This book is a memoir inspired fiction following a privileged German-Polish family, through life before, during, and after WW2. I went in expecting a WW2 narrative, but ended up finding the pre-war build up to be quite interesting as well. It is simply narrated and a lot of previous knowledge of WW2 and its horrors supplemented my reading of this book as the book itself is not very war heavy. There were quite a few perspectives and privileged offered to some of the characters which made me reflect on how some advantages can be carried forward if you're lucky enough to have the access.

Finding Ida a book written by author Marya Burgess. This book is based off of a true story and will keep you interested in the turn of events for the 1940s citizens of Poland. Two Polish German sisters Ida and Luiza, are very close to each other, so when Ida disappears after going to her young son in an area occupied by Russian soldiers her sister must act. Bravery must become a way of life for Luiza to avoid the long arms of the German and Russian invaders who seem to be everywhere. Her determination to find Ida will span decades.

as if Marya hasn't succeeded and dont enough great things in her life she now has this stunning book to add to that. and what a book.
this book bring us a winding story through people, times and emotions. and i had so many emotions flooding in throughout. this was such a beautiful read, and i feel a bit bad saying that considering some of what happens. but it was definitely beautifully written.
each moment of this book Marya handles with enough truth but also sensitivity. it really did feel like she knew the very bones of her characters and somehow like she was there with them living it. as i too then felt like i could've been there breathing that same often scary air as the characters were.
i love books around the war era. i haven't much touched upon the time from Poland location. seeing such a time span in the book for Luiza and Ida means we get to really see how the war and not just the Nazis effected there life. there was so much i didn't know! i dint think i could see more evil at that time than the Nazis but this was certainly eye opening to that too. i am in awe of anyone in this country going through what they did, to come through it with any survivable mental and often physical health. its unthinkable what so many went thorough.
because we really feel connected to, and like we've got to know these two woman it was so much more horrible when they were parted. i as a reader felt that in the heart too. which is again such a compliment to Marya's writing.
you care about these characters and are page turning until the end with the need to find out how this story would end. with a need to found out what these two woman's ending would be.
stunning book made all the more powerful and brilliant bu the writing.
and also i am once again thinking, thinking, thinking of one very important thing. how much love is the power of so many things and often the power to get through. seen that. i know that. and books like this only remind me of that.

I have a lot of books on my TBR so when I finish a book I usually delete it from my kindle because I know I’ll never have the time to re-read. But every so often I come across a book that I can’t bear to delete, that I would read again if I had the time, so I save it to a different folder - and this is one of those books. Definitely one of the best I have read this year! I couldn’t put it down. It tells the story of sisters Luiza and Ida, from when Luiza is five up until adulthood, and it’s a fascinating picture of life growing up in 1930s Poland - in some ways, more or less normal life, with the war just going on around them at first. They’re not Jewish, there are brief mentions of the Jews and the ghetto, but this isn’t a typical WWII book. We see Poland split by the Nazis and the Soviets, with Ida caught up in the eastern half, and it never ceases to amaze me at how the Nazis were actually the lesser of the two evils when it comes to the Red Army!

Warsaw 1930’s - Based on the authors mother, this is a story of suffering and the love that is needed to survive. It’s well researched. Heartbreaking.

Ida and Lou-Lou are such vibrant characters …I loved how idka imitated the cook and laughed so hard. Poland is a new country I’m reading about and so excited to see what the author has up their sleeve.