A powerful story, The Baker's Daughter by Sarah McCoy is set in both Garmisch, Germany during WWII and current day Texas. The main characters are Elsie Schmidt, the 16 year old daughter of a German baker and Reba Adams who is a journalist in El Paso. Although these two young women are years apart, they are both struggling with similar "life issues" - Reba is engaged to Riki, a border patrol officer, but is not certain he is right for her and in fact she is unsure that a life in El Paso is for her. Elsie is doing her best to cope with life in Nazi Germany but is not sure about a future with the high-ranking young soldier who wants to marry her. But he seems to be keeping her family safe in terror-filled times, and besides the family is worried enough about her older sister Hazel who is away from home with three young children in the Nazi Lebensborn program. Attending her first "adult" dance on Christmas Eve turns into a traumatic experience for Elsie when she encounters a determined Nazi Officer, then returns home to find a young escaped Jewish boy on her doorstep. She knows that helping him in any way will put her family in grave danger.... Reba's search for a unique Christmas feature story brings her to a bakery and she eventually forges a friendship with the mother/daughter owners...I don't want to give away too much of the plot, but the author does an excellent job of transitioning back and forth between the two time periods and locations, and masterfully weaves together the two stories and characters' lives. The descriptions are vivid. Bakery settings in both stories seem to add a warm flavourful touch to the story, as you can almost smell the baking breads and other goods. Isn't it amazing how words can evoke the sense of smell? It's a story of love and loyalty, courage and determination, fear and prejudice. Recipes at the end are a bonus. If you have enjoyed reading other WWII fiction such as Those Who Save Us, The Book Thief or Sarah's Key, I'm sure you'll enjoy this book.
Now I'm off to bed to begin a new book...
Peace,
Linda
"We read in bed because reading is halfway between life and dreaming." ~ Anna Quindlen
2 comments:
Thanks Linda. I enjoy your book posts as I tend to read a lot more in the summer than I do in winter so good ideas.:)
I read The Invention of Wings last week, you were right...a good book. I do love Kidd's creative touch with actual history. I think Sarah would be proud.
Post a Comment