A review by bookswithstacie
A Bookshop in Berlin: The Rediscovered Memoir of One Woman's Harrowing Escape from the Nazis by Françoise Frenkel

3.0

Ms. Frenkel was a Polish Jew who had set up a French bookstore in Berlin in 1921. Things were going well for her until the time Hitler comes to power and the pogroms against Jewish people start being enacted. She flees Berlin for France where the majority of her story takes place.

Ms. Frenkel has many friendships in France since she had spent significant time there and study there in her younger years. Her friends and others willing to help for money keep her safe until she can safely enter Switzerland.

I liked how each chapter was a new location for her, so that kept me wanting to read. It was an easy read as well. I gave this book three stars though because it was kind of boring. I am glad she makes it to safety, but the book is kind of just told in a matter of fact way.

Spoiler

When I get to the end of the book I learned that she had a husband who was arrested and disappeared in Berlin and that is never mentioned in the book. The end notes of the book does say what happened to her husband.

Also, I struggled knowing her age during her journey. Maybe if I had known she was in her 50's during this time I might have connected with her more.

I do love the idea that there could be more memoirs out there hidden or lost and we may have the chance to read them one of these days.