There Once Was A City
The Warsaw Sisters by Amanda Barratt is a powerful Christian historical novel that consumed me from the start.
The action is set in Warsaw during World War II as we follow twin sisters and their very different wartime experiences. Both are incredibly brave. Both fight the Nazis but use very different methods. One hides and passes on, Jewish children through an underground network. The other fights for the resistance. Neither shares their activities with the other in order to protect.
Warsaw bore the brunt of the Nazis persecution. Hitler wanted Warsaw razed to the ground – but reckoned without the brave spirit of the people offering resistance where they could.
Even the children were brave. They learned how to act and when to be silent. “You must never tell anyone who you are but you must always remember.” Roots and heritage are very important.
When persecution of the Jewish people began, many stood idly by but “what happened… mattered to me… I could not look away.” A character decided “I must do something.”
We see the bond the twin sisters had with their father. “How unquestioningly five-year-old girls believe this wide and frightening world cannot harm them because their father will always be there to hold them close.” This reminds the reader that God, Our Father, holds us close to His heart as He loves and protects us.
We see how war affects the faith of some. “I could not pray. I had stopped believing God listened.” God hears but we do not always see this in times of mans inhumanity to man. We fear that God has abandoned us but God walks beside us, weeping for humanity.
When all is stripped away, we must have hope. We have to believe that God is there. “Faith is all that is left to us… Please God… show me how to believe.” God will always answer the cries of our heart.
All the characters were well drawn, realistic and easy to empathise with. We witness two very different wartime experiences through the eyes of the two lead characters. Chapters alternate their voices and are in the first person. This has the effect of bringing the war closer to the reader.
The Warsaw Sisters was an all-consuming read. Though it is fiction, it’s roots were in reality as we followed the brave people of Warsaw through World War II.
I will leave you with my favourite quote:
“The spirit of a city is not inscribed in brick and stone but in the hearts of all who call her home.”
I received a free copy from the publishers. A favourable review was not required. All opinions are my own.
JULIA WILSON
