The Storyteller by Jodi Picault (2013)

I hope I remember that Picault's books are heavy ones and to not take one on lightly. I was almost ready to give up on the story, when it moved into the personal story of a Holocaust survivor. Though it was fictional, I felt it my duty to listen to this to the end out of respect for their story - being much harder to live through than read or listen to. It did take up at least half of the book.

There were actually three stories going on. The first, which I actually liked, was contemporary - Sage, has a lot of issues, not the least of which is that she suffered in a car crash that killed her mother and left her face scarred. She does not want to face people, so she works as a baker, a skill she seems to have inherited from her great grandfather. She bakes breads and pastries during the night, for an ex-nun boss. Sage has a lover Adam, but he is married, so unavailable ultimately. The fact that he is a funeral director adds an interesting twist. She befriends an elderly man, Joseph, who frequents the bakery. He starts telling her that he is really a former SS man, and he wants her to help him die. Though she does not follow the Jewish traditions, she is of Jewish descent and at some point she realizes her grandmother is a Holocaust survivor. Though she likes the old man, she feels she has to turn him in for war crimes and contacts the office in Washington that follows these things. Here it gets a bit personal, as I had an uncle who was pursued by the OSI, as the office was known back in the 1970’s or 80’s. He was not found to be responsible for any wrong doing, but they made his life hell for a while, and he spent a lot of money and energy defending himself. I get that unforgivable crimes were perpetrated against Jews, gays, gypsies and other minorities. It was interesting to hear Leo's arguments for continuing to follow up these stories, even when the person involved is in his 90’s. Leo is the guy in the Washington office. He has to follow leads that are called in, and almost always turn out to be false leads, but this one sounds legit. He is intrigued by Sage and travels up to New Hampshire to coach her to get Joseph to tell his story. They need some corroberation and so they turn to Grandma Minka for her story.

The second story is the one told by Minka, of her family in Poland, how they were moved to the Jewish ghetto, and from there to Ausschwitz. So many of her family and friends die, but she survives. It is a long, grueling story, but not without hope and not simply black and white. There are good Germans that she meets along the way, starting with her German language teacher, who perfects her language skills, which in a couple of cases save her. Then there is the accountant at Ausschwitz who takes her on as a secretary - because she speaks and writes German. He takes her on also because of her story - the third one in this book. 

The third story is a tale written by Minka as a girl about a Polish mythical being somewhat like a vampire who lives forever and feeds off live beings, including humans. Minka was a bright girl with an active imagination, so she started writing this story about Anya, the daughter of a baker, who learns to bake from her father and takes over when he is killed. Anya falls in love with Alex, and it is a complicated story that occurs during a war, when there are shortages. Minka has been writing this for a while. she brings her journal with her, but of course it is taken away at Ausschwitz. At the camp her first job is to sort through the belongings of people, looking for valuables, putting useful clothing aside, other things get thrown out - like photos. She starts collecting the photos. In her barrack, at one point she starts calming a hysterical woman by starting to tell her story of Anya. Then she starts writing it down on the backs of the photos. One day these are found on her, and she is to be punished, but the accountant starts reading the story and hires her. For some reason he is very intrigued by Minka's story. Minka later wrote it down again, when she got to America, so Sage has it. This story gets intertwined with the other two - as if myth, the world of today and the world of the past were all one story - as they are.

I have to admit, it was worth getting to the end. I did guess the final plot twist, as the clues were given, but still a good story. Though I know the story of the Holocaust, it does not hurt to be reminded of it again, and to look at the moral issues around it even this many years after the events. It also ties in with my attempts to  undestand the complexities of the Middle East. Plus, I just saw Cabaret on a local stage and forgotten that it is about Berlin right before the war breaks out, and also addresses the Jewish question.