Lilac Girls
Martha Hall Kelly, 2016
A New York socialite, a Polish teenager, and a German doctor are bound by wartime choices in this novel of courage and its aftermath.
Feels like hope, dread and grief. About war, morality and memory.
A page from the book
The consolation a parent leaves behind: a flower that needs winter to bloom.
Caroline wiped her cheek with the back of her gardening glove, leaving a dark smudge below one eye, then pulled off her gloves.‘But it’s fitting in a way - Father loved the fact that a lilac only blossoms after a harsh winter.’Caroline reached over and smoothed the hair back from my brow with a light touch. How many times had my mother done that? ‘It’s a miracle all of this beauty emerges after such hardship, don’t you think? Martha Hall Kelly.Martha Hall Kelly found the seed of the novel in Caroline Ferriday, a real New York socialite who sent aid to French orphans and later Ravensbrück survivors.
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Questions readers ask
- What is Lilac Girls like?
- Feels like hope, dread and grief. About war, morality and memory.
- What should I read after Lilac Girls?
- If you liked Lilac Girls, try The Things We Cannot Say (Kelly Rimmer), The Women (Kristin Hannah) and Between Shades of Gray (Ruta Sepetys).
A taste of the feed
What goes missing when a family stops asking questions?
What happens when stories like theirs are lost? What happens when there’s no one left to pass your experience on to, or you just can’t bring yourself to share it?
The Things We Cannot Say · Kelly Rimmer
The morning a boy's life is priced, and the price fits in a pocket.
Have you ever wondered what a human life is worth? That morning, my brother’s was worth a pocket watch.
Between Shades of Gray · Ruta Sepetys
What is left of you once the labels are stripped away?
But we aren’t defined by the names we carry or the religion we practice, or the nation whose flag flies over our heads. I know that now. We’re defined by who we are in our hearts, who we choose to be on this earth.
The Book of Lost Names · Kristin Harmel
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