Concrete

Paris, the summer of 1942. Paris, the summer of 2002. Although sixty years apart, these two dates intertwine throughout Tatiana de Rosnay’s bestselling novel, “Sarah’s Key.” On July 16, 1942, 13,000 Jews were arrested in Paris during the Vél’ d’hiv’ Round-Up. They were then put on deportation buses to concentration camps where they were ultimately killed. During times of deportation, fathers were separated from their wives and children, and mothers were eventually estranged from their children. The French Police felt not remorse for these poor families, therefore do not discuss the matter is present times. As the author wrote, “…the French are touchy. This is a highly sensitive subject matter.” De Rosnay’s vivid and appalling details about this horrific time during World War I haunted me to the point where I cried for this innocent race.
Sarah Starzynsky, a ten-year-old Jewish girl, was sitting in her quiet, Paris apartment when the French Police came to arrest her family. In order to protect her four-year-old brother, Sarah quickly hid him in a secret cupboard with a glass of water and some books, promising to retrieve him as soon as possible. Sarah’s determination and love for her brother was one of the reasons I loved this book. Although it was unrealistic that Sarah’s younger brother would ever make it out of that cupboard alive, Sarah tried to never lose hope. She was so determined that she kept the key to the cupboard in her pocket at all times, which got me eager to find out if the poor little boy would ever make it.
What was so mesmerizing about this story was that as Sarah’s past unfolded, the present was torn apart. Julia Jarmond, an American journalist residing in the city of Paris, was assigned to produce an article for the 60th anniversary of the Vél’ d’hiv’ roundup. Throughout her investigation, Julia crosses paths with the story of Sarah Starzynky. This shocking connection had me constantly turning pages in order to find out what Julia was to...