The Net of Dreams: A Family's Search for a Rightful Place

by Julie Salamon

The author of The Devil's Candy and White Lies--herself the daughter of Holocaust survivors--shares her family's her mother's memory of Josef Mengele; her father's relocation to Ohio after the war; and her own Jewish upbringing in the heartland of America.

Genres: Nonfiction, Memoir, Holocaust

336 pages, Hardcover

First published March 12, 1996

About the author

Julie Salamon has written thirteen books in many genres, including Unlikely Friends, an Audible Original released summer 2021. Her new children's book One More Story, Tata, illustrated by Jill Weber, was published by Astra's Minerva imprint in July 2024. She is working on a nonfiction book for Ann Godoff at The Penguin Press, that involves the crisis of urban homelessness and its intersection with history. Julie's other books include New York Times bestsellers Wendy and the Lost Boys and The Christmas Tree (illustrated by Jill Weber) as well as Hospital, The Devil’s Candy, Facing the Wind , The Net of Dreams , Innocent Bystander and Rambam’s Ladder. She has written two children's books, Mutt's Promise, and Cat in the City, also illustrated by Jill Weber. Julie was a reporter and then the film critic for The Wall Street Journal and then a television critic and reporter on the staff of the New York Times. Julie is a graduate of Tufts University and New York University School of Law. She is chair of the BRC, a social services organization in New York City that provides care for people who are homeless and may suffer from addiction or mental disease.. Born in Cincinnati and raised in Seaman, Ohio, a rural town of 800; in 2008 she was inducted into the Ohio Women’s Hall of Fame. New York City has long been home; she lives in downtown Manhattan with her husband Bill Abrams, executive director of Trickle Up. They have two children, Roxie and Eli, and a dog named Frankie, most recent in a long line of feline and canine friends.

Reviews

[Bruce Mulkey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very compelling read. I intend to read more of Julie's work.

[Carolyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Too many characters. I couldnt keep track of them. Probably would have helped to have a paper copy so I could look back more easily.

[Jeanette · Rating 2 out of 5]

i really wanted to like this book, but i just had a hard time getting into it. there were way too many characters and i couldnt seem to relate to any of them. i felt like i was forcing myself to read something because i just was so bored. i wasnt sympathetic to the author and i didnt feel like i could get into her father's character. there wasnt enough there because there were so many people coming and going. it was hard to keep track of them all (which i am sure how it was at such a tragic time). i really wanted to like it, but i just didn't get into it...

[Kurtamyd · Rating 4 out of 5]

I randomly pulled this memoir off a shelf in the Cincinnati Public Library. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that the subjects of the memoir lived only miles up river from that very same library. This book recounts the life of the author's parents, who both survived the holocust and started a life in the Ohio River Valley. Their story was fascinating, sad and touching.

[Dee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book! I read it back in 1998 and have recommended it to all of my friends. I have always been intrigued by holocaust books so this one made it to my read list. I didn't expect to feel so deeply for the characters. I loved the way we started in the present and let mom fill us in on the past. Great book!