The Legacy of Karen Gershon: from child survivor to author and poet

In a variety of genres and narrative styles, author and poet Karen Gershon chronicled her European childhood, rescue on the Kindertransport, and life in the aftermath of the Holocaust, with unmatched candor and stunning insight. Written by her daughter and based on Gershon’s private archives and letters to her sister, this biography presents a fascinating portrait of a child survivor whose talent for writing crowned her the voice of a whole generation. The major events of Gershon’s life are presented with great perspicacity alongside her development as a writer forced to change languages. Revealing the remarkable story of an English family largely unaware of their Jewish connection, struggling with immigration to Israel, inevitable conflicts and near tragedy. Gershon’s legacy relates to universal human themes: being a refugee, the never-ending search for a viable identity and sense of home, as well as the inevitable effects of inherited trauma and rootlessness on the next generation. This book will be especially interesting to literary or historical scholars, those interested in the Holocaust, Jewish studies, and humanity in general.