On Monday, June 2^nd, members of The Regency Readers Book Club were treated to a fabulous surprise! Alyson Richman, the author of their latest reading selection, The Lost Wife, decided to join the group for their book discussion. The Book Club members had no idea she would be visiting and they were ecstatic to have the chance to meet Alyson and to talk about this incredible story with her.
The Lost Wife, a national bestseller, is Alyson Richman’s fourth historical novel. The story begins with the reunion of a couple, Josef and Lenka, who, each thinking the other had died in the Holocaust, have not seen each other for sixty years. Alyson imagines the sixty years of separation between the two. From the glamorous ease of pre-War Prague, to the ensuing horror of Nazi Europe, we witness both the dawning of Lenka and Josef’s love affair to its tragic unraveling. The Lost Wife is a story that explores the depth- the power- of first love, the resilience of the human spirit, and our capacity to remember.
It was so interesting for Regency residents to hear firsthand from the author herself how she went about writing this story. Alyson explained the process she goes through when writing. She begins with a question in her head that she doesn’t have the answer to. In this case her question was, if everything was taken from you, would you still have the desire to create? She answers that question throughout the novel. In The Lost Wife, Alyson shows how art, the memory of beauty and the ability to create helped people to get through some unimaginable horrors. She noted that the Nazis valued artistic skill and sometimes this skill even helped people to survive. Alyson does an enormous amount of research for her novels, as it is very important to her that they are historically accurate and emotionally authentic. For this novel she went to Prague to interview artists and she listened to many oral histories at the Holocaust Museum.
The Regency Assisted Living in Glen Cove, Long Island, would like to express their gratitude to Alyson for taking the time to visit with their Book Club. It was such an amazing afternoon that will not soon be forgotten! For more information about this and other programs at The Regency please visit www.theregencyatglencove.com.