Synopsis

From the author of A Castle in Brooklyn comes an epic novel spanning decades about the broken bonds of family, memories of war, and redemption and hope in the face of heartbreaking loss.

Growing up in 1960s Brooklyn, Lena wants to be a baker just like her mother was back in Poland prior to World War II. But questions about those days, and about a sister Lena never even knew, are ignored with solemn silence. It’s as if everything her parents left behind was a subject never to be broached.

The one person in whom Lena can confide is her best friend, Pearl. When she suddenly disappears from Lena’s life, Lena forges college, love and marriage with a wonderful man, the dream of owning a bakery becoming a reality, and the hope that someday Pearl will return to share in Lena’s happiness—and to be there for her during the unexpected losses to come.

Only when Lena discovers the depth of her parents’ anguish, and a startling truth about her own past, can they rebuild a family and overcome the heart-wrenching memories that have torn them apart.

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Interview

What did your journey to publication look like?

Getting published was a long and arduous process. I have been writing stories and poems ever since I was a child, really.  Once I graduated college, I turned to journalism, writing freelance articles for local newspapers and even running a paper in Brooklyn as editor-in-chief.  But I needed more; I needed to let my creative juices flow.  All my life, characters and their stories have been calling to me and I needed to answer that call.  So when I began my career as a college professor and had published a few children’s books, I took on the project of getting my novels published.  I did not want my manuscripts to languish in a desk drawer!  It was before computers were an integral part of every households, so I became a frequent visitor to the post office, sending hundreds of queries to agents and publishers.  Most never responded, but a few did offer some valuable suggestions.  Eventually, a friend introduced me to an agent who praised my work, but after ten years, I still had not found success.  One lucky day, through my son, I was put in touch with my current agent at WME, Eve Attermann, who saw the potential.  Through Eve, my first manuscript, A Castle In Brooklyn, reached an outstanding editor at Little A, Carmen Johnson, and that’s how I became a published author!  Was it worth it?  You bet.  I always had the confidence, never stopped writing, and finally had the people who could make my dream come true.

What inspired you to write THE BAKER OF LOST MEMORIES?

As a daughter of Holocaust survivors, I have heard many tales of loss, trauma, and even heroism.  These stories inspire me not only in the way I live my life, but also in the topics I take on as a writer.  In A Castle In Brooklyn, I explore the lives of survivors and their dreams.  We follow Jacob as he persistently works to make his dream of building a home a reality.  Yet, he remains emotionally crippled by his experiences during the Holocaust and unable to handle a life-changing crisis when it occurs.  In THE BAKER OF LOST MEMORIES, I turn to the story of a child of someone in my generation—the second generation—who carries her parents’ trauma throughout her life.  The loss of someone she never knew shapes the choices Lena makes as a child and as a young woman.  It is only when she comes to terms with this loss and with her parents that she finds true happiness.  The experiences of our parents and the resounding effects on the next generation are what make this story compelling.

How much of your own life experience is in THE BAKER OF LOST MEMORIES?

As with all my writing, aspects of my own experiences are evident.  Like Lena, I am a child of Holocaust survivors who was born in Brooklyn.  However, while Lena’s parents find it difficult to speak of their trauma, my parents often freely discussed their close knit families in Poland and their devastating losses.

My mother and two brothers were the only survivors in a family of eight, while my father was the only survivor, his mother, two sisters, and a brother having died in the fires of Auschwitz.  He was a runner in the black market in the Lodz ghetto, just like Josef in THE BAKER OF LOST MEMORIES. In researching the book, consequently, I was satisfying my own curiosity about his experience.

I came upon the idea of a bakery because I thought it was a good setting to span the past with the present; but I also recall that my mother told me of an aunt, Tante Rachel, who owned a bakery in Poland and how she often assisted her there. As a child, I was obsessed with learning all I could about my grandparents, the aunts, uncles and cousins I never knew.  I have only a few photos of them, none of my grandparents. As my younger brother and I were born after World War II, I couldn’t imagine how I would feel if I had had a sibling who was murdered by the Nazis.  Although it was emotionally difficult for me to write, I wanted to explore this idea with Lena and how such a loss might have affected her life so many years later.

Other aspects of the novel also stem from my life.  The bungalow colony which appears in the introduction is drawn from my memories of visiting my aunt and uncle in the Catskills and babysitting my younger cousins there.  Some Brooklyn scenes, including Lena’s visit to Doc’s, a real place from my childhood where we would order egg creams and Rock and Root root beer sodas in frozen glasses; walking to the library, going to the Loews Theater, and taking early morning classes at Brooklyn College are all fond memories.  One interesting note is Lena’s meeting with Luke on the bus.  I did have the same meeting with a charismatic student who was not my usual type. However, unlike Lena, I did not give him my real telephone number.  I have often wondered what would have happened if I had.  With Lena, I was able to find out.

About the Author

Shirley Russak Wachtel is the author of A Castle in Brooklyn. She is the daughter of Holocaust survivors and was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York. Shirley holds a Doctor of Letters degree from Drew University and, for the past thirty-five years, has taught English literature at Middlesex College in Edison, New Jersey. Her podcast, EXTRAordinary People, features inspiring individuals who have overcome obstacles to make a difference. The mother of three grown sons and grandmother to three precocious granddaughters, she currently resides in East Brunswick, New Jersey, with her husband, Arthur.

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