Tag: WW11 aftermath

Michelle Barker’s — My long list of impossible things *****

In 1945 when Soviet troops arrive in Muttt’s German town and kick her and her two daughters, Hilde and Katja, out of their house, they begin to leave with other refugees. Not long into their journey on foot heading to Fahlhoff, Mutti is shot by a Russian soldier and the two girls are left to fend for themselves. When they reach Fahlhoff, they learn that their mother’s friend has a reputation for being a mean hag. Will they be allowed to live under her roof, or will they be forced to remain homeless the way they had been on their long journey?

Nancy Huston’s — The mark of an angel *****

Saffie is a German living in Paris in the 1950s who works for a musician, Raphael. Raphael falls desperately in love with Saffie while she appears strangely aloof. They have a child together, but when Saffie meets Marias, their lives fall apart and Saffie’s haunted past comes to light.

This is Huston at her best. While I read this novel more than a decade ago, it’s tale has always remained embedded in my memory — a sure sign of an exceptional story.