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.

Recommended for:
Adults

Genre:
Historical Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Romance, Chick-lit, Religion

Summary:
Dinah is a character mentioned in the bible only briefly, yet her story is as rich and varied as the stories of her many famous brothers. The daughter of the famous Jacob (of Jacob and Esau) and brother of Joseph (and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat), Dinah grows up in a family dominated by young men and ruled by matriachs.

Dinah lives an uncomplicated life, tied strongly to convention and the religious rites of the red tent.

But a chance meeting with a handsome young Egyptian man will change the course of Dinah’s life and reveal the true colours of her greedy brothers.

My Thoughts:
It took me a little while to really get into this story but my patience paid off and I found myself drawn into the story of Dinah. Diamant’s rich use of details provides the reader with an in depth look at society during biblical times. The tale encompasses all of Dinah’s life, beginning with Jacob’s relationship with her mother Leah, and culminating in the end of her life.

A powerfully rendered piece of historical fiction that has stood the test of time. Borrow The Red Tent from your local Vaughan library today!

Audience:
Adult, Young Adult

Genre:
Non-Fiction, Memoir, American, Mental Health, Psychology

Summary:
The year is 1967. Eighteen-year-old Susanna Kaysen has just been sent to a pychiatric hospital based on the recommendation of a psychiatrist she only met once.

Susanna finds herself thrown into the world of psychologically ill youth. McLean Hospital is renowned for its famous clientele, from Syliva Plath to Ray Charles. Susanna details her experiences there, sharing the stories of her eccentric fellow patients.

My Thoughts:
Kaysen provides a unique account of life in a psychiatric ward, echoeing a similar mood to the Ken Kesey classic One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.

Girl, Interrupted will resonant with anyone who has been touched with mental illness. Kaysen even includes the authentic documentation from her hospital stay, providing a rare glimpse into the medical system of the 1960s. Kaysen is a profound thinker despite her young years and readers won’t be disappointed with her real life account.

The movie version, also well done, garnered Angelina Jolie an Academy Award in 1999.

Borrow Girl, Interrupted from your local Vaughan library today!