An intimate portrait of a friendship severed by history, and a sweeping saga of wartime, motherhood, and legacy by an award-winning novelist
East Village, 1989 Things had never been easy between Ava Fisher and her estranged mother Ilse. Too many questions hovered between them- Who was Ava’s father? Where had Ilse been during the war? Why had she left her only child in a German orphanage during the war’s final months? But now Ilse’s ashes have arrived from Germany, and with them, a trove of unsent letters addressed to someone else unknown to Ava- Renate Bauer, a childhood friend. As her mother’s letters unfurl a dark past, Ava spirals deep into the shocking history of a woman she never truly knew.
Berlin, 1933 As the Nazi party tightens its grip on the city, Ilse and Renate find their friendship under siege-and Ilse’s increasing involvement in the Hitler Youth movement leaves them on opposing sides of the gathering storm. Then the Nuremburg Laws force Renate to confront a long-buried past, and a catastrophic betrayal is set in motion… .
An unflinching exploration of Nazi Germany and its legacy, Wunderland is at once a powerful portrait of an unspeakable crime history and a page-turning contemplation of womanhood, wartime, and just how far we might go in order to belong.
Praise for Wunderland
Engrossing … Epstein reveals the devastating choices these women make. -Real Simple
Wunderland is both an engrossing family drama and a foray into a dark period of history … a wholly original angle to the WWII novel. You’ll read it in one shivered sitting. -Refinery29
A vividly written and stark chronicle of Nazism and its legacies. -Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
A wealth of history turns Wunderland into a novel that’s both beautiful and devastating… . Epstein taps into the 1930s prewar era, laying out an unsparing narrative that details tragic events and horrifying legacies … opening a new door that may lead to redemption and joy for future generations. -BookPage (starred review)
A heartbreaking historical tour de force … Man’s inhumanity to man-and the redemptive power of forgiveness-is on stark and effective display in Epstein’s gripping novel, a devastating tale bound for bestseller lists. -Publishers Weekly (starred review)
