Sunday, May 21, 2023

THE FORGOTTEN CHILDREN

MY THOUGHTS:

Helga and Ruth, eleven year old Jewish twins lose both their mother and father to the War. Not only have they lost their parents but their home is gone as well.  Their new home is an orphanage and they are lucky to have been placed there together.  But when Ruth gets sick they are separated from each other.  It’s 1990 and Naomi moves to Paris in search of finding her place in life.  While touring the antique markets she comes across an old familiar photograph.  The same photo sits on top of the mantle in her mother, Helga’s house in London.  Naomi tells her mother about the photograph she has found and Helga wants Naomi to leave things alone but Naomi must find out the history of the photographs, while Helga hopes the secrets of her past stay in the past.


The Forgotten Children written by author Ann Bennett was a wonderful and heartbreaking time slip novel.  I was inspired by the strength and courage that they had to survive.  This captivating story had me in tears more than once as I flipped through the pages of this heartwarming story.  This incredible story is an absolute must read and I highly recommend it.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

DESCRIPTION:

THE FORGOTTEN CHILDREN
Author:  Ann Bennett

Publisher: Bookouture 
Publication Date: May 18, 2023 
Pages: 357 
Buy on Amazon

Paris, 1941. As we drive down the cobbled street, I take in the red banners with swastikas covering every building. Suddenly a group of guards appears. I duck beneath the window of the car, and my heart thumps as my hand jumps to my chest. But I’m not wearing my yellow star now, I left it with my sister. Tears well in my eyes. Will I ever see her again?

1939. Standing in front of the orphanage’s imposing stone walls, eleven-year-old Jewish twins Helga and Ruth shiver with fear. The war has taken their mother and father, their home in Berlin has been turned to rubble, but their soft, dark eyes meet and Helga gives Ruth a reassuring smile. They should be safe here together.

Yet every day bombs fly overhead. And when Ruth becomes desperately unwell, the girls are torn apart. 
As war rages on, will they ever find each other?

Paris, 1990. When Naomi moves to Paris, she hopes the city will help her find herself again. But whilst exploring the antique markets in the early morning sun, she is shocked to discover a duplicate of a photograph her mother Helga has on her mantelpiece back in London of a magnificent vine-covered villa on the outskirts of the city. Naomi soon discovers it was used as an orphanage during the Second World War. But why was the photo so precious to her mother?

When Naomi tells her mother what she’s found, Helga is furious. She begs Naomi to leave the orphanage alone. But Naomi is already desperate to discover the truth about her mother and the secrets of the other forgotten children of Montmorency.
 If Naomi learns the heart-shattering mistake her mother made, it will change their lives forever. But if she leaves the secrets in the past, Helga will never find out what happened to her sister… 

ABOUT ANN BENNETT

Ann Bennett was born in a small village in Northamptonshire and now lives in Surrey. Her first book, A Daughter’s Quest, originally published as Bamboo Heart, was inspired by her father’s experience as a prisoner of war on the Thai-Burma Railway. The Planter’s Wife (originally published as Bamboo Island) a Daughter’s Promise and The Homecoming, (formerly Bamboo Road) are also about the war in South East Asia.

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