Gratitude

Hello Mr. Kertes,

I have just finished reading your new novel, Gratitude, and I must admit I am extremely impressed. Gratitude has made a deep impression on me about the many deportations of Hungarian Jews. It also amazed me that many of the characters and stories in the novel are based on the actual experiences of your grandparents' family and friends. Some of these events include the near-death experience that Marta has in the gas chamber at Auschwitz, and the daring rescue that Paul attempts in order to save his family from deportation. You've also painted an image of the injustice and madness of the time. An example would be Lili's village, Tolgy, which is cleared out entirely by the Germans without warning. Lili is orphaned in that short stretch of time, and must now learn how to survive by herself. After meeting the Beck family, however, Lili becomes their principal breadwinner. Also, the many injustices that Zoli captures in his pictures also provide additional atmosphere to that dark period in history. Eventually, Zoli is deported himself, which leads to his wife-to-be, Rozsi, to commit suicide. The decision to kill certain characters also contributes to the plot. Unfortunately, Gratitude does not have a fairy-tale ending, which I think is important. Over half a million Jews were deported from Hungary during the Second World War. Very few families escaped entirely intact. It was a reality of the time that family members would simply vanish without a trace, such as Zoli and Raoul Wallenberg. Families such as the Becks had to learn to cope with these disappearances. All in all, I think that Gratitude is an extremely thought-provoking and well written book. It is important that people hear of this time in human history, and I think that you have done an excellent job of portraying it.

Sincerely,
Oliver Jones