PTPI Blog

Question answered by Karen Hoch, Director, Americas Region and Conferences at PTPI.

2. Did you like the style in which Sarah’s Key was written? Why or why not? Did you prefer one voice over the other (Julia’s or Sarah’s)?

I loved Tatiana de Rosnay’s writing style. I found it very interesting and that it kept the suspense going throughout the book. The deeper I got in the story, the more involved I felt in both lives – especially as the two stories intertwined. I’m not sure that this connection with both Julia and Sarah could be achieved unless we heard from both of them. I’ve read other books written from a similar approach and am a fan of this format.

Overall, I enjoyed both voices equally. They were different and unique, which in my opinion helped to make the book the bestseller that it is today. At times I was more drawn in by Sarah and Julia, at other times it was the reverse. I believe that in the beginning I was more interested in Sarah’s story and found Julia to be an interruption, but that soon changed when the stories started to come together.

People to People International’s Global Book Club is a way to connect with your global community. Global Book Club members communicate about valuable, international topics and gain unique insight and understanding of various cultural views in relation to those topics. For more information on People to People International, visit www.ptpi.org

The opinions expressed by PTPI staff and other book club members are entirely their own and are not necessarily the views of  PTPI or its Officers, Board of Directors and Board of Trustees.

Question answered by Karen Hoch, Director, Americas Region and Conferences at PTPI.

1. Were you aware of France’s role in WWII, especially as it pertains to the Vel’ d’Hiv roundup? What was your reaction to the way the French handled it?

Prior to reading Sarah’s Key I was not familiar with the Vel’ d’Hiv’ roundup and did not know France’s role in the Holocaust.  As de Rosnay illustrated in her book, it was common for the younger generation to not know and it appeared the older generation wanted to forget.  In some regards, this is understandable.  I can imagine the later shame and guilt of those that participated or those that witnessed the heinous crimes but did nothing to stop it.  Did they have a choice? Were they fearful for their own lives?  Were they protecting their loved ones?  Was Hitler’s evil plan brainwashed into so many?  Would I have acted differently?

It was a tragic time and since I was not there – in their shoes – I don’t think I can ever answer these questions.  Therefore, I can’t condemn those that were there.  I can only imagine what it could have been like and only hope that I would have behaved in a way such as the Dufaures, who took Sarah in as their own at the risk of their own lives.  I’m sure there are many stories of brave men and women who did make a difference.  I’m also sure there are so many more stories of tragedies such as Sarah’s.   They should be shared and mourned – most especially never forgotten. I think it’s essential that we – just as Eisenhower believed when he founded PTPI – learn from past atrocities and make sure they don’t happen again.

“France, home of the enlightenment and the Rights of Man, land of welcome and asylum, France committed that day the irreparable.  Breaking its word, it delivered those it protected to their executioners.” President Jacques Chirac, 1995

People to People International’s Global Book Club is a way to connect with your global community. Global Book Club members communicate about valuable, international topics and gain unique insight and understanding of various cultural views in relation to those topics. For more information on People to People International, visit www.ptpi.org

The opinions expressed by PTPI staff and other book club members are entirely their own and are not necessarily the views of  PTPI or its Officers, Board of Directors and Board of Trustees.

Our staff readers have prepared this list of discussion questions for those reading Sarah’s Key by Tatiana de Rosnay. Next week will will introduce the staff members reading the book and they will begin sharing their own thoughts on these questions. We hope you will join the conversation.

1. Were you aware of France’s role in WWII, especially as it pertains to the Vel’ d’Hiv roundup? What was your reaction to the way the French handled it?

2. Did you like the style in which Sarah’s Key was written? Why or why not? Did you prefer one voice over the other (Julia’s or Sarah’s)?

3. In a story filled with so much grief, what were some positive aspects of Sarah’s Key?

4. If you have had the opportunity to see the movie version of Sarah’s Key, which did you like best – the novel or the movie? Why?

5. Historical photos are discussed in the book but not provided. To gain a visual insight into the Vel’ d’Hiv roundup, view a gallery of images that document the roundup, the children who were taken, and the Holocaust in France.

6. Revealing family secrets can be very healing or very damaging. Do you think it would have been better if Julia left her family secret alone?

7. Every character in Sarah’s Key makes a different personal sacrifice, large or small, for their family. Which sacrifice was the hardest for you to understand?

8. Try a recipe that Sarah and her family might have enjoyed while they were living in France in the 1940s – Matzo Ball Soup.

9. How is loss of innocence an important theme in this story?

People to People International’s Global Book Club is a way to connect with your global community. Global Book Club members communicate about valuable, international topics and gain unique insight and understanding of various cultural views in relation to those topics. For more information on People to People International, visit www.ptpi.org

The opinions expressed by PTPI staff and other book club members are entirely their own and are not necessarily the views of  PTPI or its Officers, Board of Directors and Board of Trustees.