When We Were Ashes, Andrew Boden
When We Were Ashes, Andrew Boden
List: $19.99 | Sale: $13.99
Club: $9.99

When We Were Ashes

Author: Andrew Boden

Narrator: Keval Shah

Unabridged: 8 hr 49 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 09/17/2024


Synopsis

When the grey bus came to take Rainor Schacht and his friends in the ward for disabled children to a remote hospital called Trutzburg, they had no idea what dark reality awaited them.

No one would tell them what to expect—not Nurse Hilde; not Peter Berger, the kind bus driver; not Dr. Lutz, who ran the Nazi hospital with ruthless efficiency.

Years later, with Berger's coded diary in hand, Rainor sets out to find Emmi, a fellow survivor of Trutzburg, who looked past Rainor's disfigurement and elicited the magic that gave purpose to Rainor and solace to Emmi and the other children.

Set against the backdrop of the Second World War, Andrew Boden's When We Were Ashes takes us to the chilling depths of Aktion T4, one of the darkest chapters in the history of Nazi Germany. In this hauntingly poignant novel, Rainor is led on an illuminating journey to learn the truth about his past and the even more extraordinary truth about his present.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Daniel on December 06, 2024

I thoroughly enjoyed When We Were Ashes. Boden re-creates the nightmarish and lesser-known world of Nazi Germany's extermination of mentally and physically disabled individuals (in addition to other "undesirables"). The writing is crisp; the story and characters leap off the pages. I fell in love wi......more

Goodreads review by Stephanie on February 05, 2025

I found this book kind of hard to follow and understand. Were we going for some sort of magical realism tinged story here? I wanted to see how it would end, so I finished it. The narrators had the same voice, which was difficult to differentiate especially because I listened to the audiobook. The au......more

Goodreads review by Lori on October 24, 2024

This haunting novel about the unthinkable cruelty of Nazi Germany is softened by the warmth (and heartbreak) of children's friendships, love and innocence. A worthwhile read.......more

Goodreads review by John on October 26, 2024

A poignant and sentimental novel based on one of the darkest and least remembered chapters in the history of Nazi Germany. Superbly written!......more