Sarah's Key by Tatiana de RosnayMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
I picked this book up months ago in Barnes & Noble, but didn't buy it at the time, but placed on my to read list. Finally was able to obtain a copy of the book from a local library and read it this past week. What an intense book. It centers on an American journalist in modern day France, and her relationship with her French husband and his family, and the apartment they are about to move into to. It also tells the story of a young Jewish Girl in France during World War II, who the journalist researches. Specifically, it focuses on the Vel' d'Hiv roundup that takes place in July 1942, when French police rounded up Jews in Paris, sent them to camps within France, and then eventually to Germany's concentration camps. Its a real event in history, but one that doesn't get much attention, even among the history of the Holocaust.
Thus, even though it is a work of fiction, there are bits of real history intertwined in the novel. Similar to "Night," I found this book incredibly intense. A better word may even be haunting. Certain stories and images from the book are not simply forgotten. It serves as such a great reminder how such evil and painful and tragic things can happen as a result of man's decisions. Like Wiesel's book, this book could provide great emotion to understanding the human toll of the Holocaust, and why it should never be forgotten. Simply haunting.
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