Send for me, Lauren Fox, author; Natasha Soudek, narrator
This is a heartbreaking story that begins during a terrible time in history that is stained with blood and shame. It is about the Holocaust in a way it is not often memorialized. It is about the effects of it upon those that experienced it and/or survived it, and after so much trauma, fear and loss, sometimes distanced from the “final solution”, in miles only, somehow projected its effects and fears onto future generations.
Four generations , four love stories, and four relationships between mothers and daughters that retain, above all, a sense of loyalty and devotion, are featured in this novel. The mundane day to day life is illustrated with very tender emotion and a deep feeling of authenticity. World War II and Hitler’s demonic plans for the Jews, set in motion a pattern of unusually dependent relationships that would continue for generations in the survivors of the savage and uncivilized behavior of the Germans. Alone, each event was not as awful as it was when they were all added up to become a whole. No one could come through such a tragic set of events without scars, and those scars would influence generation after generation, as some could not even speak of the atrocities, so awful was the memory and the experience. Those that did not experience it, but witnessed it, or were related to those who did, were also traumatized since their losses were too great to discuss openly and were hard to believe, as well. Families were taken away and simply disappeared. Jews were made to be invisible, and then they were slowly tortured, humiliated, brutalized and murdered. Many Germans claimed ignorance and others simply supported the abomination that was National Socialism. Because Germans were so meticulous about themselves and their record keeping, eventually, most of the Jews were accounted for, even if the records of the reasons for their deaths were false, but at least their final days were revealed, horrific though they were.
There are those who deny the Holocaust. There are those who downplay its horrors. There are those who deny knowing about it, although they were there and belonged to the Nazi Party. There are few left who witnessed it or suffered through it; so much time has passed. However, the effects of such barbarism will not soon be forgotten by anyone with a relation that experienced any part of Hitler’s brutality and inhumanity.
The book is a novel, and as such, it devotes itself more to the relationship between parent and child, mother and daughter, uncovering the loyalty and responsibility that the deep love for each other engenders, even when not faced with danger. Still, the memories of the war cast its shadow on generation after generation, so that independence of the family was difficult to accept or achieve. In those war-torn families, there is a need to stay together, not to lose touch, not to be forgotten or ignored because that would make Hitler successful, finally.
The book takes the reader through Hitler’s rise and the inability of Jews to face what was truly happening, so bizarre and horrendous were the actions, but so subtle and slow to occur that like a boiling pot, until the bubbles appeared, no one knew how hot the situation had become. By then, it was often too late to escape, and no one could send for them successfully.
The book seems loosely based on letters from the author’s great grandparents to her grandparents, but the book definitely illustrates the profound long-lasting and far-reaching effects of the horrors of Germany’s Third Reich.
There were times when the book was confusing as it went from generation to generation and character to character, but overall, it meshed well and knitted all the loose ends together, ending on a high note of hope, I think. Other readers may feel differently since the ending is not clearly defined.

This book was beautifully written to tell a story of love and family, but also heartbreak and the shattering of family during one of the world’s darkest times. I was drawn in to all of the stories, but was left with a lack of ending. I found that to be disappointing. The historical stories felt complete, but the present day story felt like an afterthought that really serves no purpose to the book.

The two previous reviewers have clearly stated what this book is about,
The story follows four generations of women starting with the Holocaust and ending in present times. At times it was a bit confusing with the jumping back and forth of characters t was a heartbreaking story, but I felt the ending fell a bit flat.