From the back cover: "In 1927, when prosperity still reigns in Central Europe, Yenko is born to two Coppersmith Gypsies. His parents, Josef and Anna, are nomads who raise their son during the relative calm of the Great Depression of the 1930's. Soon, though, dangerous times threaten to unsettle their family, as their heritage makes them vulnerable targets for ethnic cleansing. As Germany invades Czechoslovakia and the conflicts of World War Two begin to unfold, Yenko and his parents become fugitives, forced on a journey that promises only great uncertainty and offers survival as a remote possibility. In the course of their flight, the burden of an ancient tradition rests entirely on Yenko's shoulders.
In capturing the desperation and perseverance of one family during an extaorinary time in history, Louise Doughty pays powerful homage to an insular and little-known culture."

This was a horrendous story, but one that needed to be told. I am glad that I read it, as I am now better informed about this terrible time in the history of the Gypsies and know more about their culture.

This is my third copy of this very good story.

My selection from the Two Worlds VBB just arrived in the mail.
Along with a bookmark that says "How will you get everything read with only one life?" Oh so true....
Thank you, loveamystery!

A brilliant, powerful, compelling novel about the Gypsy Holocaust. It’s an excellent portrait of Roma life and customs, not pointing a finger on for example patriarchal traditions that seem hardly understandable for us, but simply describing things in the same neutral way as the strong mother-child bond of the Roma is depicted. Prejudices of both sides, the Roma and the gadje (the settled people) are portrayed. The descriptions of the persecution, incarceration and genocide of the Gypsies are nightmarish, it never becomes polemic though. The novel’s characters are fictional, but everything, such as the concentration camp Hodonin, is based on historical facts.
Highly recommendable.

It's partly set in Prague, so I thought you might be interested in it.
(And as it's going to Finland now, maybe some time it will find its way to Annimanni? It's on her wishlist...)

Thank you so much for this surprise RABCK, Apoloniax!