The Takeaway Men Book Tour & Giveaway!!

Join us for this tour from July 14 to Aug 10, 2020!Book Details:

Book Title:  The Takeaway Men by Meryl Ain

Category:  Adult fiction 18 yrs +,  264 pages

Genre:  Historical Fiction

Publisher:  Sparkpress

Release date:   August 4, 2020

Content Rating:  PG-13 + M because there are references to extra-marital affairs. There is no explicit sex in the book.

Book Description:

With the cloud of the Holocaust still looming over them, twin sisters Bronka
and Johanna Lubinski and their parents arrive in the US from a
Displaced Persons Camp. In the years after World War II, they experience
the difficulties of adjusting to American culture as well as the
burgeoning fear of the Cold War. Years later, the discovery of a former
Nazi hiding in their community brings the Holocaust out of the shadows.
As the girls get older, they start to wonder about their parents’ pasts,
and they begin to demand answers. But it soon becomes clear that those
memories will be more difficult and painful to uncover than they could
have anticipated. Poignant and haunting, The Takeaway Men explores the
impact of immigration, identity, prejudice, secrets, and lies on parents
and children in mid-twentieth-century America.

Now Available for Pre-order!
Release date: August 4, 2020
Amazon.com ~ Barnes & Noble ~ IndieBound
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Meet the Author:Meryl Ain’s articles and essays have appeared in Huffington Post, The New
York Jewish Week, The New York Times, Newsday and other publications.
The Takeaway Men is her debut novel. In 2014, she co-authored the
award-winning book, The Living Memories Project: Legacies That Last, and
in 2016, wrote a companion workbook, My Living Memories Project
Journal. She is a sought-after speaker and has been interviewed on
television, radio, and podcasts. She is a career educator and is proud
to be both a teacher and student of history. She has also worked as a
school administrator.

The Takeaway Men is the
result of her life-long quest to learn more about the Holocaust, a
thirst that was first triggered by reading The Diary of Anne Frank in
the sixth grade. While teaching high school history, she introduced her
students to the study of the Holocaust. At the same time, she also
developed an enduring fascination with teaching about and researching
the Julius and Ethel Rosenberg case. An interview with Robert Meeropol,
the younger son of the Rosenbergs, is featured in her book, The Living
Memories Project. The book also includes an interview with Holocaust
survivor, Boris Chartan, the founder of the Holocaust Museum and
Tolerance Center of Nassau County, New York. Meryl holds a BA from
Queens College, an MA from Teachers College, Columbia University, and an
Ed.D. from Hofstra University. She lives in New York with her husband,
Stewart. They have three married sons and six grandchildren.

Connect with the author:  Website  ~ Facebook ~  Twitter ~ Instagram

Tour Schedule:July 14 – Viviana MacKade – book spotlight / guest post / giveaway

July 14 – Working Mommy Journal – book review / giveaway

July 14 – Book World Reviews  – book review / author interview

July 15 – 100 Pages A Day – book review / giveaway

July 16 – RebeccaReviewedIt – book review / author interview

July 17 – T’s Stuff – book spotlight / guest post / giveaway

July 18 – Just One More Chapter – book review

July 20 – Pick a good book – book spotlight / author interview / giveaway

July 21 – Splashes of Joy – book review / author interview / giveaway

July 22 – Rockin’ Book Reviews – book review / guest post / giveaway

July 23 – Olio by Marilyn – book spotlight / author interview

July 23 – Olio by Marilyn – book review / giveaway

July 24 – THE WORLD AS I SEE IT – book review

July 27 – Book after Book – book spotlight / author interview

July 28 – Jazzy Book Reviews – book spotlight / author interview / giveaway

July 28 – Leels Loves Books – book review / giveaway

July 29 – She Just Loves Books – book review / giveaway

July 30 – Locks, Hooks and Books – book review / giveaway

July 31 – Reading is My Passion – book review / giveaway

July 31 – The Eclectic Review – book review

Aug 3 – I’m All About Books – book spotlight / author interview / giveaway

Aug 3 – Sefina Hawke’s Books – book spotlight

Aug 4 – Library of Clean Reads – book review / giveaway

Aug 4 – Literary Flits – book spotlight / giveaway

Aug 4 – Peaceful Pastime – book review

Aug 4 – Book Corner News and Reviews – book review / giveaway

Aug 5 – Svetlanas reads and views – book review

Aug 5 – Books and Zebras – book review / giveaway

Aug 5 – Alexis Marie Chute – book review / author interview

Aug 6 – Pen Possessed – book review / giveaway

Aug 6 – Books for Books – book spotlight

Aug 7 – StoreyBook Reviews – book spotlight / guest post / giveaway

Aug 10 – My Fictional Oasis – book review

Aug 10 – Adventurous Jessy – book review / giveaway

Enter the Giveaway:

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

 

The Takeaway Men, by Meryl Ain – 4 Star Review!

Story Rating: ****
Cover Rating: A+

Let me start by saying that I *technically* give this book a 4.5 star rating. When I was first given an opportunity to receive a free copy of the book in exchange for an honest review, I was ecstatic. History is one of my favorite things to learn about, and I’d done extensive research/reading on the holocaust. That desire for more knowledge had been stoked by The Diary of Anne Frank, which was one of my favorite books growing up. But this book? The Takeaway Men? It talks about what happened to Jewish (and Polish) families after the holocaust. I can’t think of any really great stories that talk about life after. Yes, I’ve read some nonfiction titles and while I enjoy those, it isn’t quite the same as getting lost in a story.

I have only a single complaint about the book. The beginning dragged a bit for me, although honestly, I can’t say why. I placed the book down and restarted twice because of this. But, about the second or third chapter, the story pulls you in and holds you  hostage. Again, I’m not sure why the beginning didn’t draw me in the same way, but it may just be a “me” thing.

The characters are well-developed, believable, and flawed. Anyone who has read my previous reviews knows I’m a sucker for humanly flawed characters – and Mrs. Meryl Ain delivered. I won’t go into details because I don’t want to spoil the book in any form. BUT she has her characters doing realistically “bad” things and yet, you can’t help but love them nonetheless. Ain has you feeling for all of them – side characters and primary alike. The entire neighborhood came alive before my eyes and I lost a few nights of sleep.

The underlying mystery adds to the plot. What happened to the twin’s parents during the Holocaust? It’s a constant “background plot” that keeps you reading in the hopes you’ll learn. Of course, I can’t say whether you find out or not, but I can say that I would definitely be interested in reading anything else the author writes in the future.

The cover is intriguing and gives you a realistic idea of what to expect inside the story. The cover receives my ultra-rare “A+” rating (given to, I think, only three other covers ever) because it fills me with a sense of bittersweet melancholy… yet somehow also gives me the sense of hope. This feeling the cover gives me (and gave me before I ever began reading) is exactly how the story feels when you’re reading it.

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