Alexis Landau

In the end notes and Recommended Reading, Landau describes her inspiration as being from an impressionistic author who died in the Holocaust. Undoubtedly that formed the dreamy presentation of Vera, a Russian Jew whose family had fled to Paris and who is now dealing with her own flight to America before the German occupation. This writing style was not all that interesting to me. I only persisted through the book because I have a friend whose mother suffered from Jewish generational trauma, and I wanted some understanding of how it affected her. Of course, the experience of someone whose family came from the shtetl is likely different from that of families who had the wealth to live a life without the daily struggle to provide basic necessities.
I think the reader is meant to be on the edge of their seats at the near misses and the lucky connections (as God wills?) in Vera's search for her daughter.
That brings up the second dissatisfaction I had with this book: rich people partying and drinking while discussing abstract ideas.
Then, there is the name dropping: Vera is taken to see Dr Bettelheim, recommended by Dr. Adler. The ex-pats reminding him of Fritz Lang. Hollywood industry greats Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall, Hedy Lamarr, L.B.Mayer.
The side story of Sasha feeling a nameless shame from his Russian childhood about his absent father, his remembered experiences fighting in WWII, and his desire to make the American public see the consequences of war might have made for a more interesting story but it would have to be told by someone with more strength as a writer.
I know we are supposed to identify with the loss and guilt Vera feels for leaving her daughter behind, but the glorification of motherhood, while understandable in someone who has such feelings, did not strike a chord in me, even given my own years raising a family and the joy I felt in their infancy.… (altro)

When Vera and Max, Jew immigrants living in France, are told to report to an internment camp, they must make the difficult decision to leave their young daughter Lucie with her nanny. Shortly after they are interned, they have the opportunity to escape across the mountains and ultimately to America. Haunted with guilt and fear, Vera finds it difficult to make a new life without her daughter.

This was a well written and engaging story. The characters were extremely believable and relatable. I felt Vera's pain at the separation from her daughter, and found myself reading long into the night to find out what would happen. The book really needed an epilogue, which is my main criticism. Overall, 4 out of 5 stars.… (altro)

To call this a love story would be trite. The Empire of the Senses is a fantastic character-driven first novel by Alexis Landau. This book is about interactions and how the Pearlmutter family collides with their Jewish roots and each other during and after WWI. It's a refreshing break from the endless number of historical fiction novels written about Jews during WWII. This is about the lead up, and how ethnicity affects interpersonal relationships.

The only thing stopping me from giving this book 5 stars is that the plot is lacking in some places - particularly when it comes to Franz and his homosexuality. Other than that, it's an excellent novel and Landau expertly shifts between the motivations of each character without jarring the reader.… (altro)