Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay

I was sent this title ages ago along with another book from a publisher, and it got buried amongst my piles of books (oops!). I recently unearthed it, and dove in...

Sarah is the daughter of a Jewish family living in Paris as World War II is heating up. One day, the authorities come to round up all Jews living in the area, and Sarah's brother hides in a closet out of fear. Sarah locks him in, and promises to return later to release him, pocketing the key. Her family were then part of the now famous (in France) Vél' d'Hiv' roundup, where Jews were then dispersed to concentration camps.

Running parallel to this story is that of modern-day journalist, Julia Jarmond, who seeks to find out more about the roundup, and discovers that Sarah's story is much closer to her than she thought.

This is a devastating, thought provoking, well written story, filled with suspense, sadness and ultimately, hope. I can see now why book discussion groups are snapping up this title.

A great addition to the scads of "Holocaust" fiction (and non fiction) on the shelves...

Labels: book review