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The Orphan's Tale by Pam Jenoff
5 stars + ♥

Ugly cry alert! Ugly cry alert! Add this book to the litany of amazing WWII historical fiction stories that have come out in the last several years.

This genre is really booming and I am continuously amazed by the stories based on real life people and situations that illustrate—in addition to the utter devastation (not strong enough) of WWII—people's amazing capacity for resilience and even hope in the face of such devastation.

This story is based loosely on Adolf Althoff, a man whose family ran a circus in Germany and when Adolf became ringmaster he hid Jews during WWII. And he is depicted as Herr Neuhoff in this incredible story.

The story is told from the alternating viewpoints of Noa, a 16 year old girl whose family kicked her out of their house and she has no where else to go with a Jewish baby in tow, and Astrid, a Jewish woman whose own circus-centric family has disappeared. It is about their lives as aerialists, the other members of the circus, and the terror at every turn in Germany as WWII approached its end.

There is no description that will do this story justice. I could not wait to listen to just one more chapter, I was on the edge of my seat both from fear of the characters being discovered by the Nazis and the thrill of flying from the trapeze under the big top, and I literally sobbed during the last 40 minutes. I admit that I do like circus stories, but this was so much more.

My one complaint was that I though both Noa and Astrid could be incredibly selfish and self-centered at time, not to mention that several of the characters made completely idiotic decisions to antagonize the Nazis. While I understand a bit of where these characteristics came from, I think they were too over the top for the sake of moving the narrative forward when something more subtle would have fitted better.

Still didn't take away from my utter love of this novel. I finished it this morning and my heart still aches thinking about it.

Beautiful review Nicole! You're bringing it right back to me. I agree that it competes with other similarly themed novels. But it holds its place. It's unforgettable to me.

Nicole R wrote: "The Orphan's Tale by Pam Jenoff
5 stars + ♥

Ugly cry alert! Ugly cry alert! Add this book to the litany of amazing WWII historical fiction stories that have come ou..."

We seem to be reading many of the same WWII stories this year. I'm going to have to think about this because unlike you, I'm not a circus fan.

Other than that this sounds great and your review makes it intriguing. What's not to love about a good ugly cry?

BnB, the circus is not really the centerpiece but more of the backdrop for the action. Very little about animals if you are averse to the potential cruelty aspects....

I really enjoyed this one too. It will probably make my top 10 this year. I gave it 4.5 stars at the time, but I had to reread my own review to remember why I didn't give it 5.

I'm not the biggest fan of circus backdrops, Bnb, and still loved this one. I'd say go for it!

This is on my TBR and it will probably be a 2018 read, since I have a few books going on right now.

Linda, it is a must for you

Great review! I am almost intrigued enough by your review to put this one on the TBR, but then I realize that it is yet another book about WWII and I run away in disgust. Just cannot bring myself to read any more fiction set in this time period. To me, this sub-genre is worn out.

That is too bad, JW. I have really read some excellent WWII historical fiction books lately that do an amazing job of highlighting the unsung heroes. I actually think they are revitalizing the genre.

But, to each his own.

Nicole R wrote: "That is too bad, JW. I have really read some excellent WWII historical fiction books lately that do an amazing job of highlighting the unsung heroes. I actually think they are revitalizing the genr..."

Speaking of unsung heroes, I recently read The Saboteur, which is set in Norway and based on a true story and loved it. It is a bit more on the suspense side of things, so I don't know if it would appeal to you, Nicole, but it is very good. Gross also wrote The One Man which I found to be very well done, but perhaps a little unbelievable.

Ooo, that does look good! I do love a good thriller and admit that I was light on them this year. I also like that it takes place in Norway, I haven’t read anything set there during WWII.

Onto my list it goes! Thanks for the rec!

Right after I swear off WWII fiction, you post this review. Sigh.

I did not like her other novel A Piece of the World. Is this better? I rated it 2 stars

I have not read her other novel. Perhaps someone else can speak to it?

This made my Top 10 for this year. It just missed 5 stars because I felt some of the secondary characters needed a bit more fleshing out.

If i didn’t already have a WWII historical fiction in my Top 10 that I LOVED (We Were The Lucky Ones) then I think this would have potentially made my Top 10 as well.