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Melnitz
1871. Cattle-dealer Solomon Meijer has made a reputation for himself in Endingen, a rare Swiss town in which Jews are allowed to reside. He leads a largely untroubled life, but this is set to end when he answers a knock at the door in the middle of the night. On the doorstep stands his young distant cousin, Janki, half-dead and begging for refuge. The pitiful figure is invited in and given a coveted place in the bosom of the family, but when Janki recovers and regains his ambition and his fine looks, he will change the Meijer family's lives for generations to come . . .
944 pages
2021
978-3-257-07153-5
»A powerful arc of suspense, incorporating the greatest longings for advancement and the worst historical catastrophes.«
»Charles Lewinsky’s Melnitz is not just a moving book, but a great one; it restores a vivid, sensory and precise language to our bewilderment in the face of history.«
»Lewinsky is a masterful storyteller. He depicts unforgettable, striking characters. (...) This is a beautiful story about ordinary people who make the best of it even when fate holds terrible things in store for them.«
»An unforgettable reading experience.«
»Once you’ve started reading, you simply can’t put it down; the misfortune of cattle dealer Salomon Meijer and his family grips you from the very first page.«
»Lewinsky describes the family with humour and warmth, whilst also depicting the everyday anti-Semitism that ultimately shatters the dreams of these Swiss Jews.«