'A delicate, evocative story of strength and survival that turns on one of the most powerful forces in the known universe: a mother's love.' - Jonathan Freedland, author of The Escape Artist
A powerful, true story of a Holocaust survivor told by her daughter - a tale that reminds us of the resilience of the soul and the ability of the heart to heal.
Born in Czechoslovakia, Mira was only 12 years old when World War II broke out and 17 when the Nazis finally caught up with her. Torn apart from her family, she went on to survive four concentration camps, including Auschwitz, and a Death March when she was too weak to walk. She lived when almost everyone she knew did not.
At 88, living in Australia, Mira is diagnosed with cancer and her daughter, a journalist, decides to interview her to distract her from her illness. As Mira gives her testimony Rachelle comes to understand how Mira's unique perspective - seeing her experiences through the lens of the goodness of the people who helped her - protected her from the depths of humanity's cruelty, and enabled her to go on to live a full and brilliant life.
Rachelle also fits together the jigsaw pieces of her own life as a child of a survivor. She comes to understand that however different their lives have been, she and her mother are uniquely united by a fierce inner strength to live, and a mystery of strange things that always seem to happen around them.
A beautiful story of love, loss, wonder and the deepest kind of trust in life, A Brilliant Life questions the role that fate, chance and destiny play. It is a tribute to family, a story of incredible resilience, and a chronicle of the deep connection between a mother and a child which not even death can destroy.
A powerful, true story of a Holocaust survivor told by her daughter - a tale that reminds us of the resilience of the soul and the ability of the heart to heal.
Born in Czechoslovakia, Mira was only 12 years old when World War II broke out and 17 when the Nazis finally caught up with her. Torn apart from her family, she went on to survive four concentration camps, including Auschwitz, and a Death March when she was too weak to walk. She lived when almost everyone she knew did not.
At 88, living in Australia, Mira is diagnosed with cancer and her daughter, a journalist, decides to interview her to distract her from her illness. As Mira gives her testimony Rachelle comes to understand how Mira's unique perspective - seeing her experiences through the lens of the goodness of the people who helped her - protected her from the depths of humanity's cruelty, and enabled her to go on to live a full and brilliant life.
Rachelle also fits together the jigsaw pieces of her own life as a child of a survivor. She comes to understand that however different their lives have been, she and her mother are uniquely united by a fierce inner strength to live, and a mystery of strange things that always seem to happen around them.
A beautiful story of love, loss, wonder and the deepest kind of trust in life, A Brilliant Life questions the role that fate, chance and destiny play. It is a tribute to family, a story of incredible resilience, and a chronicle of the deep connection between a mother and a child which not even death can destroy.
A delicate, evocative story of strength and survival that turns on one of the most powerful forces in the known universe: a mother's love. Jonathan Freedland, author of The Escape Artist
"A delicate, evocative story of strength and survival that turns on one of the most powerful forces in the known universe: a mother's love. Braiding together the past and the present, A Brilliant Life shows how the two can never be separated-how, in families especially, we are shaped by the stories we inherit." - Jonathan Freedland, bestselling author of The Escape Artist
"If A Brilliant Life were a painting, it would be hanging in a Palazzo in Italy among the classic chiaroscuro paintings of Caravaggio-a technique from the Renaissance era where the contrast of light and dark brushstrokes tells the whole story with some melancholy shades. Unreich has cleverly painted her mother's story in all its shades of glory and despair; a woman who stepped into the canvas of life and painted her own bright fulfilling future." - Harper's Bazaar
"Journalist Unreich makes a graceful book debut with a family history, gleaned from interviews that she conducted with her 89-year-old mother, Mira, before she died from cancer . . . . A daughter's tender portrait of a woman who lived through terror." - Kirkus Reviews
"Well researched but never dry, the book shines when describing Mira's family and her capacity to see light through horrific darkness and notice the moments of serendipity . . . We are brought into the family fold and invited to join them in Mira's final days, enjoying the richness of the storytelling the way we might at a Shabbat meal." - Books+Publishing
"As cancer takes hold of Mira, her journalist daughter decides to interview her about her early life, her experiences in four concentration camps, her marriages and her new life in Australia. What she discovers, she relates with a filial devotion that is deeply poignant." - The Age
"Rachelle Unreich's story of her mother's Holocaust experiences lays bare the horror of those years . . . Woven throughout, though, and more vivid almost than their persecution and murder, is the intense love that flows through her family." - The Weekend Australian Magazine
"This powerful story reminds us of the incredible resilience of the soul and the ability of the heart to heal. A Brilliant Life is an ode to the unbreakable bond between a mother and child and questions the role that chance, and destiny play in one's life. We highly recommend!" - 7Weekender
"A Brilliant Life goes well beyond the horrors inflicted by the Nazis. It celebrates Mira's spirit, her creativity, sense of style and love for her family." - Plus61J Media
"I was lucky enough to meet some of the family earlier in the year when I, along with a few other booksellers, was invited to a gathering at Mira's house. It was a night I will not forget. We left with a warm buzz; we had just experienced something very special. Now, having read the book, I know other people will be able to get a sense of this experience; the warmth, welcome and awe of a life, despite all the odds, lived with love, generosity, and a twinkle in the eye. A life lived to the full-a brilliant life." - Readings, Australian Book Retailer of the Year
"If A Brilliant Life were a painting, it would be hanging in a Palazzo in Italy among the classic chiaroscuro paintings of Caravaggio-a technique from the Renaissance era where the contrast of light and dark brushstrokes tells the whole story with some melancholy shades. Unreich has cleverly painted her mother's story in all its shades of glory and despair; a woman who stepped into the canvas of life and painted her own bright fulfilling future." - Harper's Bazaar
"Journalist Unreich makes a graceful book debut with a family history, gleaned from interviews that she conducted with her 89-year-old mother, Mira, before she died from cancer . . . . A daughter's tender portrait of a woman who lived through terror." - Kirkus Reviews
"Well researched but never dry, the book shines when describing Mira's family and her capacity to see light through horrific darkness and notice the moments of serendipity . . . We are brought into the family fold and invited to join them in Mira's final days, enjoying the richness of the storytelling the way we might at a Shabbat meal." - Books+Publishing
"As cancer takes hold of Mira, her journalist daughter decides to interview her about her early life, her experiences in four concentration camps, her marriages and her new life in Australia. What she discovers, she relates with a filial devotion that is deeply poignant." - The Age
"Rachelle Unreich's story of her mother's Holocaust experiences lays bare the horror of those years . . . Woven throughout, though, and more vivid almost than their persecution and murder, is the intense love that flows through her family." - The Weekend Australian Magazine
"This powerful story reminds us of the incredible resilience of the soul and the ability of the heart to heal. A Brilliant Life is an ode to the unbreakable bond between a mother and child and questions the role that chance, and destiny play in one's life. We highly recommend!" - 7Weekender
"A Brilliant Life goes well beyond the horrors inflicted by the Nazis. It celebrates Mira's spirit, her creativity, sense of style and love for her family." - Plus61J Media
"I was lucky enough to meet some of the family earlier in the year when I, along with a few other booksellers, was invited to a gathering at Mira's house. It was a night I will not forget. We left with a warm buzz; we had just experienced something very special. Now, having read the book, I know other people will be able to get a sense of this experience; the warmth, welcome and awe of a life, despite all the odds, lived with love, generosity, and a twinkle in the eye. A life lived to the full-a brilliant life." - Readings, Australian Book Retailer of the Year