In the Shadow of the Greenbrier
2024
Emily Matchar weaves an addictive tale of family secrets in her multi-generational tale, In the Shadow of the Greenbrier.
Told by multiple narrators and in four timelines, this expertly woven historical novel follows the fortunes of the Zelner family through 20th century America. While struggling to make a life in the small resort town of White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia, they grapple with the horrors of family members left behind, exclusion, and heartbreak.
Matchar’s main character, Doree, growing up at the dawn of the 1960s, bears the scars of a family torn apart. The Zelners survive the pain of immigration, the Holocaust, and otherness, but family secrets still divide them. In the words of their patriarch, Sol, they find “strength in the hardships of life,” and this quality sustains the family through its trials.
A wonderful novel for WW2 fans and all historical fiction readers.
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