The Plum Tree

By: Ellen Marie Wiseman

Narrated by: Madeleine Lambert

Length: 12 hrs and 11 mins

Publisher's summary

"Bloom where you're planted," is the advice Christine Bolz receives from her beloved Oma. But 17-year-old domestic Christine knows there is a whole world waiting beyond her small German village. It's a world she's begun to glimpse through music, books - and through Isaac Bauerman, the cultured son of the wealthy Jewish family she works for.

Yet the future she and Isaac dream of sharing faces greater challenges than their difference in stations. In the fall of 1938, Germany is changing rapidly under Hitler's regime. Anti-Jewish posters are everywhere, dissenting talk is silenced, and a new law forbids Christine from returning to her job - and from having any relationship with Isaac. In the months and years that follow, Christine will confront the Gestapo's wrath and the horrors of Dachau, desperate to be with the man she loves, to survive - and finally, to speak out.

Set against the backdrop of the German homefront, this is an unforgettable novel of courage and resolve, of the inhumanity of war, and the heartbreak and hope left in its wake.

©2013 Ellen Marie Wiseman (P)2013 Tantor

Critic reviews

"The Holocaust was a horrendous time in world history, and Wiseman has added a personal touch on this era." ( VOYA)

Narrator is awful

The story is a great piece of historical fiction, but the narrator is horrible. She tries to have different voices for each character, but she comes across as a junior high actress. It detracted from the story, unfortunately.

Interesting view of Holocaust...

Overall the story was intriguing, I struggled with the narrators attempt at voice while reading - made it hard to listen too...

OMG ... Historical fiction at its best

Absolutely could not put this one down until done with it, then went back to re-listen to it all over again.
Heart-breaking, hope-inspiring. On one hand makes you lose faith in mankind, but at the same time makes you hope we can learn from one man's insanity at one insane period in humanity's time.

Loved the aftermath

Most WWII novels end with the close of the war and an epilogue, I enjoyed that this book followed the months after the war and the main character and her family coping from the trauma

A good story, terrible narration!

Where does The Plum Tree rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I appreciated the story. However the narration was incredibly distracting. I felt like I was listening to announcements being shouted over an intercom. A few of the voices sounded off as well. The story was good enough for me to push through and finish listening, but I wish I would have bought the ebook instead.

How could the performance have been better?

A different voice used for the narration would have made it much better.

Great story.

Great story from a different perspective after the war. Did not care for the narrator's voice. Overall easy to get into and my interest was always ready for the next chapter.

Good story, bad narrator!

I really enjoyed the story. If not for the terrible, terrible narration, it would have been one of those audio books you couldn't stop listening to, however, I found myself cringing at her different voices & taking a break from listening.

Terrible narration.

My nerves were set on edge by the robotic fast paced narration. The story was ok.

Loved it!

Amazing story. Great ending! Kept me on the edge of my seat. I will say, it was a little bit of a slow start, but overall - great read! ❤️

Great book, terrible narrator

I really loved the story line. The narrator wasn’t good. Had difficulty keeping characters straight at first because she struggled.