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The Postcard

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The Postcard

By: Anne Berest, Tina Kover - translator
Narrated by: Barrie Kealoha
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About this listen

"A deeply moving book." — LEILA SLIMANI

***

"A work of rare grace and importance." — THE GUARDIAN

In January 2003, the Berest family receive a mysterious, unsigned postcard. On one side was an image of the Opéra Garnier; on the other, the names of their relatives who were killed in Auschwitz: Ephraïm, Emma, Noémie and Jacques.

Years later, Anne sought to find the truth behind this postcard. She journeys 100 years into the past, tracing the lives of her ancestors from their flight from Russia following the revolution, their journey to Latvia, Palestine, and Paris, the war and its aftermath. What emerges is a thrilling and sweeping tale based on true events that shatters her certainties about her family, her country, and herself.

At once a gripping investigation into family secrets, a poignant tale of mothers and daughters, and an enthralling portrait of 20th-century Parisian intellectual and artistic life, The Postcard tells the story of a family devastated by the Holocaust and yet somehow restored by love and the power of storytelling.

©2023 Anne Berest (P)2023 Europa Editions (UK) Ltd. 20th Century Biographical Fiction Family Life Fiction Genre Fiction Historical Fiction Jewish Jewish Heritage World Literature Biography Tear-jerking Holocaust

Critic reviews

"A powerful exploration of family trauma." —LAUREN ELKIN
All stars
Most relevant
The narrator's pronounciation of French wasn't always correct unfortunately. Otherwise, a pretty good book, I found the middle part the most engaging.

Story

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This is a moving book of the immediate and long term effects of the holocaust focused mostly around one family. The intrigue of the postcard kept me listening but there were some parts that dragged a bit but overall the experience of listening to this real life tale was moving and I learned a lot about this period in French history.

Poignant

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It was such a good book, from beginning to end. It took me on a journey in Paris during the ww2, and ended with the circle of life.

What a story!

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An amazing moving true story beautifully told. Could not stop listening. Really enjoyed as an audiobook.

Must listen

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Anyone who has ever wondered where they come from, or what happened in their family before today, read/listen to this book. Beautifully researched, full of compassion for people from the past and the present, and written in a direct and elegant style. Magnificent.

Brilliant and so timely

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