Hannah's Dress: Berlin 1904 - 2014 Hardcover – Illustrated, May 1, 2017

I love German history and WWII history and have read many, many books about the Third Reich. This book goes down to the details of ordinary Germans on one street in Berlin -- some Jews, some not. Their stories are fascinating and moving. The title of the book is a bit misleading, because Hannah is only one of the stories in here (though hers is the most heartbreaking, I think). The author is a wonderful writer and I have been searching for more of her books translated into English, because my German is not very good. Ms. Hugues, if you read this: bitte mehr englische Übersetzungen!

This is a must read for anyone interested in the history of Berlin, the history of the Third Reich, and the ways in which the Holocaust was experienced by people on the ground rather than in the lagers. Hugues has focalized this history through the residents of one street in Berlin, from the inception of the street through the twentieth century. The stories of the people who lived there, traced through archives, newspapers and interviews, are compelling and informative. Social history at its best.

This book took me in a direction I didn't see coming. I knew this would be a historical read and I was looking forward to spending some time in a place I've never visited. What I took away from this were a serious of stories about a group of people that experienced a great many things throughout various times in history. It was truly unique and a reading experience that won't be soon forgotten.Ms. Hugues describes in great detail a neighborhood that she moves into and grows to love and be a part of. Seeing it's rich history, she attempts to reach out to various residents that have at some point called the neighborhood home. Much to her surprise she receives a great number of responses to her requests from all around the world. She corresponds with these folks and eventually meets a great number of them and shares their tragic, lovely, and truly engaging stories.I won't go into great detail about the individual stories within as they are all unique. A number of them revolve around Jewish families who were predominant in that neighborhood prior to the late 30's. These aren't eye opening and terribly tragic but very captivating. The name sake story about Hannah's Dress is some of the most vivid story telling I have read and will remain in my mind for months to come. When all was said and done with the book, I wish I could have heard more of that one particular story. Not taking away anything from the others but, that was truly something.This is a great historical read and will give you pause and reflection throughout. The undertaking and magnitude of this project is truly amazing and Ms. Hughes does an amazing job sharing them. It reads a bit slow at times and is sometimes a lot to take in but it is truly worth it. You won't be disappointed.

I sew and knit and tat lace. I enjoy history through handwork, especially women's handwork. I had thought this book might be a history by way of ephemera, like Hannah's Dress. That was a poor assumption, it was only a slight part of the book.I found the book readable and engaging but also moody and nostalgic. You read of people and see photos of them enjoying life before they escaped to NY or Israel. I felt a natural gloom over this book since you know going in so many of the stories do not end well.It is fairly translated, no flow problems I could see. Perhaps as Americans it Is hard to see the sentiment about a street, we can be do rootless at times. Liked it but a bit scattered and didn't quite come together for me to b 5 stars.

I received a free electronic copy of this novel from Netgalley, Pascale Hugues, and Polity in exchange for an honest review. Thank you all, for sharing your hard work with me. This English version was translated by Jon Delogu, with passages from the German translated by Nick Somers.This proved to be a very compelling book, from an unusual perspective. Pascale Hugues, a French journalist living in Berlin, tells us about the residents, businesses and local attitudes of the street where she lives in modern Berlin, from 1904 when it was inhabited by the more well to do, mostly Jewish families, and follows the highs and lows of the residents of the street until 2014 when the French version of this fine tale was published by Editions es Arenes, Paris. This proves to be an excellent view of the changing norms that led to both Wars to End Wars in Europe in the twentieth century. It is also a warning look at the precursors that allowed a society based loosely on equality to fall into one that could look the other way when genocide was the new norm.

Although the subject of the book is very interesting, this book fails to meet the challenge. I just didn't engage me. I don't know if it was because of the translation or editing, but the book was not smooth. It was choppy, at times it wasn't clear who was talking or what time frame we were in. Also, I never really connected with any of the individuals mentioned. Also, the author needlessly made it a bit to impersonal. She doesn't even name the street (for those of you who want to know, it is Schwabische Strasse in the Schoneberg district of Berlin), just kept calling it "My Street", why?

An interesting read of a compliltion of real life stories evoking a glimpse at the more recent history of homes and residents of Berlin.

Great insight into Berlin life, particularly during the pre war years

When author Pascale Hugues moved to Berlin, she had the inspired idea to write the biography of her street. It is unassuming; her apartment in a renovated older building. There is an underground stop, a church, a small, scruffy square, a little alley linking the street to a major road and a pizza shop. Berlin, like so many other cities in Europe, bear the scars of war. The modern and the old live side by side, with new buildings replaced those that were bombed.This is the story, then, of a street from 1904 – 2014. Of course, you can take any street, virtually anywhere, and unearth a thousand stories and characters. The central theme of this novel is the way that Germany is still coming to terms with its wartime past. Over 100 Jewish inhabitants of Pascale’s street were deported in the war and the title of the book comes from Hannah Kroner-Segal, whose childhood friend, Susanne Wachsner, made her an evening dress to wear on the voyage to the United States in 1939, when she fled Berlin with her parents.It is obvious that there are still scars present in Berlin which are not only linked to buildings, but also to people. Hugues reports that there was uproar in her building over a commemorative plaque for the thirteen Jewish residents deported. Many of these tales are heart breaking indeed. There is Mr and Mrs Kutschera, whose children, Ger and Karin, died in Poland. Painful returns; such as a visit by John Ron, who revisited the street in 1957 after having fled nineteen years before and others who made new lives elsewhere.This is not just about the war though and it is fascinating to read about a little corner of the world in the beginning of a century. Of a street born in 1904, whose most famous resident was David Bowie, who lived in Berlin from 1976 to 1978 (there is not much beyond a mention of Bowie, if you are considering reading the book because of that). Rather than the famous though, this is the story of normal lives; particularly those whose everyday existence was torn apart by the turbulent times in which they lived.

This book is both captivating and enthralling, so evocative of an age with its vivid descriptions. One street seen as a microcosm of society, but symbolic of the global path of destruction endured by many European towns and cities during the Second World War. Some images may seem banal, yet at the same time fascinating and really rather extraordinary.This is indeed a very human story, the unwitting testimony of several former residents of this particular street in Berlin during one of the most momentous and turbulent times of the 20th Century. A tale of privations endured in a most moving and poignant way, coupled with an unnerving sense of sheer coincidence at times that assists uncannily in leading this author forward in her quest in writing this book, a book that is easily read and readily devoured.A celebration of essential human values, the quiet stoicism, perseverance and determination in coping with the need to adapt to change and losses of so many kinds, in some ways I didn’t want it to end. Highly recommended.

I have to admit I rather foundered with this one. Whether it was purely because the focus was very much more on Berlin during the Reich, so it was a narrower (in time) look at place than I was expecting/hoping for, or whether it was purely that the author's personal voice just didn't really grab me, the way I always want to be, I don't know, but I found myself, over some months, picking this up, reading, realising I wasn't fully concentrating or engaged. It could have been purely a problem in translationI can't even offer any more coherent explanation other than, not for this reader. I see plenty disagree, and the Look Inside feature will enable an prospective reader to see is Pascale Hugues (and her translator's) voice works for them or not