Theresienstadt 1941-1945: The Face of a Coerced Community, newly translated to English, sounds like a must read for anyone with an interest in the concentration camp at Terezin. I appreciate the focus on the coercion involved in this "model community," which plays an important part in Even in Darkness. With thanks to Tablet Magazine and Peter Filkins for the wonderful, informative article...

So loved speaking with Lena Anani on her wonderful podcast. Listen in HERE

Nearly a year ago, a fourteen-year-old embroideress from Portugal in the early 17th century took up residence in the deep reservoir of book ideas living in my brain. She demanded to be written about. As many of you know, my first two books, Even in Darkness, 2015, and Hard Cider, hopefully 2018, have their bases more or less in family stories and themes from my own life. But this girl, currently named Isabel, was a complete stranger. All I knew about Portugal is what I learne

Room in Lisbon- One of the first impressions of Portugal is the Mediterranean light. Thick stone walls keep rooms cool in the summer heat. The remnants of a Jewish quarter detectable only in a street sign. In Evora, once the scene of a thriving Jewish community, the office of the Inquisitors is marked by these symbols of the Inquisition above the door. The figure of Regina Santa Isabela captured my heart six years ago, and still moves me. She miraculously turned bread to rose