Sarah's Key

A Novel

By: Tatiana de Rosnay

Narrated by: Polly Stone

Length: 9 hrs and 54 mins

Publisher's summary

Paris, July 1942: Sarah, a ten year-old girl, is brutally arrested with her family by the French police in the Vel' d'Hiv' roundup, but not before she locks her younger brother in a cupboard in the family's apartment, thinking that she will be back within a few hours.

Paris, May 2002: On Vel' d'Hiv's 60th anniversary, journalist Julia Jarmond is asked to write an article about this black day in France's past. Through her contemporary investigation, she stumbles onto a trail of long-hidden family secrets that connect her to Sarah. Julia finds herself compelled to retrace the girl's ordeal, from that terrible term in the Vel d'Hiv', to the camps, and beyond. As she probes into Sarah's past, she begins to question her own place in France, and to reevaluate her marriage and her life.

Tatiana de Rosnay offers us a brilliantly subtle, compelling portrait of France under occupation and reveals the taboos and silence that surround this painful episode.

©2007 Tatiana de Rosnay (P)2008 Macmillan Audio

Critic reviews

“Polly Stone's delivery of Sarah's story is riveting with its spare emotional power.” —AudioFile Magazine

“This is a remarkable historical novel, a book which brings to light a disturbing and deliberately hidden aspect of French behavior towards Jews during World War II. Like Sophie's Choice, it's a book that impresses itself upon one's heart and soul forever.” —Naomi Ragen, author of The Saturday Wife and The Covenant

“Sarah's Key unlocks the star crossed, heart thumping story of an American journalist in Paris and the 60-year-old secret that could destroy her marriage. This book will stay on your mind long after it's back on the shelf.” —Risa Miller, author of Welcome to Heavenly Heights

Just ehhhhh.....

Great plot: French Jews are rounded up and taken to camps. Young girl tries to save her little brother by hiding him in the house and will retrieve him after they're sent home. We all know the devastating and horrific things that happened to the Jews at the camps. We rejoice as Sarah escapes and makes her way back to Paris. The story is good for a while but then takes a tragic turn and becomes too coincidental and soap opra"y" for my taste. It really could have been a good book. I wanted DESPERATELY to like it but the end just became too unbearable. I did finish it though because I'm no quitter.

Beautifully haunting.... And yet....

It's quite understandable why this work is a Bestseller.
It truly is a memorable work.
Historically accurate, the overall story is not one I've come across before regarding the French and WWII.

Normally, when I'm reading historical fiction from this period (European WWI and WWII), I do not choose an author that writes from the perspective of " looking back" from the present time.
However, Tatiana de Rosnay is a wonderful exception to my self imposed "rule".

Without giving any spoilers or even a suggestion of the ending, I have to admit it was the reason I have the story 4 stars instead of 5.

That said, I think it's just a matter of preference on my part ( the way a story ends) and it truly takes nothing away from the novel.

I highly recommend "Sarah's Key"

True event fictionalized

The book is about an historical tragic event in Paris. Jews were rounded up in July 1942 by French police under orders of the Nazis and eventually taken to camps to be exterminated. The story follows the fate of one of those Jewish children, a 10 year old named Sarah, who managed to escape. Sixty years later, approaching the anniversary of this "rounding up" event, an American journalist living in Paris wants to write a story about the girl and her experiences. She becomes obsessed with the story of Sarah and wants to find her. Her detective work reveals that many French, including members of her own family(in-laws,) would rather not remember their participation in the events of 1942. Digging up the past and the revelation of secrets creates both agony and hope.

I was left with a conflicting feeling that the revelation of secrets can both harm and free a person. I enjoyed the book, told from the viewpoint of two different time periods. One viewpoint, Sarah's, takes place in 1942 and the other in 2002 from the viewpoint of the journalist who is looking back in time.

Thought provoking and intelligent

I found this book hard to turn off, especially after the first few chapters, which were a little slow. Whenever I read a book like this, I always ask myself how I would have responded if I had been in that situation. The ending was perfect and brought me to tears, but they were hopeful tears.

An amazing tear jerker!

Would you consider the audio edition of Sarah's Key to be better than the print version?

I haven't read the print version, but i really enjoyed the audio version!

Who was your favorite character and why?

Sarah. She was so strong and such a surviver.

Any additional comments?

This was such a great rendition of a WW2 story. From a unusual point of view and really well tied together between the past and present. I liked the transitions and the narrater did a great job at making the time switch clear with her tone. I found myself so invested in the characters and the story. I'm not one who cries much, but this one was definitely a tear jerker!!

Love love love

I loved this book. The reader was amazing! This story is so good and heartbreaking. I recommend anyone to read this. You never want to stop listening.

Melancholy

Just one of the possible millions of stories that took place during the Holocaust. Well written and developed, the audible version provided a way around the effort of having to pronounce French words and places for non-French speaking individuals. The pervasive sadness of the story was balanced with the joy of a new child and was a welcome event.

Wonderfull

The author did an incredible job of telling the story and blending the times together. The narrator truly brought the characters to life. Thanks for a great moving tale, I think this will top my list at book club!

Captivating

This haunting and beautiful novel kept my interest from the first word to the very last. Narrator, Polly Stone, did a masterful job interpreting the characters in both the present-day setting and the 1942 heart of the story of Sarah Starzinsky. Although the ending was somewhat predictable, the drama and pathos of Sarah's story rates 4 stars.

Great book!

Love it! A sad riviting story about how events from long ago can change lives. A must read.