Every time I read a book regarding the World War II era, I'm stunned by the strength of those who survived it. My own father fought at the Battle of the Bulge, and I'd give anything if I'd drilled him for more information on it while he was living. Miranda Mouillot had the courage to do just that in researching her grandparents' lives during the early/middle part of the 1900's. I admire her hard work.
There were hidden aspects of her grandparents' meeting and marriage, and it took Miranda years to get to the truths that explained a marriage that quickly broke up. And the weight of her grandfather's work as an interpreter at the Nuremburg trials colored much of it. Who can really know of the distrust and fear of the people who lived in the most trying period of modern day life?
I so appreciated reading about Miranda's unusual (for me) family, the home her grandmother had bought in France where Miranda felt such a connection, and her visits with her strangely obsessive grandfather. The book is rich. And like me you might wish you'd interviewed your own ancestors as thoroughly as she did hers. No regrets. The book is a beautiful tribute.
(i received this book free to review from bloggingforbooks)
