Publishers Weekly
12/16/2024
Film producer Lending debuts with a wrenching story of love and displacement in Poland after the 1939 Nazi invasion. Reuven Berkovitz, 17, works for his father Lev in Krakow, making bespoke umbrellas with intricately carved handles. He’s recently fallen in love with Zelda Abramovitch, who shares with him an appreciation for art and literature. His happiness ends when the Nazis invade, subjecting Jewish households to coal rationing, forcing Lev to sell his business, and assigning father and son to grueling labor repairing train tracks. Already terrorized by the Nazis’ capricious acts of violence, Reuven gets another shock when he visits Zelda’s family home and finds it occupied by strangers. He devotes himself to locating the Abramovitchs, but hasn’t made any progress by the time he’s forced to flee with his family to Russian-occupied eastern Poland, a grueling and catastrophic journey during which all the Berkovitzes but Reuven are killed by German soldiers. He’s given shelter by a farmer before regaining the strength to resume his quest to find Zelda, which, after many more harrowing events, brings him back to Krakow. Lending eschews the sentimentality common to much recent Holocaust fiction, instead bringing the horrors of the period to visceral life with many scenes of graphic violence. It’s not for the faint of heart. (Feb.)
From the Publisher
"This powerful, heart-wrenching novel follows a young Polish Jew through his incredible journey to escape the Nazis. Reuven’s story typifies that of millions of others experiencing the horrors and deprivations suffered by Jews in WWII and those who tried to help them. And yet, it is also an ultimately uplifting and inspiring tale of one man’s coming of age in horrific times." — Heather Morris, #1 bestselling author of The Tattooist of Auschwitz
“[A] compelling and heartbreaking debut novel. At once well told and ineffably sad. Read it but keep your tissues handy.” — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“This is a strikingly intense and superbly produced novel . . . . This is one of the most absolutely memorable books I’ve ever read. Strongly recommended.” — Historical Novel Society
“Fans of Heather Morris and Lisa Barr will be captivated by Lending’s story of resilience and romance, a must-have for historical fiction sections.” — Library Journal
“Lending eschews the sentimentality common to much recent Holocaust fiction, instead bringing the horrors of the period to visceral life.” — Publishers Weekly
“Lending gives his story a real authenticity with his attention to detail, transporting readers to the heart of Krakow to capture the essence of a community torn apart by war. This is a work that stands out not only for its historical accuracy, but its deeply personal exploration of family dynamics amidst chaos." — Brooklyn Digest
"The Umbrella Maker’s Son is an outstanding work of fiction portraying hope, love, resilience and survival against the most formidable of odds that partially incorporates the author’s own family history." — BookTrib
“The Umbrella Maker’s Son is a must-read for fans of historical fiction. It is a heart-rendering reminder of the human capacity for both cruelty and compassion that will stay with you.” — MSN.com
“Intense, well-written novel . . .This is one of the best WWII novels I have read this year, and I’ve read a lot. It’s a love story and a war horror story at the same time. This is one you will not want to put done. Have tissues handy, you will need them. This is one of the best debut novels I have read in a long time.” — RedCarpetCrash
"The Umbrella Maker’s Son underscores the resilience of a Jewish teen to survive amid the horrors of the Nazi occupation." — Novels Alive (5-Star Review)
“The Umbrella Maker’s Son is an important addition to modern Holocaust literature. An Academy Award-nominated and Emmy-Winning producer, writer, and cinematographer, Lending brings his incredible talents—a sharp eye, research skills, and the ability to put a human face on historical events—to the story of one young man trying to save himself, his family, and the woman he loves from the horrific German onslaught.” — Woman Around Town
"This novel presents a harrowing tale of mind numbing loss, incredible feats of survival, and unrelenting determination in the face of insurmountable odds. It is a new reminder of the Holocaust, well worth the time." — The Paris Insider
"The Umbrella Maker’s Son by Tod Lending is a beautifully well-written novel. This debut novel has me so deeply engaged that I was holding onto it for life. The characters, Reuven and Zelda were magnificently realistic . . . . This is a definite read if you love history and want a powerful story of family, love, and loss." — The AR Critique
Library Journal
12/01/2024
DEBUT Emmy-winning film producer and director Lending tells the harrowing tale of love's impact on the will to survive. Reuven is 17 years old when the Nazis invade his middle-class Polish town of Krakow, take control of his father's umbrella-making business, and force his family out of their apartment. Across town, his girlfriend Zelda, whom he plans to marry, and her family are packing to move to the countryside. As Reuven sees her family off, he vows to find and reconnect with her as soon as possible. Meanwhile, Reuven and his father endure arduous physical labor under the Nazis until the family can escape Krakow, where they will seek shelter in Przemyśl or die trying. In Przemyśl, Reuven is found and taken in by a local farmer, who gives him food and shelter as he heals from a gunshot wound and eventually puts Reuven to work in his fields. Still determined to find Zelda, Reuven eventually leaves the farm and faces perilous conditions as he returns to Krakow to search for the love of his life. VERDICT Fans of Heather Morris and Lisa Barr will be captivated by Lending's story of resilience and romance, a must-have for historical fiction sections.—Beth Brentlinger
Kirkus Reviews
★ 2024-12-11
A young man and the people he loves struggle to survive the Nazi occupation of Poland.
On September 1, 1939, the first day the bombs fall, Reuven Berkovitz and Zelda Abramovitch are in love and dream of a life together. Reuven helps his papa, Lev, an umbrella maker in Kraków who takes great pride in his work. But soon, German soldiers occupy Poland and force Papa to hand his shop over to a non-Jew. “Suddenly,” the 17-year-old Reuven says, “Papa and I were no longer umbrella makers. We were nothing.” The vise closes quickly on Jewish society, and “within nine months, the Germans had stolen our business, belongings, and identities.” Then the Jews of Kraków are confined within heavily guarded walls while the rest of the city goes about its daily business. Reuven has one advantage: Due to his fair coloring, he can easily pass for gentile. But the two lovers are separated early on, and Reuven’s unflinching desire to find Zelda is the engine that drives this compelling and heartbreaking debut novel. Once he witnesses the murder of his family, grief becomes his “constant companion....No matter how trapped [he] felt in [his] prison of melancholy, she was the one thing worth living for.” For a while, he survives by working on a farm and pretending he’s mute. Later, he’s on a work crew assigned to smash headstones then dig up and burn decaying bodies in a Jewish cemetery so a road can be built through it. The calculated and often casual cruelty is painful to read, even for those familiar with the dark history of antisemitism and the Nazi thugocracy. Reuven’s experiences feel so immediate that we want to cry with him. Will he ever find Zelda? Will they ever emerge together on the other side of the war? Will hope finally triumph over horror? A sympathetic Catholic man speaks to Reuven of a “memory now braided, like the bread, with love and grief.” Author Lending’s great-grandfather was an umbrella maker in Warsaw in the late 1800s and served as his inspiration.
At once well told and ineffably sad. Read it but keep your tissues handy.
