Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay

Sarah's Key, by Tatiana de Rosnay, is a suspenseful and moving story of a young, French Jewish girl, Sarah, who, along with her family, was brutally arrested during the Vel d'Hiv' roundup in 1942. In order to keep her younger brother safely hidden from the French police, she proceeded to lock him in their secret cupboard thinking that she would be back soon to retrieve him safely after her arrest. At such a young age, Sarah did not understand that she would not be returning and she would soon face the most scarring days of her life. As the book flashes from France in 1942 to present day France every other chapter, Julia Jarmond, an American editor at a French magazine post, discovers Sarah and her mysterious disappearance throughout her research for an article on the terrible Vel d'Hiv' events. Julia finds herself drawn to Sarah's history and her present location and later finds that she and the survivor are more connected than she thought. With her discoveries of the roundup and the minuscule number of survivors, including Sarah, Julia begins to put her own life into perspective with the influence of Sarah, her untold story, and the odd connection between them.

I strongly recommend Sarah's Key to anybody who appreciates a novel of suspense and a roller coaster of emotions. While reading, it was inspiring to witness the strength of such a young girl involved in a horrendous situation like the Vel d'Hiv roundup. It gave me insight into a piece of French history that would have otherwise been invisible to me. Tatiana de Rosnay presented this history in an extremely clever way and did an impeccable job of drawing me into the book!