Explore our new BookBrowse Community Forum!

What readers think of The Book of Lost Names, plus links to write your own review.

Summary |  Excerpt |  Reading Guide |  Discuss |  Reviews |  Beyond the book |  Read-Alikes |  Genres & Themes |  Author Bio

The Book of Lost Names by Kristin Harmel

The Book of Lost Names

by Kristin Harmel
  • BookBrowse Review:
  • Critics' Consensus:
  • Readers' Rating:
  • First Published:
  • Jul 21, 2020, 400 pages
  • Paperback:
  • May 2021, 400 pages
  • Reviewed by BookBrowse Book Reviewed by:
    Will Heath
  • Genres & Themes
  • Publication Information
  • Rate this book

Reviews

Page 2 of 2
There are currently 9 reader reviews for The Book of Lost Names
Order Reviews by:

Write your own review!

Amy Ashe

Ultimately disappointing
This book was engrossing because of its information regarding forgeries during WW II, but I was ultimately disappointed on two aspects of the book. First, as a Jewish reader, I was taken aback by some lack of knowledge concerning Jewish customs (ie, Jews don’t kneel for prayer and Hanukkah - the only Jewish holiday mentioned - is a minor holiday especially in Europe at that time period). Also, I was a bit taken aback that the informer—spoiler alert—-was Jewish, but not Jewish enough for the Nazis to arrest since he wasn’t 100 Jewish; the Nazis considered a person Jewish if one grandparent was a Jew.
My other disappointment concerned the plot. The odds of two 85 year old people being both physically and mentally healthy - and reuniting after so many years - is astronomical, but I’ll go along with the romance aspect. What was really missing was any mention of the children, whose real names were carefully recorded in the clever code, after the war. Was any effort made to track down these kids? Or to reunite them with family? Yes, I know the names were sent to Yad V’Shem in Jerusalem, but considering the novel’s title is The Book of Lost Names, surely more attention could have been paid to this aspect.
I was sorry I spent money on this novel.
  • Page
  • 1
  • 2

Top Picks

  • Book Jacket: Our Evenings
    Our Evenings
    by Alan Hollinghurst
    Alan Hollinghurst's novel Our Evenings is the fictional autobiography of Dave Win, a British ...
  • Book Jacket: Graveyard Shift
    Graveyard Shift
    by M. L. Rio
    Following the success of her debut novel, If We Were Villains, M. L. Rio's latest book is the quasi-...
  • Book Jacket: The Sisters K
    The Sisters K
    by Maureen Sun
    The Kim sisters—Minah, Sarah, and Esther—have just learned their father is dying of ...
  • Book Jacket: Linguaphile
    Linguaphile
    by Julie Sedivy
    From an infant's first attempts to connect with the world around them to the final words shared with...

Members Recommend

  • Book Jacket

    Pony Confidential
    by Christina Lynch

    In this whimsical mystery, a grumpy pony must clear his beloved human's name from a murder accusation.

Who Said...

Not doing more than the average is what keeps the average down.

Click Here to find out who said this, as well as discovering other famous literary quotes!

Wordplay

Solve this clue:

F the M

and be entered to win..

Your guide toexceptional          books

BookBrowse seeks out and recommends the best in contemporary fiction and nonfiction—books that not only engage and entertain but also deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world around us.