Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

The Postcard by Anne Berest

16 reviews

kerri_m's review against another edition

5.0

I've read many books about the catastrophe, and this is one of the best.

It's a story about identity, survival, memory, responsibility, hope. It's about telling their story. It's about not looking away (even when the telling makes you shake and feel sick). 

While many of the details may have been imagined and the research process likely went in a slightly different order, it's miraculous that the Rabinoviches got as much information as they did. We will never hear countless stories of other lives that were stolen.

Reading it now, in 2024, feels like a call to action.

Indifference is universal. Who are you indifferent toward today, right now? Ask yourself that. Which victims living in tents, or under overpasses, or in camps way outside the cities are your ‘invisible ones’? The Vichy regime set out to remove the Jews from French society. And they succeeded.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Genocide, Deportation, Violence, War, Grief, Confinement, Death of parent, Death, Hate crime, Antisemitism, Child death, Gun violence, and Murder

Moderate: Sexual assault, Abandonment, Body horror, Addiction, Suicide, Drug abuse, Grief, and Panic attacks/disorders

theresa_timber's review against another edition

dark emotional informative mysterious sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Antisemitism

Moderate: Death of parent, Genocide, Racial slurs, Child death, Grief, Confinement, Sexual content, Bullying, Dementia, War, Death, Murder, and Racism

deltadam's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional informative slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Drug use, Antisemitism, Child death, Genocide, Death of parent, War, and Racial slurs

bookworm_ohsea's review against another edition

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Antisemitism, Death of parent, Death, Violence, Murder, Deportation, Racism, War, Genocide, Confinement, and Xenophobia

kristinj1's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective relaxing sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

Wow this was a good book! It was interesting to read this with the real world backdrop of the war happening in Gaza and Israel. I have an even deeper understanding of what Jewish people have experienced, what it was like in places like Paris before deportation began, how they believed that if they followed the rules they'd be okay. I see now why, at the end of the book, she says why they don't obey orders. Oh, and the reintroduction of "returnees" to France! I hadn't read about any of that before. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Deportation, Drug use, Genocide, Grief, Suicide, Antisemitism, Religious bigotry, Violence, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Hate crime, Racism, Sexual content, Murder, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Rape, Torture, and War

machenn's review

emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Antisemitism

Moderate: Violence, War, Child death, Death, Genocide, Grief, Torture, Drug use, and Death of parent

jabakken's review

dark emotional informative sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Genocide, Violence, Grief, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Xenophobia, Death of parent, and Antisemitism

mishasbooks's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Drug use, Blood, Child death, Death of parent, Deportation, Drug abuse, Hate crime, Suicide attempt, Violence, War, Child abuse, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Murder, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Abandonment, Addiction, Antisemitism, Dementia, Excrement, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Gun violence, Rape, Suicide, Genocide, Self harm, Torture, and Trafficking

citybookspgh's review

dark emotional informative mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

This has been one of my favorite read of 2023. Based on an event that happened to the author’s mother, a woman receives a post card with the names of three of her relatives who were killed during the Holocaust sixty years earlier. Together with her daughter (Berest), the two women try to solve the mystery of who sent it. Suspenseful right up until the last page.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Genocide, Deportation, Antisemitism, Death of parent, Religious bigotry, and War

Soooooooo good.

dnpatterson2's review

dark hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Religious bigotry, Police brutality, Death, Racism, Antisemitism, Genocide, Grief, Physical abuse, War, Violence, and Racial slurs

Moderate: Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Torture, Bullying, Addiction, Child death, Confinement, Drug abuse, Drug use, Pregnancy, Sexual content, Suicide, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Infertility, Classism, Dementia, Excrement, Forced institutionalization, Mental illness, and Panic attacks/disorders