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martasbooktherapy 's review for:
The Night Travelers
by Armando Lucas Correa
4.5 stars
An intricately told tale spanning four generations of women impacted by war, loss, and distance. Beginning in the 1930s, we meet Ally and her daughter Lilith, whose father is a Black musician. They live in Nazi Germany and racial hygiene laws dictate that Lilian should be sterilized due to her status as a “mischling” - a person of mixed racial heritage. Through a series of events, Lilith is able to escape Germany, landing in Cuba with her new Jewish parents and growing up through the Batista leadership transitioning into Fidel Castro’s regime. She learns a new language and develops strong friendships, one that turns into a beautiful marriage. Later, Lilith makes the unbearable choice to send her own child, Nadine, away to stay safe, this time to New York City.
Everything comes full circle when Nadine’s adoptive mother is tried for war crimes and the family returns to Germany. Nadine’s daughter Luna is raised in post-Berlin wall Germany, a writer just like her great grandmother Ally. The stories and connections unwind over the course of the book, beautifully rendered to convey decades of history both personal and well-documented.
The era of Lilith growing up in Cuba read most clearly for me. I loved the depiction of the tropical setting, the difference in assimilation for Lilith and her adoptive parents, and the building tensions in Cuba as the years progressed. I can’t imagine the choices the mothers in this novel made, but while the theme of loss and separation are woven throughout, the overall feeling of love permeates it all.
Thank you to NetGalley and Atria books in exchange for my honest review. Out January 10, 2023.
An intricately told tale spanning four generations of women impacted by war, loss, and distance. Beginning in the 1930s, we meet Ally and her daughter Lilith, whose father is a Black musician. They live in Nazi Germany and racial hygiene laws dictate that Lilian should be sterilized due to her status as a “mischling” - a person of mixed racial heritage. Through a series of events, Lilith is able to escape Germany, landing in Cuba with her new Jewish parents and growing up through the Batista leadership transitioning into Fidel Castro’s regime. She learns a new language and develops strong friendships, one that turns into a beautiful marriage. Later, Lilith makes the unbearable choice to send her own child, Nadine, away to stay safe, this time to New York City.
Everything comes full circle when Nadine’s adoptive mother is tried for war crimes and the family returns to Germany. Nadine’s daughter Luna is raised in post-Berlin wall Germany, a writer just like her great grandmother Ally. The stories and connections unwind over the course of the book, beautifully rendered to convey decades of history both personal and well-documented.
The era of Lilith growing up in Cuba read most clearly for me. I loved the depiction of the tropical setting, the difference in assimilation for Lilith and her adoptive parents, and the building tensions in Cuba as the years progressed. I can’t imagine the choices the mothers in this novel made, but while the theme of loss and separation are woven throughout, the overall feeling of love permeates it all.
Thank you to NetGalley and Atria books in exchange for my honest review. Out January 10, 2023.