The World That We Knew, Alice Hoffman
The World That We Knew, Alice Hoffman
12 Rating(s)
List: $25.99 | Sale: $18.20
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The World That We Knew

Author: Alice Hoffman

Narrator: Judith Light

Unabridged: 10 hr 15 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 09/24/2019


Synopsis

Audio bonus! The audio download edition includes an exclusive interview with Alice Hoffman and Judith Light!

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER * LONGLISTED FOR THE ANDREW CARNEGIE MEDAL

On the brink of World War II, with the Nazis tightening their grip on Berlin, a mother’s act of courage and love offers her daughter a chance of survival.

“[A] hymn to the power of resistance, perseverance, and enduring love in dark times…gravely beautiful…Hoffman the storyteller continues to dazzle.” —THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW

At the time when the world changed, Hanni Kohn knows she must send her twelve-year-old daughter away to save her from the Nazi regime. Her desperation leads her to Ettie, the daughter of a rabbi whose years spent eavesdropping on her father enables her to create a mystical Jewish creature, a rare and unusual golem, who is sworn to protect Hanni’s daughter, Lea. Once Ava is brought to life, she and Lea and Ettie become eternally entwined, their paths fated to cross, their fortunes linked.

What does it mean to lose your mother? How much can one person sacrifice for love? In a world where evil can be found at every turn, we meet remarkable characters that take us on a stunning journey of loss and resistance, the fantastical and the mortal, in a place where all roads lead past the Angel of Death and love is never-ending.

About Alice Hoffman

Alice Hoffman is the author of more than thirty works of fiction, including The Book of MagicMagic LessonsThe World That We KnewPractical MagicThe Rules of Magic (a Reese Witherspoon Book Club Pick), the Oprah’s Book Club Selection Here on EarthThe Red GardenThe DovekeepersThe Museum of Extraordinary ThingsThe Marriage of Opposites, and Faithful. She lives near Boston.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Nilufer on October 17, 2022

Magical realism crashes into folklore, mysticism with heart wrenching Holocaust casualties’ poignant story with well-rounded, fantastically developed, relatable characters could be the best formula and definition of WRITING A MASTERPIECE AND CREATING AN AMAZING PORTRAIT BY USING WORDS AS LIKE SMALL......more

Goodreads review by Angela M on September 09, 2019

This is one of the most heartbreakingly beautiful books I’ve read. I don’t know much of anything about Jewish Mysticism or folklore, but it’s woven into the story in such a stunning way. It does take some suspension of disbelief to accept the premise of the story, a mother begging a rabbi’s daughter......more

Goodreads review by Will on November 01, 2023

Ruth knew what evil could befall a girl traveling alone. Especially now, when there were demons dressed in army uniforms on every corner. Ruth knew of them as mazikin, terrible creatures whose work was the misery of humankind. They had accomplished their work in Berlin…newspapers printed captions......more

Goodreads review by Debra on January 06, 2025

"...for what good is it to rescue yourself if you leave behind the person you love the most?" I don't think that I can do justice to this beautifully written tale of love, family, faith, resistance, longing, grief, pain, sacrifice, duty, and what it means to be alive. Hoffman's writing is heartbr......more

Goodreads review by Canadian Jen on October 26, 2019

Hoffman spins a brilliant heart stopping story of WW2. The world we knew is a world that exists no longer during this time of atrocity; of fear; of sacrifice. But the similarities of these stories, as heart hurting as they are, stop there. She magically transcends this story into one that includes a......more


Quotes

'Hoffman works her magic once again in this unique audiobook. Judith Light's intensely dramatic narration suits the subject matter well. She delivers the dialogue passionately, and the narrative is brisk and sharp. Set in Europe during WWII, this unconventional story traces the steps of women so desperate that they are driven to create a golem to serve as a protector. The magical elements seem perfectly realistic as revealed in Light's driving, theatrical delivery. It doesn't take long for the listener to get pulled into this other realm, eager to keep up with Light's narrative pace. The audiobook lays bare the essentials of love and evil, sacrifice and mortality, for contemplation."