Book Discussion: I Want You to Know We’re Still Here
October 25, 2020 @ 10:00 am - 11:30 am
Book Lover Carolyn Gruber will lead a Zoom discussion on Esther Safran Foer’s new memoir I Want You to Know We’re Still Here.
Esther Safran Foer writes her “post Holocaust” memoir as an exploration of history, memory, and the lasting impact of historical trauma on families and individuals. The child of Holocaust survivors, Foer grew up searching for shreds of evidence about relatives no longer spoken of. A passing remark by her mother revealed that her father had a previous wife and daughter and sent Foer on a search for her missing sister. Her search, documented by her son Jonathan’s best-selling novel, Everything is Illuminated, led her to Holocaust survivor communities in the Ukraine, Brazil, and Israel. What she finds reshapes her identity and gives her the opportunity to finally mourn.
I Want You to Know We’re Still Here is the story not only of Esther’s journey but of four generations living in the shadow of the Holocaust. Survivors, storytellers, and memory keepers all, they are determined not just to keep the past alive but to imbue the present with life. The book is available in the Temple Sinai Library.
Esther Safran Foer writes her “post Holocaust” memoir as an exploration of history, memory, and the lasting impact of historical trauma on families and individuals. The child of Holocaust survivors, Foer grew up searching for shreds of evidence about relatives no longer spoken of. A passing remark by her mother revealed that her father had a previous wife and daughter and sent Foer on a search for her missing sister. Her search, documented by her son Jonathan’s best-selling novel, Everything is Illuminated, led her to Holocaust survivor communities in the Ukraine, Brazil, and Israel. What she finds reshapes her identity and gives her the opportunity to finally mourn.
I Want You to Know We’re Still Here is the story not only of Esther’s journey but of four generations living in the shadow of the Holocaust. Survivors, storytellers, and memory keepers all, they are determined not just to keep the past alive but to imbue the present with life. The book is available in the Temple Sinai Library.
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