Staff Picks Blog
Harvard College graduate Sara Houghteling’s wonderful debut novel provides a glimpse into the art world of Paris and the life of a Jewish family both before and after World War II. Max Berenzon wants to take over his father’s famous Paris art gallery; however, his father encourages him to study medicine while training a new assistant, Rose, to work in the gallery. Everything changes during World War II and the Nazi occupation of Paris. The family is forced into hiding and Rose works as a double agent to catalog the thousands of paintings looted by the Nazis.
After surviving the war, Max works to find the family’s lost treasures. He also desperately looks for friends who were lost during the war and attempts to reconnect with his father. During his quest he uncovers family secrets and begins to understand his father’s motivations.
Houghteling received a Fulbright award to study paintings that went missing during the war, and the details of her research are remarkably woven into the story. I listened to the book and Mark Bramhall’s narration is excellent. ~~Enjoy~~
