The Lost Baker of Vienna

Papa whispered to Chana, 'If we get separated, if something happens to me, look after Mama and Aron. And one last thing-' He smoothed an affectionate hand over her hair. 'Remember everything I've taught you, and all your gifts. Promise me this.'

1946. Having survived a concentration camp, Chana Rosenzweig arrives in Vienna seeking not only protection for her and her family, but also the freedom to be a baker, just as her father had once been. Torn between a black-market dealer who offers escape to Europe, and an apprentice baker who shares her dreams, Chana battles to stay true to herself and the promise she made her father to live against all odds...

2018. When Zoe Rosenzweig's beloved grandfather dies, Zoe travels to Vienna to speak to an elusive man who may be the only person who can help her unearth the hidden story of her grandparents. Haunted by what she does not know, Zoe risks her journalism career and her home to find the truth.

Inspired by the extraordinary experiences of the author's mother and her family during and after the Holocaust, The Lost Baker of Vienna is a testament to the courage and defiance of women in a world torn apart.

About the Author

Sharon Kurtzman earned her MFA in Writing from Vermont College of Fine Arts. As a freelance food writer, her work has appeared in INDY Week and South Writ Large, and she served as a judge in the North Carolina Triangle's 2019 Chicken Soup Cookoff. She is also a former blogger for The Huffington Post and a former contributor at BetterAfter50.com. She has had two fiction pieces nominated for the Pushcart Prize, and won the 2018 Grand Prize in Carolina Woman Magazine's annual writing contest. Sharon has been a writer-in-residence at the Weymouth Center for the Arts and Humanities and is a member of the Women's Fiction Writers Association. Sharon grew up in New Jersey and now calls the South home.