{read: tough choices} Those Who Save Us by Jenna Blum

I read Those Who Save Us for a book discussion group about two years ago. When I finished it, I thought it was good but not fantastic and gave it three stars. But over time, it was surprising to me how often the characters and situation kept coming back to me, and I've upgraded my rating to four stars and I want to re-read it. It's about the choices you make to keep yourself and your children alive and safe -- in this case, a sort of deal with the devil. Those choices may have an unexpected price that you were unaware of when you made them. It's also about the relationship between a daughter and her mother many years after this deal - of which the daughter is entirely unaware - since the story alternates between current day and World War II. This is another book that shows a different perspective on the war and how it affected everyday people caught up in its path.

Those Who Save Us by Jenna Blum
(Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2004)
My rating: 4 stars