Lev Raphael: Author Appearances

My Germany

"As the New York-born son of eastern European Jews who barely survived the Holocaust, Lev Raphael grew up in a world haunted by secrets and ghosts. Having spent years fleeing from his parents’ past, he decided to confront that past and, in the process, to come to grips with Germany, the country he blamed for the horrors visited on his parents and, indirectly, on himself. My Germany is part travelogue and part detective story, as Raphael sets out to trace what happened to his parents and their families during the war. Above all, it is a wholly enthralling, beautifully written story of healing and forgiveness, in which Raphael not only sheds his hatred and fear of Germany but comes to a deeper, richer understanding of his parents and Jewish heritage—and, above all, of himself."
—Lynne Olson
Author of Troublesome Young Men

“True to his other works, his book is powerful and captivating to the end.”
—Library Journal (starred review)

“A cleansing, passionate memoir.”
—Kirkus Reviews

“Remarkably satisfying.”
—Booklist

“Compelling... In My Germany Raphael describes a reconciliation with modern Germany as a means of parting with secondhand demons that have always haunted him as a child of Holocaust survivors.”
—Hadassah

“A gifted and eloquent writer, Lev Raphael bravely undertakes an astonishing journey in My Germany.”
—Studies in American Jewish Literature

“Lev Raphael’s 19th book is the capstone to three decades of writing fiction and nonfiction about children of Holocaust survivors.”
—Detroit Jewish News

“Raphael returned to Germany on his own terms, not as a son of Holocaust survivors seeking out their pasts, but as a successful writer creating his future. My Germany manages to push Second Generation memoir beyond rehearsals of family pain toward personal and cultural reconciliation.”
—The Grand Rapids Press

My Germany "is a moving, beautifully written account of a personal quest that is remarkable not just for its take on a rarely discussed subject, but for the writer's own (never mentioned) bravery as he attempts to retrace his parents' steps. In reconstructing this part of their lives, he constructs his own. It is impossible to read Raphael's story without feeling a sense of awe at what he was able to accomplish. And without feeling the inspiration to confront our own travails, using them to strengthen our own lives with the same kind of determination."
—Nicki Leone
Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance

"Ein sehr ehrliches, rührendes Buch... wirklich etwas Besonderes, was ich in dieser Art noch nicht gelesen habe."
—Annik Rubens
„Schlaflos in München“

"Stunning and powerful... Lev Raphael’s memoir is a superb work combining intellectual rigor with emotional honesty."
—Alan L. Berger
Raddock Family Eminent Scholar Chair of Holocaust Studies, Florida Atlantic University

Reviews of My Germany

Writing the Past interview with Lev Raphael (PDF)

Lev Raphael reads from My Germany

Lev's German Tour 2010

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