Why I Love ... Wednesday!

Why I Love ... Wednesdays is a meme hosted by Alexis over at reflections of a bookaholic. Each Wednesday is an opportunity to explore a different aspect of literature and why I love it. Today's topic: Underrated author.

So I'm not exactly sure you could call her 'underrated' but I do think not enough people have heard of her or have read her books. My choice is Tatiana de Rosnay. I have read two of her books (in English) and they are two of my top ten: 'Sarah's Key' and 'A Secret Kept'.

From Amazon: 'It all began with a simple seaside vacation, a brother and sister recapturing their childhood.  Antoine Rey thought he had the perfect surprise for his sister Mélanie's birthday: a weekend by the sea at Noirmoutier Island, where the pair spent many happy childhood summers playing on the beach.  It had been too long, Antoine thought, since they'd returned to the island--over thirty years, since their mother died and the family holidays ceased.  But the island's haunting beauty triggers more than happy memories; it reminds Mélanie of something unexpected and deeply disturbing about their last island summer.  When, on the drive home to Paris, she finally summons the courage to reveal what she knows to Antoine, her emotions overcome her and she loses control of the car.'
The rest of the book consists of Antione and Melanie trying to remember the
 secret and redefine their childhood and family relations in light of it.

Again from Amazon: 'Paris, July 1942: Sarah, a ten-year-old girl, is taken with her parents by the French police as they go door to door arresting Jewish families in the middle of the night. Desperate to protect her younger brother, Sarah locks him in a bedroom cupboard—their secret hiding place—and promises to come back for him as soon as they are released.
Sixty Years Later: Sarah’s story intertwines with that of Julia Jarmond, an American journalist investigating the roundup. In her research, Julia stumbles onto a trail of secrets that link her to Sarah, and to questions about her own future.'

Both books are amazingly well written and original. I loved them both and will definitely read more from Tatiana de Rosnay. If you haven't discovered her yet, I'd recommend you head to the book store or library and do just that.