Reviewed in the United States on February 17, 2020
I had a hard time putting down Lila. Being of the same generation as the adolescents in this story, I identified with their emotional ups and downs and uneasy relationships with each other, even though my growing up took place in the gentle suburbs of the North Shore of Chicago, Lila made me realize that the stories of our parents and the secrets of their lives, even if they did not include the horrors of the Holocaust, has affected how we children though about and interacted with our friends.
Reviewed in the United States on February 17, 2020
How do the children of holocaust survivors cope with the intergenerational transfer of trauma? First time novelist Rose Ross tells a gripping story about how Sarah and Lila are affected by — and cope with-the impact of their parents hopes, dreams, and demons. Lila is an important contribution to post- holocaust coming of age fiction.
Recommended! A most absorbing read
Reviewed in the United States on March 18, 2020
Children of Holocaust survivors, referred to as the Second Generation, can be deeply affected by the horrific events their parents experienced. This intergenerational transmission of trauma is clearly and subtly depicted in the absorbing novel “Lila” by Rose Ross.
It’s the story of three Second Generation kids as they grow into adolescence in their 1950’s Bronx neighborhood. Short chapters rotate between the points of view of Sarah, whose loving parents contrast with those of her nemesis Lila, and Sarah’s beloved best friend, the gifted Michael, who grapples with the awareness of his never-made-explicit homosexual longings. All three nurture dreams of artistic accomplishment and fame. Every voice is distinct, recalling the turmoil of the teens, drawing the reader into each character’s point of view of the same events.
Their relationships are nuanced, intertwined with those of their parents, each of whom is damaged in a different way by the past. The plot develops with a light touch, as these kids start to grow into who they will become, for better or worse.
Each character is portrayed, warts and all, with compassion and subtlety. Ross shows us that survivors (and perhaps all of us) contain both victim and aggressor, and that, under certain circumstances, dark impulses may awaken within each of us. This is a satisfying book, a page turner. I felt I had briefly inhabited that old-timey Bronx neighborhood where all the neighbors knew everyone’s business and folks brought platters of appetizers to the New Year’s Eve Party in Apartment 4B. In the end, I felt richer for reading this book. I’m perhaps a little sadder, but also a more compassionate person.
Second Generation Turmoil: Stirring Coming Of Age Novel
Reviewed in the United States on March 12, 2020
Born into an intergenerational legacy of pain, guilt and trauma, children of Holocaust survivors are a delicate breed. Where some members of the second generation overcompensate for the horrors visited upon their parents by becoming overachievers, others, like the eponymous “Lila” in Rose Ross’ wrenching and unsettling new coming of age novel, act out. In Lila’s case, the havoc she wreaks has devastating consequences, culminating in tragedy.
The daughter of Holocaust survivors, beautiful and damaged Lila grows up in the same New York City apartment building with Sarah. Like Lila, Sarah is also a daughter of survivors and was even born in the same displaced persons camp in Germany after World War II. With so much in common, you would think the two would naturally gravitate toward each other, becoming surrogate sisters, the best of friends. Instead, Lila treats Sarah with a mingling of contempt and suspicion. To Lila, Sarah is someone to persecute and play mind games with. But, as written with great nuance and psychological understanding by the author, Lila is very much a victim as she is a victimizer.
Lila’s big problem, which she cannot escape, is her toxic family. Her father has an unseemly obsession with her that is troubling to say the least while her mother is ravaged with jealousy and hatred toward the girl. It’s a disturbing dynamic rendered more so when set against Sarah’s loving and stable family environment. With this kind of upbringing, small wonder Lila is her own worst enemy. And it is this self-destructiveness that sows the seeds for Lila’s ultimate ruin.
Ross, herself the child of Holocaust survivors, has written a poignant novel that is both unforgettable and haunting. It’s a must-have for anyone’s bookshelf. Highly recommended.
I received an early copy of this book in advance for a fair and honest review
Reviewed in the United States on March 13, 2020
Rose Ross’s astonishing new novel is a compelling and moving piece of work on so many levels. She captures the essence of shared childhood memories, torments and love. Ross provides a lens through which we not only see her world, but to this reader it is a world that I found very familiar and psychologically insightful.
Blessings and Burdens we inherit at Birth
Reviewed in the United States on April 23, 2020
Rose has written a powerful book that grabs your curiosity from the very first page. She gradually develops each character with a systematic precision and clarity, that pulls you into the moment, making you believe you can predict what comes next – but often, what you anticipate is far from what happens! The book is well written, engaging and a page turner! Lila’s story portrays the complicated, universal ‘coming of age’ phenomenon with knowledge, subtlety and sensitivity. After reading Lila you will understand once and for all, the underlining role and inevitable psychological and cultural influences, we all inherit at birth. What we inherit, haunts us, and becomes the hidden road-map for how we lead our lives. The circumstances of our birth can be burdens or blessings depending on how honestly we deal with them. Rose urges us to learn each other’s stories and listen before we judge. She reminds us not to let societal norms, prejudices and expectations override what we know about ourselves and our family’s inter-generational secrets. In Lila, we see how facing our history liberates us and opens up our minds and hearts to forgive ourselves and others for otherwise inexplicable behavior.
Reviewed in the United States on March 25, 2020
It pulled me in at page one and I didn’t want to put it down. It stirs your heart and your mind. On one level you get to know and care about the characters and their stories. On another level, those stories are complicated and thought provoking. LILA is an excellent bookclub selection.
Reviewed in the United States on March 31, 2020
It has been awhile since a book has captivated me like Rose Ross’s LILA. It is a beautifully written story about the coming of age Sarah and Lila, children of Holocaust survivors. The tale unfolds in their post-war South Bronx neighborhood in the late forties and fifties.
Like the story itself, Ms. Ross’s writing style is honest and unpretentious. Written in the first person from each character’s point of view, LILA wrapped itself around me as if I was part of the experience. Sarah and Lila come to life through their own actions and reactions rather than through the author’s descriptions of them. This simplicity of style makes for a very authentic, readable book.
The author brings to light a unique perspective on the Holocaust, how the atrocities of the War pass from one generation to the next. Two families’ intertwined lives carry the indelible imprint of long ago events. In her deft and subtle treatment of the subject, Ms. Ross conveys the existential reality of the Holocaust’s lasting effect. As Sarah says in the Prologue, these “horrors… seeped into our souls.”
A wonderful read—a book club must
Reviewed in the United States on March 27, 2020
While Holocaust survivors left the camps with no suitcases, they did leave carrying very heavy baggage. Their future children unknowingly would feel the weight of this baggage as it would become their first and constant companion.
Ms Ross, a child of survivors, wrote what she observed and experienced in that small exclusive world of immigrated holocaust survivors.
The characters in LILA are well developed and relatable— probably a composite of persons in the author’s childhood. Each seemed so real to me that I had to regretfully remember that I was going to lose them after I had closed the book. A wonderful read.
A fresh voice tells a little known story
Reviewed in the United States on March 16, 2020
This is a powerful and moving story told in vivid strokes that capture the struggles holocaust survivors and, especially, their children wrestled with after they seem to be living normal lives. The characters touched me, opened my eyes to the hidden trauma of people who could have been my classmates or, are neighbors today. Their voices are funny, natural and real. I had trouble putting down LILA and recommend it to book groups
A remarkable story, beautifully told.
Reviewed in the United States on March 22, 2020
Rose Ross has written a compelling and important story of three teenagers and their families in the aftermath of the Holocaust. The story moves swiftly through the eyes of the characters. Each character is finely drawn. I could not put it down.
Reviewed in the United States on March 29, 2020
I had a hard time putting this down, the characters show a sense of the truths of human experiences complicated by being children of Holocaust survirors. Ross’s writing is honest and moving.
Reviewed in the United States on April 6, 2020
This was a deeply moving book about three children, and their families,experiencing the struggles of adolescence, compounded by being the children of survivors.
While each of their three stories are different, they are also intertwined. There was great character development and story building.
I would definitely recommend this book.
Reviewed in the United States on March 14, 2020
I really enjoyed how the story progressed. I thought the character development was spot on. And the unfolding drama held my attention.
Reviewed in the United States on March 13, 2020
I enjoyed reading Lila. It made me laugh and cry. I couldn’t put it down. Kudos to Rose Ross for her first book. Looking forward to the next.
Reviewed in the United States on March 22, 2020
Extraordinary. Beautiful, crisp prose. Scenes as vivid as a motion picture. The story of three families struggling to move on from the shadows of the holocaust in New York City through the eyes of three adolescents. The characters are so vivid and complex, I rooted for all of them at times—even the most damaged.
This heart filled novel made me feel the angst of the teenager on a very personal, intimate level. It has universal appeal for anyone seeking to understand the adolescent mind and how it struggles to overcome trauma.
A moving, lyrical narrative I’ll read again. Some of the passages and scenes—unforgettable.
Reviewed in the United States on March 16, 2020
I read the wonderful story of Lila and Sarah even before it was in print, but I just completed a second reading aloud to a blind friend. The characters came more alive to me voicing the very perfect dialogue and inhabiting each characters persona through their distinct and truthful voices. Theirs may not have been anything like my childhood, but everyone can relate to the teenage struggles. It gripped us both from the prologue and never lost any energy all the way to the end. The only problem? We wanted more.
Reviewed in the United States on March 24, 2020
Lila tells the story of 3 young teens growing up with their own personal insecurities and a backdrop of family turmoil.
They are children of Holocaust survivors.
Their relationship with each other and their parents are complicated. Told through the eyes of the main characters, the secrets haunting their parents are revealed as the story progresses.
The book keeps us wanting to know more.
Not only how the teens relate to each other, but how they see themselves.
You will be caught up in this journey of love, hate, fear and redemption.
lila review Ellen Nathanson Oaklnd CA
Reviewed in the United States on March 19, 2020
To those looking for a wonderfully readable, quintessential page turner, Rose Ross’s Lila fills the bill. Set in the mid 1950’s, and told from the point of view of 3 young teenagers, it manages to capture not only “normal” youthful angst, but the special problems and torments that come from being the children of Holocaust survivors. You will not be able to put it down!
Best Book Read in a While
Reviewed in the United States on March 13, 2020
Lila is a most compelling story. I was unable to put the book down from the time I opened the cover and turned to page 1 until it was finished. It was engaging and thought provoking. I would recommend this to readers from 13 to 80+.
The novel is a page-turner
Reviewed in the United States on October 19, 2020
Lila by Rose Ross is the searing portrait of several young Bronx neighbors and classmates whose parents are Holocaust survivors. Told in first-person accounts by key characters, the novel is a page-turner. With sublety and purpose Ross reveals how Holocaust evils can cast a wide net, affecting generations of families.