Jewish History Archives - C.L.R. Peterson, Author

Mystery and Music in Prague

by CLR Peterson | Sep 24, 2025 | Bohemia, Book review, Historical novels, Holocaust, Jewish History

Greetings, Reading Friend!

Prague is the topic for this month, with my review of Prague Sonata, a novel I had the privilege of reading while visiting Prague recently for the first time.

While I admired the picturesque, spire-filled city, its millennium of history impressed on me the suffering of so many in Prague—especially in the Jewish quarter, ravaged by persecution for many centuries, and the execution of Jan Hus for daring to defy the Church by expressing religious ideas.

Prague Sonata, by Bradford Morrow, cover image

Imagine you’re a young musicologist, who at a friend’s urging meets with an ageing holocaust survivor.

How could this brief encounter possibly change the course of your life?

And how could the hunt for missing musical manuscripts from three centuries ago drastically alter multiple people’s lives in the twenty-first century?

Prague Sonata, a musical mystery and historical novel, spans two continents and more than three centuries to answer these questions and more, while taking readers on a suspenseful ride.

Irena, aware that her life will soon end, gives Meta, a young musicology graduate student, an original manuscript of the middle movement of a sonata whose composer is unknown.

Meta’s life changes immediately. She travels to Prague to search for the two missing movements of the sonata, but multiple frustrations impede her pursuit.

Prague Sonata’s themes include passion for music, love, and devotion to a quest. The novel also reveals how some characters compromise their idealism for survival and profit.

Characters:

Meta—the protagonist, musicology graduate student, and rising pianist whose injury ended her performing career

Otylie Bartosová—the sonata’s Czech owner who divided the sonata into thirds and distributed it

Jakub Bartos—Otylie’s husband, a Jewish antiquarian who joins the Resistance when the Nazis invade Czechoslovakia

Irena Svobodova—Otylie’s best friend in Prague; she plays an important role in the later plot

Gillian—Meta’s best friend; she introduces Meta to the musical mystery

Paul Mandelbaum—Meta’s graduate school mentor, whose interesting connections to Prague enrich the plot

Tomás—pianist friend of Jakub who plays an important role in the plot

Gerrit Mills—Czech-American reporter, he becomes Meta’s romantic interest and research partner in Prague

Jaromir Láska—Otylie’s father, a poor music teacher who purchased the sonata from an antiquarian; he tells Meta to “guard it as if it were your own child”

Petr Wittman—Prague musicologist and author who becomes Meta’s bête noire

Jonathan—Gillian’s brother, a New York banker who is Meta’s romantic interest early in the novel

Strengths:

In addition to an engaging plot, the author portrays characters as multi-dimensional people, with strengths and weaknesses.

Weakness:

The novel’s length may lose some readers, although the length adds to the understanding of the personalities in multiple time periods.

Content review:

This novel contains several scenes of physical intimacy, which could have been omitted without weakening the plot.

My Recommendation:

As soon as I discovered that Prague Sonata features historical fiction involving music history, as well as an exciting plot, I was hooked. Readers with similar interests, especially those who like stories transporting them to multiples locations and time periods will also enjoy this novel.

Reader, can you recommend a novel about Prague?

The Cost of Conscience: The Courage of Georges Picquart

by CLR Peterson | Jun 23, 2025 | Book review, France, Historical novels, Jewish History

Imagine you discovered evidence that an innocent man was sentenced to life in prison. Would you try to exonerate him if it would cost you your career?

Georges Picquart, the head of France’s spy agency in 1894, faces this dilemma in An Officer and a Spy, Robert Harris’s 2013 historical novel that overwhelmingly remains faithful to the facts of the Dreyfus Affair.

An Officer and a Spy, by Robert Harris, cover image

Alfred Dreyfus, the highest-ranking Jewish officer in the French Army, is convicted of spying for Germany in 1895 and sent to Devil’s Island (a bleak, tiny atoll in the Caribbean).

In 1896, Georges Picquart, the new French Army intelligence head, stumbles across a document proving that Dreyfus is innocent, hence revealing that someone else within the French Army spied for Germany.

The remainder of the novel recounts Picquart’s struggles to exonerate Dreyfus, the Army’s attempts to silence the story, the roles of numerous characters, and the ultimate resolution of the conflict.

I loved this book because:

I like stories with heroes, especially sweet if they survive their trials
Picquart refuses his Army superiors’ demands in spite of the risk to himself
Harris’s detailed portrayals of the characters and their motivations
Characters’ warts show in Harris’s presentation—no one comes across as perfect
Deep, immersive description of French society in that era

Characters:

Georges Picquart—narrator and protagonist, he’s a French Army officer who is promoted to head of the intelligence department after Dreyfus’s conviction.

Alfred Dreyfus—Jewish Army officer whose performance and grades at the French Military College enabled him to rise higher than any previous soldier of Jewish heritage

General Mercier—French war minister who brought charges against Dreyfus after the discovery that someone in the Army hierarchy had spied for Germany, despite weak evidence

Lucie Dreyfus—wife of Alfred Dreyfus, she works doggedly for years to free her husband

Ferdinand Walsin-Esterhazy—a dissolute French Army major suspected of treason (by Picquart)

A number of other French Army officers, including generals, play significant roles in this novel, overwhelmingly in support of the honor of the Army and the conviction of Dreyfus, even if this involves a cover-up of the truth, including sentencing an innocent man to a tortuous life imprisonment.

Strengths:

Thorough, detailed account of the entire story
Multi-dimensional, complex portrayals of major characters that help explain their decisions, failures, and changes of perspective

Weakness:

The novel’s length, complexity, and repetition of key elements present a challenge to readers

Content review:

This novel contains not only references to romantic liaisons outside of marriage, but depictions of extreme mistreatment and violence.

My recommendation:

I found An Officer and a Spy fascinating, in spite of its length. People in high positions sometimes go to great lengths to preserve their reputations, even if it means innocent people will suffer greatly. This novel offers the author’s in-depth characterization of Picquart’s thought process and his efforts to remain true to his moral code, in spite of the Army’s intense pressure and shocking treatment of himself as well as Dreyfus.

Reader, can you recommend a true-to-life novel in which the protagonist sacrifices so much to bring justice to an individual?

The Sunflower House: Uncovering the Legacy of Lebensborn

by CLR Peterson | Jan 24, 2025 | Book review, Germany, Holocaust, Jewish History, World War II

World War II novels are a dime a dozen; why read another?

I ask myself this question whenever I see a new one set in this era.

So why did I choose The Sunflower House to read and review?

The Sunflower House, by Adriana Allegri, cover image

Simply put, this novel focuses on an aspect of this era that I knew little about—the Nazis’ Lebensborn program, which aimed to breed perfect Aryan children to fulfill Hitler’s dream.

As much as I learned about this program from The Sunflower House, the plot twists kept me interested and worried, and its characters were equally compelling, revealing:

Their moral conflicts and relationships with their neighbors of different ethnicities and faiths
How patriotic Germans responded to the inhumane orders their government and its representatives commanded
How few people rose up to oppose the Nazi terrors

Main Characters:

Allina – the protagonist in the World War II era; she’s a young German Jewish/Christian woman whose life suddenly changed with the Hitler’s rise to power, and his plans for Germany and the Jews

Dieter – Allina’s heroic uncle who raised her; he explains her family’s background before he dies

Karl – German Army officer who befriends Allina after seeing her weep and sing a Christmas carol to a baby at Hochland Home, a Lebensborn home

Katrine – Allina’s daughter; she’s the modern-day protagonist

Gruppenführer Gud – German Army officer who places Allina in Hochland Home

Schwester Marguerite Ziegler – head nurse at Hochland Home; a complex character

Rilla – Allina’s close friend at Hochland Home; enemy of Berta

Berta – a young mother at Hochland Home whose jealousy of Allina endangers Allina

Strengths:

Exciting, tension-filled story with multi-faceted characters

Weakness:

Readers who wish to know precisely what happened in the Lebensborn program may be disappointed, as the author had to use literary license to fill in gaps in the historical record.

Content review:

Given the focus of this novel and its setting in the heart of Nazi Germany, it’s not surprising that sexual violence and immorality appear in its pages.

My Recommendation:

I found The Sunflower House thought-provoking and entertaining. It will appeal to readers who enjoy the challenge of a novel set in a time where even heroic characters must make heart-wrenching choices.

Reader, can you recommend a novel or non-fiction book about Lebensborn?

Grazia’s Journey Through the Italian Renaissance

by CLR Peterson | Oct 24, 2024 | Book review, Historical novels, Italy, Jewish History, Renaissance

Some novels resonate at the time they’re published, while others have plots, characters, and themes that never go out of date.

You probably think of beloved novels in the second category, and I’d like to introduce you to one of my favorites, The Secret Book of Grazia dei Rossi, written by Jacqueline Park more than twenty years ago. Because it was set in Renaissance Italy, there’s no outdated technology or fashions to spoil your reading experience.

The Secret Book of Grazia dei Rossi, by Jacqueline Park, cover image

What makes this novel special?

The Secret Book of Grazia dei Rossi takes readers through numerous key events of the Italian Renaissance (wars, conflicts between Italian city-states, religious persecution, the sack of Rome, to name a few), from the unique vantage point of a gifted Jewish woman attempting to find her way in an often-hostile Christian culture.
Grazia records the secrets of her life so her son will understand her choices (and his heritage) after her passing.
The author based this story on a brief footnote about a real-life Italian woman of that era.
During Grazia’s lifetime, Italy experiences rebirth/renaissance on an intellectual level, with the discovery of ancient Greek and Roman texts. She encounters such luminaries as Pico della Mirandola, the Florentine philosopher, Aldus Manutius, Venice’s master printer, and Benevenuto Cellini, sculptor and writer.
At the same time, undercurrents of anti-Semitism and misogyny limit Grazia’s options and endanger her. Her romance with a Christian nobleman challenges her to abandon the faith and traditions of her ancestors, risking estrangement from her family. Grazia’s character, as well as several others, emerge as memorable portraits of the era.

As I revisited and reviewed this novel, I discovered that its author, Jacqueline Park, extended the story into a family saga with a sequel, The Legacy of Grazia dei Rossi, and the concluding volume, Son of Two Fathers (completed after her death by Gilbert Reid). I’m eager to read these novels, and I’d appreciate your comments if you’ve read either or both.

Characters:

Grazia dei Rossi—protagonist, daughter of a Jewish family who obtains a humanist education and struggles between allegiance to her heritage and her attraction to a man from outside the Jewish faith

Danilo—Grazia’s son, still an adolescent when this novel ends

Judah—Grazia’s husband, a highly-regarded Jewish physician who gains employment by the pope

Lord Pirro Gonzaga—a Christian nobleman whom Grazia meets for the first time during her adolescence

Marchesa Isabella d’Este da Gonzaga—a powerful noblewoman in Renaissance Rome, she employs Grazia as her private secretary and tries to persuade Grazia to convert to Christianity

Strengths:

This novel offers readers a close perspective on the Renaissance in Italy, revealing both high and low points of the era.

Weakness:

The novel’s length (560 pages) may deter some readers.

Content review:

The story includes scenes of physical intimacy, as well as violence, especially directed toward Jewish people

My Recommendation:

The Secret Book of Grazia dei Rossi will be a great read if you enjoy a thoughtful yet action-filled saga that places you in the midst of the Italian Renaissance.

Reader, do you have a favorite novel set in the Italian Renaissance?

A Surprising Era in Salerno: Book Review of Rebecca of Salerno

by CLR Peterson | Nov 8, 2023 | Book review, Historical novels, Italy, Jewish History

Women in the United States only began to practice medicine in the 1800s (see my review of The Physician’s Daughter), so how could a young Jewish woman become a physician back in 1195?

Author Esther Erman answers this question in her action-packed recent novel, Rebecca of Salerno.

Rebecca of Salerno, by Esther Erman, cover image

In these days of conflicts related to ethnicity and religion, it’s a relief to escape into a novel set in late twelfth-century Salerno, Italy, where Rebecca could attend medical school and become a physician.

Remarkably, Salerno had a reputation as peaceful, prosperous, and tolerant of diverse groups, as exemplified by the medical school founded in the eighth century by a Greek, a Latin, a Jew, and a Muslim.

But Salerno’s atmosphere had changed by the time Rebecca, our protagonist, disembarked there. Why?

Crusaders arrived, en route to and from their destination in the East. They set up camp outside the town and committed acts of vandalism, robbery, and rape—with impunity
The Hohenstaufens, a German dynasty, conquered the Normans and took Salerno in 1195, installing a relative, Duke Henry, as ruler of the city. He didn’t want to offend the pope or the king’s regent, William of Capparone, by cracking down on the crusaders’ misdeeds.

The conflicts Rebecca faces animate this story:

Her father and extended family pressure her to assume the traditional role of Jewish women–marriage and life as a wife and mother—but Rebecca aspires to an independent life
Her colleague, Rafael, repeatedly proposes to Rebecca, but her trauma after losing her first love, Ivanhoe, leads to her secret vow not to marry
Even in Salerno, Rebecca faces discrimination based on her gender and religion

Characters:

Rebecca – protagonist, a young Jewish woman who has always wanted to devote her life to healing
Rafael Lopes Dias – young widower who attended Salerno’s medical school; he prefers translating texts into Hebrew rather than practicing medicine
Isaac ben Shmuel – renegade Egyptian rabbi who alienates nearly everyone he meets; he’s blamed for murdering a crusader
Rebecca’s father – traditional Jewish father who wants his daughter to marry and have children
Laura di Petrocelli – Rebecca’s medical student; her life exemplifies the challenges faced even by a Christian female native of Salerno who pursues a medical career
Leah Sara Garcia – from an older generation than Rebecca; she completed her studies at Salerno’s medical school, but went on to a traditional Jewish life as mother of many children
Baruch Mendoza – patriarch of a prominent Jewish family in Salerno; he plays a key role in the story

Strengths:

Engaging plot
Distinct, interesting characters
Offers readers a window on a place and era unfamiliar to many

Weakness:

This is an inspiring story, but Rebecca’s good fortunes may not strike all readers as credible.

Content review:

References to sexual violence in the later part of the story may disturb some readers.

My recommendation:

If you enjoy journeying with a bold heroine to discover a distant, unfamiliar time and place, and at the same time solving a murder case, Rebecca of Salerno will provide an enjoyable and educational reading experience.

Reader, have you read a novel about this era that you’ve enjoyed?