Those Who Save Us by Jenna Blum

Published by

Sarah Ann

on

September 25, 2010

Those Who Save Us may be the most beautiful and haunting Holocaust novel I’ve ever read. Its author, Jenna Blum, is German and Jewish. She once worked for the Shoah Foundation interviewing Holocaust survivors, which inspired her in part to write this book.

Trudy Schlemmer, a history professor, isn’t too close with her mother, Anna. Anna lived in Germany during WWII, and what she experienced and witnessed during that time made her into a quiet, private person. Trudy doesn’t know much about her mom’s past, because her mom never talks about it.

One day, Trudy finds an old photo of her and her mom standing next to a Nazi soldier. Intrigued by this new find, Trudy tries to learn more about the man in the photo, and why her mom was standing next to him.

Those Who Save Us jumps between past and present, with Anna’s story told in the past, and Trudy’s story told in present day. The mystery slowly unfolds, and we learn what Anna experienced before she came to America.

This book is addicting from the get-go. It’ll keep you in your head for several days, and it’ll make you feel things. I could keep going on about how wonderful this book is, but I’ll just sound corny.

Bottom line: add Those Who Save Us to your reading wish list. It’s truly a work of art.

Other books by Jenna Blum:

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Last Updated on February 5, 2026 by Sarah Ann

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