The Baker's Daughter: A Novel [Deckle Edge] [Hardcover]

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

The Baker's Daughter: A Novel [Deckle Edge] [Hardcover]

Product Details

Hardcover: 304 pages
Publisher: Crown (January 24, 2012)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0307460185
ISBN-13: 978-0307460189
Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 1.2 x 9.6 inches
Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)

By : Sarah McCoy
List Price : ~~$23.00~~
Price : $14.55
You Save : $8.45 (37%)

Customer Reviews

Elsie Schmidt is 16 years old and the youngest daughter of a baker in Garmisch Germany. The year is 1944 and the Third Reich and Hitler rule Germany. While war is everywhere Elsie and her family are kept safe by an older well connected soldier who has feelings for Elsie. Her older sister,Hazel, was engaged to another soldier and has a son from that relationship. She now lives and has children in the Lebensborn program, imagine a sanctioned place for sex to create a perfect Aryan nation, she has also had twins.
One Christmas Eve changes everything for Elsie. She went to the first adult party and dance of her life, and while she should have been enjoying her new dress and date, the evening was marred by the actions of a brutal Nazi officer. Elsie returned home very shaken up that night, an engagement ring on her finger, and she discovered a shocking surprise behind her home..........
In El Paso TX Reba Adams is a journalist searching a unique twist on a Christmas feature she's writing. The year is 2007. Her search for traditions around the world lead her to Elsie's German Bakery. Reba feels her own life is upside down. She's engaged to Riki, a border patrol officer, she's running from her own family past, and she's certain El Paso is not where she wants to settle. Reba finds much more than her story when she meets Elsie and her daughter Jane.
This book is really the story of Elsie and Reba, two young women, separated by 63 years, but facing similar life altering choices in their lives. I fell in love with Elsie immediately, her heart so pure, so honest and always thinking of her family and how each move she makes will impact them. She grows up so quickly, because of the war, because of her situation, and her childhood is over. She adores her parents, and she keeps their traditions and the art of baking close to her.
Loving Reba was only a little harder. Her young life wasn't easy, and she didn't have that strong family support system to lift her up. I think I wanted her to question her life with Riki less, but of course Sarah McCoy knows how to weave this story, and I should never have doubted her.
Trying to give a synopsis of this book is not easy, and yet I want to put it into my own words. Simply put this book is beautiful and heart breaking. The back and forth in the story is done so very well. I was excited to read each story, anxious to see how they would progress, and eventually intertwine. The historical research is accurate and so strikingly frightening. I must say this second novel far exceeded my expectations, I won't soon forget these characters and their story.
I've given this book 4.5 out of 5 stars, and if you love history, love stories, or a story of love over hate, this book will stir in your heart for a long time.

"The Baker's Daughter" is beautifully written and has an addictive quality in that if you are able to finally put the book down, you can't help but think about Elsie and her family until you can lose yourself in the story once again. McCoy has woven Elsie's and Reba's tales together seamlessly to create a tale of love, pain, heartbreak, courage and forgiveness.
Read my full review at [...]