You all know my first love is historical fiction. When @tlcbooktours reached out to have me read Daughters of the Occupation, I couldn’t resist.  Yes, it’s another WWII story. But don’t be quick to dismiss it.  I don’t think I’ve ever read about the Soviet occupation of Latvia.  And give our current events, I was immediately compelled to read this.  It quickly sucked me in. I found myself comparing these women to the women I read about in Ukraine every day. 

“We can always hope for a miracle, we just can’t rely on one.”

This is a dual timeline, dual narrative book. Daughters of the Occupation follows a young jewish mom named Miriam in 1940 Latvia and her grandaughter Sarah. Sarah is living in 1975 Chicago.  When Sarah’s mom dies, Sarah reaches out to rekindle a relationship with her grandmother. She wants to get answers about her history.  What follows is a devastating account of intergenerational trauma. It’s a look into the horrific displacement created by war and how these experience shaped these women. 

Each chapter unlocks a new piece to the puzzle.  It is so very sad and devastating and depicts how complicated things become during wartime when your only options are bad or worse. A heavy, but beautiful book that is perfect for historical fiction lovers but also anyone trying to understand our current crisis. This one gave me a good cry. 

Thank you @tlcbooktours, @harperperennial, and @fictionbyshellysanders for sending along this book to read and review! CW: war, genocide, holocaust

NEXT STEPS

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