The Lost Baker of Vienna is a story of courage and survival set in post WWII Vienna.

The Lost Baker of Vienna by Sharon Kurtzman

Genre/Categories/Setting: Historical Fiction (post WWII), Refugees, New Beginnings, Survival, Family Life, Vienna

***This post contains Amazon Affiliate Links

My Summary:

Thanks #NetGalley @VikingBooks for a complimentary eARC of #TheLostBakerOfVienna upon my request. All opinions are my own.

Chana and her mother and younger brother have endured the horrors of WWII and are living free in Vienna. However, life is not easy as they struggle to find safety, housing, employment, and food. Chana is fortunate to land a job as a dishwasher in a hotel, but she risks a great deal to sneak out at night to return to the kitchen and bake her late father’s favorite recipes alongside the apprentice baker who shares her passion for baking.

My Thoughts:

Survival

Along with other refugees, the family’s long-term plan is to get to America. While facing the pain of the past, continued discrimination, broken promises, setbacks, and a lack of money, the family is vulnerable. Chana needs to take some risks to face overwhelming hardships and ensure her family’s survival. At times, everyone is at risk, adding a generous serving of tension to the story.

Cheering for Chana

Chana is strong, determined, brave, and resilient as she takes risks and navigates some challenging and life-threatening situations. How can she follow her own dreams, honor her father’s memory, and keep her family safe?

Dual Timeline

In The Lost Baker of Vienna, we have a dual timeline: 1946 and 2018. The historical timeline is the most engaging. Although the current-day timeline adds an element of mystery, it isn’t as engaging (in my opinion) and is used as a device to propel the story forward. The two timelines intersect in a satisfying conclusion.

Content Consideration: post-war hardships, antisemitism

Recommending The Lost Baker of Vienna:

Fans of WWII histfic will appreciate this glimpse into the life of a refugee family surviving the post-war years. The Lost Baker of Vienna is inspired by the author’s own family history.

My Rating: 4.5 Stars

More Information Here

Meet the Author of The Lost Baker of Vienna, Sharon Kurtzman

Sharon Kurtzman worked in television marketing before pursuing her dream of becoming a writer. She earned her MFA in fiction from Vermont College of Fine Arts, and her undergraduate degree from Syracuse University’s Newhouse School of Public Communications. The Lost Baker of Vienna was inspired by the war and postwar experiences of her own family, who were Holocaust survivors. Kurtzman lives in North Carolina with her husband; they have two adult children.

---

---

QOTD:

Is this post WWII story on your TBR?

---

---

Let’s Get Social!

Find me at:
Twitter/X
Blue Sky
Instagram (Threads link in bio)
Goodreads and StoryGraph
Pinterest
SubStack: @carolreadingladies
Reading Ladies Book Club on Facebook

---

---

Happy Reading Book Buddies!

“Ah, how good it is to be among people who are reading.”
~Rainer Maria Rilke
“I love the world of words where life and literature connect.”
~Denise J Hughes
“Reading good books ruins you for reading bad ones.”
~Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
“I read because books are a form of transportation, teaching, and connection. Books take us to places we’ve never been, teach us about our world, and help us understand human experience.”
~Madeleine Riley

---

---

***Blog posts may contain affiliate links. This means that at no extra cost to you, I can earn a small percentage of your purchase price.

All books I review are purchased or borrowed from the library unless explicitly stated that the book is free (arc).

Amazon or an author’s (or publisher’s) website receives all credit for book covers and author photos.

© ReadingLadies.com