Geraldine Brooks’s People of the Book is a richly layered historical novel that takes readers on a haunting, centuries-spanning journey anchored by the Sarajevo Haggadah, an exquisitely illuminated Jewish text that survives war, exile, and persecution. In 1996, Australian book-restorer Hanna Heath is tasked with conserving the Haggadah—but a few unexpected artifacts found in its binding—a butterfly wing, a wine stain, a hair, salt crystals—unravel a tapestry of stories from 15th-century Spain to WWII Sarajevo, revealing how individuals of all faiths risked everything to preserve this precious book. Through atmospheric storytelling and meticulous research, Brooks weaves a sweeping narrative of resilience, tolerance, and the fragile human impulse to protect culture and memory.
Editorial Reviews
“Less flash and more substance than *The Da Vinci Code*… the stories of the Sarajevo Haggadah, both factual and fictional, are stirring testaments to the people of many faiths who risked all to save this priceless work.” —USA Today
“Brooks tackles a most unlikely survivor: The Sarajevo Haggadah…her novel is a testament to tolerance and love … one of the big questions—or answers—that this book leaves you with.” —Yvonne Zipp, The Christian Science Monitor
About the Author
Geraldine Brooks is an Australian-American journalist and award-winning novelist renowned for her sweeping, deeply researched historical fiction. Born in Sydney in 1955, she began her career as a foreign correspondent for The Wall Street Journal, covering conflicts in the Middle East, Africa, and the Balkans. Her first novel, Year of Wonders (2001), was followed by March (2005), which won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. People of the Book (2008) continued her literary acclaim, earning Australia’s Book of the Year and Literary Fiction Book of the Year awards.
