Russian-born Irene Nemirovsky  became a prolific author in Paris in the 1920s. A Catholic convert from a Jewish background, she died in Auschwitz in 1943.

Decades later, her daughters discovered manuscripts for two novels, the beginnings of a five-part series.

Suite Francaise (Knopf, 2006), set in the early 1940s, is a poignant account of life in occupied France. Complex characters abound, both noble and brutal. The author frequently invokes nature metaphorically, in beautifully written prose brimming with  irony, compassion, love for life and evocations of Christian faith. One can only mourn the tragic loss of so great a talent – while thanking God that something so precious and heroic survived.                 – DFD

June 2007