The Warsaw Sisters by Amanda Barratt
In 1939, twin sisters Antonina and Helena Dabrowska reluctantly see their beloved father off to defend Poland from the German invasion. Over the coming years, they will each be tested far more than they thought possible. Enraged that her true love, Marek, is forced to live in the Jewish ghetto, Antonina joins a resistance group that smuggles people out of the ghetto. Meanwhile, quiet Helena takes a secretarial job in the office of a German administrator, but the edicts she’s forced to type move her to action – and she ends up serving as a liaison for Poland’s Secret Army.
Through all the trials Warsaw faces, these young women face personal trials of faith, courage, and even their own sisterhood.
Heart-wrenching and powerful. The Warsaw Sisters left me reeling, but in a good and necessary way. Amanda Barratt shines an uncompromising light on the devastation and cruelty of life in occupied Poland – a light that needs to be shined, because through Antonina and Helena, we see. We understand. We feel. Elegant prose, thorough research, and intriguing characters thread throughout this outstanding novel. Truly an exceptional work.
