Skeletons at the Feast

Set in the last few months of World War II, one of the most brutal periods in human history, Chris Bohnjalian's new novel is a powerful and moving story of a terrified German family on the run from the advancing Russian army.

In January 1945, in the waning months of World War II, a small group of people begin the longest journey of their lives in an attempt to cross the remnants of the Third Reich, from Warsaw to the Rhine if necessary, to reach the British and American lines.

Among the group is 18-year-old Anna Emmerich, the daughter of Prussian aristocrats who were originally pleased when their massive estate one more became a part of Germany in 1939, but who discovered over the next five years what Nazi management really meant for their rural district. Then there is her love, Callum Finella, a 20-year-old prisoner of war who was brought from the stalag to her family's farm as forced labor. And there is a 26-year-old Wehrmacht corporal who the pair knows as Manfred- but who is really Uri Singer, a Jew from Germany who managed a daring escape from a train bound for Auschwitz, and who has been sabotaging the Nazi war effort in every way he can.

As the three of them, as well as Anna's mother and younger brother, work their way west, they encounter a ravaged countryside that is both horrific and surreal, littered in evidence of both the Nazis' crimes, as well as the revenge being wrought by the Soviet Army. Their journey will test both Anna and Callum's love, as well as their friendship with Manfred- assuming any of them survive.

Skillfully capturing the flesh and blood behind a part of history we know little about, bestselling aythor Chris Bohjalian crafts a rich tapestry that puts a moving face on one of the 20th century's greatest tragedies.

Inspired by a real diary kept during World War II, Skeletons at the Feast captures both the power and poignancy of romance and the terror and tragedy of war.

Chris Bohjalian is the author of 11 novels, including his brand-new World War II love story, Skeletons at the Feast. His most recent New York Times bestseller, The Double Blind, was published by Simon and Schuster in Australia. He won the New England Book Award in 2002, and his novel, Midwives, was an Australian bestseller and a selection of Oprah's Book Club. His novels have been translated into 21 languages and have sold over three million copies worldwide. Two of his books, Midwives and Past the Bleaches have been made into feature films.
Chris graduated from Amherst College and lives in Vermont with his wife and daughter.

Skeletons at the Feast
Simon and Schuster
Author: Chris Bohjalian
ISBN: 9781847373144
Price: $29.95


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