Who is Kristen Harmel?
Three things about Kristen Harmel–
- She is one of five bestselling authors that, at the beginning of the pandemic, founded Friends and Fiction, an online community and Facbook Live show for booklovers. FriendsandFiction.com
2. She writes stories about World War II, many of which are set in Paris. WHY?
Harmel began writing at age 16 and was for many years a writer for People Magazine. She lived in Paris for a period of time, during which her boydfriend traveled from the United States to propose to her!! Harmel began writing novels full time after the publication of The Sweetness of Forgetting. Of course, the success of a novel that uncovers secrets from World War II era France has prompted Harmel to continue researching and writing about that era. In an interview, Harmel listed several reasons she thinks readers never get tired of these stories:
–WWII fiction connects us with a disappearing gneration, the ‘Greatest Generation’
–Within these stories there is no doubt a sense of good vs. evil, and we know that good wins out in the end
–Historical novels are based on true stories of heroes and heroines that most people have never heard of
–Lesson learned from the Holocaust and other WWII events are applicable to life today
3. Harmel has a new book out based on true events of World War II. What’s the name of the book and what’s it about?
Harmel’s newest book is entitled The Forest Of Vanishing Stars. Set duing WWII, the story follows a young girl who is kidnapped and raised in the forest and then manages to assist a group of Jewish people, also living in the forest to hide from capture and certain death. Who knew as many as 25,000 Jews actually did hide in forests in Eastern Europe for three years? They not only escaped the Nazis, but they also operated resistance efforts that saved others.
And now we know why so many of us like to read historical fiction and find Kristen Harmel’s book so compelling. Have you read The Book of Lost Names? Are you going to read The Forest of Vanishing Stars?