An Afterlife

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Frances Bartkowski. An Afterlife

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Advance Praise

“An Afterlife is a totally surprising book, unforgettable in its depiction of the daily lives of holocaust survivors in postwar Germany. Ruby is a seamstress so talented that her sense of color, thread, and fabrics becomes a bridge to friendship with a German shopkeeper who shares her passion and quietly employs her. So many details linger within Bartkowski’s skillful telling: the dark bread, the small celebrations, the amazing images of young refugee mothers walking in town with their baby carriages, lover’s afternoon walks (back before curfew), are miracles upon miracles. The characters agonize between remembering and forgetting, but An Afterlife moves forward, and like all truly visionary books, re-defines its title. We read An Afterlife with an awareness of present streams of refugees, supported, resisted, misunderstood, and the repetition of old cycles adds to the depth of Bartkowski’s novel.”

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Motek was smiling—Ilya could see that it took some effort. But his eyes burned bright at the pleasure of Ruby’s visit. She was a girl from home. It was good to remember how they had been young together before the war. Ruby had told Ilya about Motek’s parents, who owned the most beautiful coffee house in their neighborhood of Kazimierz. Her family often came for hot chocolate and pastries on Sunday afternoons in winter. Sundays were for long walks to the edge of town and back. Coming back from these walks, she and her sister would beg to warm up at the café. They all knew each other from school, and their familiarity delighted Ruby and Pearl’s parents, who could see their daughters through the eyes of others when they went out in public. Today Motek had been reminiscing about his father and uncle who ran the shop. His words were labored, but he was visibly proud of how they had kept the wooden benches, chairs, and floors polished so they would reflect more light in the mirrors all around. When you entered it was a dream of opulence. Always a special occasion, even though Ruby’s family was well off enough to go regularly. Those days of pleasure and fancy were so far behind, but for Ruby and Motek to see each other brought back the feeling of ease—before life turned dark.

She could see he wasn’t going to make it.

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