Masterpiece in a Suitcase ; the Incredible Story of How the Last and Greatest Work of a Jewish Author Was Rescued From the Nazis by Her Heroic Daughter and Why It has Been Kept a Secret for More Than 60 Years

Summary

---

Even now, I can still remember the moment clearly. There is a loud banging on the front door of our family house in Burgundy, France. Two policemen stand on the doorstep.

My mother's face is pale and she is no longer smiling, but she doesn't cry. She asks me, then aged 12, to look after Papa and tells my fiveyearold sister Elisabeth she is going away on a trip. Looking back, I am sure she knew she was leaving us for ever.

See the full content of this document

Extract

---

Masterpiece in a Suitcase ; the Incredible Story of How the Last and Greatest Work of a Jewish Author Was Rescued From the Nazis by Her Heroic Daughter and Why It has Been Kept a Secret for More Than 60 Years

Later we receive a note smuggled to us from the police station. 'I shower my darling daughters with kisses ... you are in my heart,' writes my mother. 'If you can send me anything, I think my second pair of glasses are in the other suitcase ... Books please, and also if possible a bit of salted butter.' It is July 13, 1942. My mother, Irene Nemirovsky, is an acclaimed French author.

My father, Michel Epstein, is a former manager in a bank. Their only crime is being Jewish.

Four days later, we receive another note, this time from Pithivie...

See the full content of this document

---