Martin Fletcher, a longtime Middle East correspondent for NBC News, will share the story of his family’s post-Holocaust history when he talks about his new book, “The List,” at 8 p.m. Thursday at the Jewish Community Center of the North Shore in Marblehead.
“The List” follows the lives of Edith and Georg, Austrian refugees who are expecting their first baby, in London and Palestine. The characters are based on Fletcher’s parents. Anti-Semitism is common in London even as the world learns of the Holocaust. Edith and Georg search for surviving family members while struggling in a world of terrorism, assassination attempts, and fear.
“It’s always been a struggle and it still is,” Fletcher said. “Jews had to find their place in Europe, America, and Palestine after World War II and the Holocaust, and they are still seeking acceptance and stability. ‘The List’ shows the genesis of our current malaise. We had to rebuild our lives then, and we are still building, seeking acceptance.
“It’s a personal story,” Fletcher said. “After 40 years as a journalist, telling other people’s stories, I tell the story of my own family. I hope I did my family justice and also the millions of others who experienced similar tragedies. . . . Ultimately their story is not one of loss and pain but of facing challenges and rebuilding lives, of hope and love. In my parents’ home, there was no such thing as complaining when things went wrong. What could be worse than what their family had been through? There was only the wonder of being alive.”
Fletcher’s appearance is part of Jewish Book Month events at the JCC. For more information on the series, call 781-631-8330 or go to www.jccns.org.
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