The Last Year of the War by Susan Meissner
- Erin
- Jun 27, 2024
- 1 min read
5/5 Stars
After falling in love with Only the Beautiful by Susane Meissner, I knew I wanted to read more of her novels. The Last Year of the War is what I chose to read next by this author. It takes the reader on a poignant journey through a time where war divided families and fear drove decisions, but love transcended all. I really loved this book and did not want it to end.
Susan Meissner introduces us to two friends, Elise Sontag and Mariko Inoue, two adolescent girls, one German-American (Elise) and one Japanese-American (Mariko) in the throes of a turbulent World War II America. Elise and Mariko meet in an internment camp and navigate the challenges of such a placement together. They both identify as American, while their predicament identifies them as the enemy. They are repatriated to Germany and Japan and live their separate lives. The reader is given an intimate and emotional portrait of what that was like for the two friends. Then, in their elder age, the story culminates in a satisfying end.
Susan Meissner has written a compelling, informative, well-researched and emotional novel with The Last Year of the War. Not many authors have tackled the topic of internment camps in America during WWII, but Meissner does so with grace, and created a beautiful, redemptive and satisfying story.
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