Those Who Save Us
A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
An estranged mother and daughter reunite to confront their family’s role in World War II in this harrowing, unforgettable novel about lost love and inherited shame.
For fifty years, Anna Schlemmer refused to talk about her life in Germany during World War II. Her daughter, Trudy, was only three when she and her mother were liberated by an American soldier and went to live with him in Minnesota. Trudy's sole evidence of the past is an old photograph: a family portrait showing Anna, Trudy, and a Nazi officer, the Obersturmfuhrer of Buchenwald. Driven by the guilt of her heritage, Trudy, now a professor of German history, begins investigating the past and finally unearths the dramatic and heartbreaking truth of her mother's life.
Combining a passionate, doomed love story, a vivid evocation of life during the war, and a poignant mother-daughter drama, Jenna Blume’s Those Who Save Us is a profound exploration of what we endure to survive.
The winner of the 2005 Ribalow Prize, awarded by Hadassah Magazine and adjudged by Elie Wiesel.
An estranged mother and daughter reunite to confront their family’s role in World War II in this harrowing, unforgettable novel about lost love and inherited shame.
For fifty years, Anna Schlemmer refused to talk about her life in Germany during World War II. Her daughter, Trudy, was only three when she and her mother were liberated by an American soldier and went to live with him in Minnesota. Trudy's sole evidence of the past is an old photograph: a family portrait showing Anna, Trudy, and a Nazi officer, the Obersturmfuhrer of Buchenwald. Driven by the guilt of her heritage, Trudy, now a professor of German history, begins investigating the past and finally unearths the dramatic and heartbreaking truth of her mother's life.
Combining a passionate, doomed love story, a vivid evocation of life during the war, and a poignant mother-daughter drama, Jenna Blume’s Those Who Save Us is a profound exploration of what we endure to survive.
The winner of the 2005 Ribalow Prize, awarded by Hadassah Magazine and adjudged by Elie Wiesel.
BUY THE BOOK
Community Reviews
Amazing chronicle of life in Nazi Germany. Really blurs the lines between German and Jew, showing the humanity of all but the Nazi leaders, while revealing two women's journeys through difficult times.
This was a heavy read for me about a mother and daughter both carrying guilt from their past. The daughter bearing the shame of her mother’s assumed past because her mother won’t speak the truth. It’s a compelling story and moved me deeply.
The title of the book has several meanings in my opinion, and I’d be curious exactly who the author thinks did the saving.
The title of the book has several meanings in my opinion, and I’d be curious exactly who the author thinks did the saving.
See why thousands of readers are using Bookclubs to stay connected.