Ann S. Epstein writes novels, short stories, memoir, essays, and poems. Please use the links or site menu to go to the HOME PAGE; learn about her NOVELS, SHORT STORIES, MEMOIR, ESSAYS, and POEMS; find interesting facts in BEHIND THE STORY; read REFLECTIONS on writing; check NEWS for updates on publications and related events; see REVIEWS; learn about her END-OF-LIFE DOULA credentials and services; and CONTACT US to send webmail.
“I didn’t have a typical Semitic face, but my black curly hair betrayed me. Just after my (Aryan) stepfather smuggled my mother and me out of the ghetto, I was taken to a barber who shaved my head. It was called the ‘zero haircut.’ I wasn’t his first client. Read about two Holocaust survivors, German Jewish newlyweds sent to America by their parents to have children to “save our people,” in One Person’s Loss. Learn more about the book in NOVELS.
The one-a-day micro-fiction journal 50 Give or Take published another of my stories, “Accidentally,” words to ponder for those who ask, “What is she waiting for?” October is National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, first declared in 1989. Sign up to receive and submit your own ultra-short stories, free, at 5o Give or Take.
“A sign at the camp’s entrance said, ‘Arbeit Macht Frei’ (Work Sets You Free), so I was determined to work hard for my release. An hour later we learned the reality. Freedom depended on Germany’s victory, or our death.” Read about two Holocaust survivors, German Jewish newlyweds sent to America by their parents to have children to “save our people,” in One Person’s Loss. Learn more about the book in NOVELS.
“When the woman who’d taken me in was sent to a labor camp, I was found at a train station by a Red Cross attendant who handed me to a Polish Christian family. They had five older children but raised me as one of their own. After the war, they wanted to adopt me, but it was forbidden and I was put in a Jewish orphanage (pictured below) where I was adopted by a Jewish family. I have since met the families who risked their lives to save me but know little of my birth parents, who hoped we’d reunite when the war ended.” Read about two Holocaust survivors, German Jewish newlyweds sent to America by their parents to have children to “save our people,” in One Person’s Loss. Learn more about the book in NOVELS.
Even though the U.S. let in more refugees during WW2 than any other sovereign nation, it set strict quotas. In the midst of the Depression, Americans feared they’d take already scarce jobs. History shows America failed to end WW2 sooner or admit those escaping Nazi persecution. Read about a German Jewish family who tries to flee to the U.S. in the novel One Person’s Loss. Learn more about the book in NOVELS.
“As we left the ghetto, our grandmother carried her tachrichim (burial shroud), made of lace and ruffles. We, her granddaughters, had helped her sew it. She never got to wear it.” Read about two Holocaust survivors, German Jewish newlyweds sent to America by their parents to have children to “save our people,” in One Person’s Loss. Learn more about the book in NOVELS.
The U.S. debated, but rejected, the idea of bombing Auschwitz, where a million people were put to death. Some worried a bomb would miss, since only one in five aerial bombs hit within five miles of its target. History shows America failed to end WW2 sooner or admit those fleeing Nazi persecution. Read about a German Jewish family who tries to escape to the U.S. in the novel One Person’s Loss. Learn more about the book in NOVELS.
“Weekends and weekdays don’t matter to a writer. I’ve discovered through my life, if you take the day off, it takes you two days to get back to where you were. You need to keep it going in your head” (Erica Jong, “How Erica Jong, Writer, Spends Her Sundays,” The New York Times, September 24, 2022). I agree. Writing is self-fueling. A day without writing is as unsatisfying as a day without chocolate. More thoughts about writing in REFLECTIONS.
Several book readings, signings, and discussions for my new novel, One Person’s Loss, are scheduled in the upcoming weeks and months. Please stop by if you’re in or near Southeast Michigan. For more information and updates see the Events listed at the top of the NEWS page. Learn more about the book in NOVELS.
WHAT: One Person’s Loss book signing (Free and open to all)
WHEN: Saturday, September 24, 2022 from 6:30 to 7:30 PM Eastern Time
WHERE: Schuler Books, Westgate Shopping Center, 2513 Jackson Avenue, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48103
EVENT WEBSITE: Schuler Books Celebrates its 40th Anniversary
EVENT FACEBOOK PAGE: Schuler Books Events
WHAT: One Person’s Loss book reading and signing (Free and open to all; RSVP on website)
WHEN: Friday, October 21, 2022 from 7:30 to 9:00 PM Eastern Time
WHERE: Booksweet, Courtyard Shops, 1729 Plymouth Road, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48105
EVENT WEBSITE: Local Authors Night at Booksweet: Readings from Four Authors
EVENT FACEBOOK PAGE: BookSweet Events
WHAT: One Person’s Loss book talk and signing (Free and open to all)
WHEN: Sunday, November 13, 2022, from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM Eastern Time
WHERE: Jewish Community Center, 2935 Birch Hollow Drive, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48108
EVENT WEBSITE: Ann Arbor Jewish Book Festival
EVENT FACEBOOK PAGE: Jewish Community Center of Greater Ann Arbor Events
My Amazon and Goodreads review of All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr (Rating 5) – Radiance Amid Darkness. It’s been decades since I made this claim about a book: I was so enthralled by Anthony Doerr’s Pulitzer-prize winning novel, All the Light We Cannot See, that I did not want it to end. Given the raft of books about World War II, it’s difficult to find a unique perspective on an oft-told story about this senseless chapter in human history. Doerr has more than met the challenge by creating two indelible protagonists on opposite sides of the conflict: a blind French girl and a young German soldier. As the war blows apart ordinary lives, he draws an intricate, albeit unlikely, connection between them. Doerr is a sure-footed guide for those who cannot see, a nimble hiker beside the infirm, a mature companion for youth, and a youthful tonic for the elderly. He explores all the senses to awaken readers’ sensibilities. As a writer of historical fiction myself (see my Amazon author page and Goodreads author page), I’m filled with admiration for Doerr’s deft interweaving of broad research and deep imagination. Amid the darkness of war, All the Light We Cannot See finds gem-like radiance in tenderness, awe, and persistence.
