.
FYI- I just clicked on the link you rece..."

Thanks for your kind comments and your interest, Stacey.
I've posted the full text of the Jerusalem Post review above.

[Roger]

Can I introduce the club to my first book Mendelevskis Box. Set in Amsterdam in September 1945 it features a young Auschwitz survivor looking for his family and attempting to rebuild his life whilst trying to discover who betrayed them. It is receiving good reviews on Goodreads.com.

Reviewed by Emily-Jane Hills Orford for Readers' Favorite
Simon is the sole survivor of his family in Roger Swindells’ novel, Mendelevski’s Box. His father was a watchmaker, his talents sought after by wealthy patrons across the Netherlands. The family went into hiding shortly after the Germans invaded, but someone betrayed them and the family was sent to Auschwitz. Simon returns, bent on finding out who betrayed his family, who sent them to their deaths. What he finds is a country struggling to survive after the Germans were routed: people who starved or froze to death for lack of food and fuel, non-Jews who lost family members and were injured in unspeakable ways, and so much suffering. There isn’t much left of his Jewish community: most of the Jewish population was sent to death camps, never to return. His home is owned by a Dutch family (non-Jewish). And there continues to be a lot of anti-Semitic fervor amongst the Dutch people. Home is not what he remembered. Reconnecting with good people, those who helped during the war and others helping him after the war, Simon discovers a box left behind by his father, well hidden. The contents provide the young man with clues to help him unravel what really happened: how they were betrayed and by whom.

Roger Swindells’ novel, Mendelevski’s Box, is a passionate tale that almost reads like a memoir. The sad plight of the Jewish people, and many others for that matter, at the hands of the Nazis during World War II has been written about in countless ways. Earth-shattering and heart-wrenching as it was during the war, what about the aftermath? What happened when those who survived the Nazi death camps returned to their homes? In great detail, the author presents the sad and sorry state of the Dutch people at the end of World War II. He outlines the ongoing distrust and anti-Semitism that remains ripe and he presents an almost unfathomable life. The plot reads like a memoir, a mystery, and a journey of discovery as Simon struggles to define a place for himself in this new world, the aftermath of barely surviving hell on earth. As he follows his goal of unmasking the betrayer, he comes to the sad realization that the Jewish population were not the only ones to suffer greatly. And, many Dutch people were continuing to suffer terribly in the aftermath of the German occupation. As he unravels what happened to his family, Simon discovers a soul mate and, unexpectedly, falls in love. The journey continues as the two seek to find their place in this new world that is rising slowly from the ashes of disaster. A compelling and heart-wrenching tale of courage and survival.

Published by Amsterdampublishers who have provided more information and a wider view here:
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/mendel...

Thank you for allowing me to tell members about Mendelevski's Box

[Mirta]

It has been suggested by several readers that The Meyersons of Meryton would make a charming #Hallmarkmovie for the holiday season. Hallmark, Lifetime and similar channels have a plethora of Christmas movies, to be sure, and they seem to enjoy #JaneAustenfanfiction- for all their remakes- perhaps they're ready for #JewishAustenfanfiction! It would be refreshing to watch something with Jewish characters and storyline ...and a plot that doesn't require anyone to apologize or convert.

[Mirta]

I guess I'm late to the party; nevertheless. I would like to provide the links to my three novels. I enjoy meshing my love for 'period drama' with Jewish history and protagonists. My books are clean reads, "entertaining and enlightening."
Becoming Malka

Destiny by Design- Leah's Journey

The Meyersons of Meryton

Happy reading!