The Woman He Loved Before

The Woman He Loved Before, written by Dorothy Koomson, was one of the many books I bought while visiting the Land of E this summer.  It was a book which sounded like a promise of a good read but failed to come to fruition.

The Woman He Loved Before is about the relationship between Libby and Jack, complicated pasts, and twisted family ties.  Libby, Jack's second wife, is haunted by the unanswered questions behind the death of Jack's first wife, Eve.  Koomson takes readers on a tale of love, sensuality, and abuse as she explores the life of Eve and it's impact on Jack's new relationship.  Libby comes to question her relationship with her husband and the possibility of his hand in the murder of Eve.  The book's main question:  How and why did Eve die?

The Book Thief

Photo taken by Ms. C

I had been in a Holocaust-themed reading rut for a long time prior to reading this book.  In fact, I could not bring myself to read any literature on the Holocaust since visiting Auschwitz-Birkenau in April 2011. 

I could research the topic into oblivion during my Undergraduate days...  I would read book after book on the Holocaust prior to my visit to Auschwitz-Birkenau.  Yet, I was now unable to read the first few pages of any Holocaust-themed item.

What was the weirdest part about my reading rut?  The actual visit at Auschwitz-Birkenau did not move me to the degree that I thought it would.  I found that the camp, while an emotional site, had become too tourist-centered.  It was only after I returned to Canadian soil that the thought of reading about events at the place I had just visited began to disturb me.  I could vividly picture what the authors were writing.  I could recall walking in that very camp the authors were so expertly describing, and if I closed my eyes, their stories and my experiences at the same site began to overlap.

Consequently, I have a large pile of Holocaust literature sitting on my bookshelf waiting to be read. 

I told my friend, K, my reading problems... and the fact that I really wanted to read a book called The Book Thief.  After a little persuasion, I left a store with The Book Thief placed neatly into my shopping bag.  I began reading the book later on that afternoon.