Archives for May 2025

As with all my writing, aspects of my own experiences are evident. Like Lena, I am a child of Holocaust survivors who was born in Brooklyn. However, while Lena’s parents find it difficult to speak of their trauma, my parents often freely discussed their closeknit families in Poland and their devastating losses.

My mother and two brothers were the only survivors in a family of eight, while my father was the only survivor, his mother, two sisters and a brother having died in the fires of Auschwitz. He was a runner in the black market in the Lodz ghetto, just like Josef in THE BAKER OF LOST MEMORIES. In researching the book, consequently, I was satisfying my own curiosity about his experience.

I came upon the idea of a bakery because I thought it was a good setting to span the past with the present; but I also recall that my mother told me of an aunt, Tante Rachel, who owned a bakery in Poland and how she often assisted her there. As a child, I was obsessed with learning all I could about my grandparents, the aunts, uncles and cousins I never knew. I have only a few photos of them, none of my grandparents. As my younger brother and I were born after World War II, I couldn’t imagine how I would feel if I had
had a sibling who was murdered by the Nazis. Although it was emotionally difficult for me to write, I wanted to explore this idea with Lena and how such a loss might have affected her life so many years later.

Other aspects of the novel also stem from my life. The bungalow colony which appears in the introduction is drawn from my memories of visiting my aunt and uncle in the Catskills and babysitting my younger cousins there. Some Brooklyn scenes including Lena’s visit to Doc’s, a real place from my childhood where we would order egg creams and Rock and Root root beer sodas in frozen glasses; walking to the library, going to the Loews Theater, and taking early morning classes at Brooklyn College are all fond memories. One interesting note is Lena’s meeting with Luke on the bus. I did have the
same meeting with a charismatic student who was not my usual type. However, unlike Lena, I did not give him my real telephone number. I have often wondered what would have happened if I had. With Lena, I was able to find out.

Growing up in 1960s Brooklyn, Lena wants to be a baker just like her mother was back in Poland prior to World War II. But questions about those days, and about a sister Lena never even knew, are ignored with solemn silence. It’s as if everything her parents left behind was a subject never to be broached.

The one person in whom Lena can confide is her best friend, Pearl. When she suddenly disappears from Lena’s life, Lena forges ahead: college, love and marriage with a wonderful man, the dream of owning a bakery becoming a reality, and the hope that someday Pearl will return to share in Lena’s happiness—and to be there for her during the unexpected losses to come.

Only when Lena discovers the depth of her parents’ anguish, and a startling truth about her own past, can they rebuild a family and overcome the heart-wrenching memories that have torn them apart.

About the Author: Shirley Russak Wachtel is the author of A CASTLE in BROOKLYN, the moving story of a Holocaust survivor whose dream of building his own home and raising a family in Brooklyn is threatened when unexpected tragedy occurs. This highly touted debut novel reflects the aspirations of anyone who dreams of a better life. Other of her books include THREE for a DOLLAR, an anthology of her short stories, THE STORY of BLIMA, the journey of the author’s mother in the Holocaust, IN THE MELLOW LIGHT, a book of poetry, and several books for children. Her short stories and poems have appeared in various literary journals. Born and raised in Brooklyn, Wachtel is now a college professor in New Jersey where she lives with her husband, Arthur. She has earned a Doctor of Letters Degree from Drew University, and in 2017 she received the Middlesex County College Scholar of the Year Award. But her proudest achievement are her three sons and two granddaughters, Zoey and Emmy.