Description
Discover the powerful narrative of **How to Be a Refugee** by Simon May, a poignant memoir that delves deeply into themes of identity, resilience, and survival against the backdrop of a tumultuous history. This gripping account records how May's mother and aunts navigated their Jewish heritage in Hitler's Germany, revealing a complex story filled with family secrets and the struggle for belonging. The sisters, facing a lethal inheritance, took drastic measures to erase their past, crafting identities that allowed them to survive amidst the darkness of war. With masterful storytelling, May unveils their harrowing journeys, from fleeing to London to securing 'Aryan' status through alliances within the Nazi regime, and even marrying into German aristocracy. This remarkable book is more than just a history lesson; it's an exploration of self-deception, denial, and the lengths to which individuals go to escape their roots. **How to Be a Refugee** is essential reading for anyone seeking a deeper understanding of how the echoes of history shape our present. This B-format paperback edition was published in 2022 by Pan Macmillan UK, spans 384 pages, and is in brand new condition. Note: Shipping for this item is free. Please allow up to 6 weeks for delivery. Once your order is placed, it cannot be cancelled.
Note: Shipping for this item is free. Please allow up to 6 weeks for delivery. Once your order is placed, it cannot be cancelled.
Condition: BRAND NEW
ISBN: 9781529042863
Format: B-format paperback
Year: 2022
Publisher: Pan Macmillan UK
Pages: 384
Description:
'A lyrical, fascinating, important book. More than just a family story, it is an essay on belonging, denying, pretending, self-deception and, at least for the main characters, survival.' Literary Review
'Simon May's remarkable How to Be a Refugee is a memoir of family secrets with a ruminative twist, one that's more interested in what we keep from ourselves than the ones we conceal from others.' Irish Times
How to Be a Refugee is Simon May’s gripping account of how his mother and his two aunts – who, like their parents, had converted to Christianity – grappled with their Jewish heritage in Hitler’s Germany.
To escape this lethal inheritance, the sisters denied their Jewish origin to the point of erasing almost all consciousness of it. Their very different trajectories included fleeing to London, securing â€Aryan’ status with high-ranking help from inside Hitler’s regime, and marrying into the German aristocracy. Even after Hitler had been defeated, they were still in flight from that heritage. May, too, was raised a Catholic and forbidden to identify as Jewish or German or British.
May’s haunting quest to uncover the lives of the three sisters, as well as the secrets of a grandfather he never knew, forcefully illuminates the extraordinary lengths to which people will go to survive.
Note: Shipping for this item is free. Please allow up to 6 weeks for delivery. Once your order is placed, it cannot be cancelled.
Condition: BRAND NEW
ISBN: 9781529042863
Format: B-format paperback
Year: 2022
Publisher: Pan Macmillan UK
Pages: 384
Description:
'A lyrical, fascinating, important book. More than just a family story, it is an essay on belonging, denying, pretending, self-deception and, at least for the main characters, survival.' Literary Review
'Simon May's remarkable How to Be a Refugee is a memoir of family secrets with a ruminative twist, one that's more interested in what we keep from ourselves than the ones we conceal from others.' Irish Times
How to Be a Refugee is Simon May’s gripping account of how his mother and his two aunts – who, like their parents, had converted to Christianity – grappled with their Jewish heritage in Hitler’s Germany.
To escape this lethal inheritance, the sisters denied their Jewish origin to the point of erasing almost all consciousness of it. Their very different trajectories included fleeing to London, securing â€Aryan’ status with high-ranking help from inside Hitler’s regime, and marrying into the German aristocracy. Even after Hitler had been defeated, they were still in flight from that heritage. May, too, was raised a Catholic and forbidden to identify as Jewish or German or British.
May’s haunting quest to uncover the lives of the three sisters, as well as the secrets of a grandfather he never knew, forcefully illuminates the extraordinary lengths to which people will go to survive.