Age Group:
Adult

Genre:
Realistic Fiction, Historical Fiction, Holocaust, War, International, Journalism, Mystery

Summary:
A novel this complex is not easily summed up in a few sentences. Sarah’s Key is the story of two women from two very different times.

Julia Jarmond is an American journalist investigating the tragic events of a Jewish roundup during the second world war.

Sarah is a ten year old girl torn from her home by the French police in Paris, July 1942.

Alternating between the stories of Sarah and Julia, de Rosnay exposes the horror of Sarah’s story and her little brother Michel. The story will also reveal the thread that connects Sarah to modern day Julia. As Julia’s research takes her closer and closer to Sarah, she exposes a family tragedy long shrouded in secrecy – a secret that will send Julia to other countries in search of Sarah and her legacy.

My Thoughts:
Sarah’s Key is a riveting and deeply compelling story, masterfully told by author Tatiana de Rosnay. The emotion surrounding this terrible event is made palpably realistic in this unapologetic story. Although Sarah’s Key is a work of fiction, it is not hard to imagine similar events occuring during the Holocaust. That knowledge is what makes this novel such an emotionally challenging but worthwhile read.

Borrow Sarah’s Key from your local Vaughan library today! The movie version is also worth a watch despite the poorly transcribed English subtitles.