Book Review: No Time To Cry

I'm so behind on reading!
I try to read mysteries at night, more serious books, such as biographies or somesuch, in the daytime when I have a moment. I finished this book on the back deck, watching a bluebird pair flit about. We haven't had bluebirds, not that I've seen, as they like open farmland. It made me think of the Bluebird of Happiness.

No Time To Cry

This is a powerful biography. You can read the first few pages here.
 I cannot imagine such terror, yet it goes on in the world around us. If you wonder at the life of a refugee, you should read this well-written book. There are a few typos, but it is a book rich in beautiful images. Just when I think that the brutality, the hatred, and her terrible losses overwhelm, Ms. Leinvebers switches back to her current life, in my hometown of Toronto. She's notice the beauty of a garden, the richness of the world around her, and the hope that remains.

Vera Leinvebers is a Latvian-born Canadian, who made a life for herself playing piano, educating and teaching, despite her horrific saga. She is a beautiful person, despite her life circumstances, and it helps me understand my students who fled war and trauma, such as the Gulf War, and those who fled their precious homes in Asia ( i.e. Vietnamese Boat People).

Sadly, tyrants continue to dominate their precious citizens, at the great cost to humanity. We must not forget the past.
This is a book to add to the list.  The book doesn't explain the war at all, but presents the story from her experiences and point of view as a child in an interesting series of flashbacks.  She doesn't follow a timeline, illuminating flashback through a series of vignettes after we know she is safe in Toronto.

She illustrates her indomitable spirit, her positivity, and trying to live in the present moment, despite many, many losses.
I was curious about the death of her parents, although she did not choose to illumine that part of her life.

I have read many books about WW II, many survivors have come to Canada. Some Holocaust survivors have gone around the province, talking to children. It is a powerful message. This is one of those books.

• People like Eva Olsson, for example. 



Eva Olsson

• Viktor Frankl's book, about being in a camp was inspiring. 

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@Barrie Summy