Limmud Oz 2021

What are the challenges and moral issues that arise when writing a work of fiction about the Holocaust? Suzanne Leal's latest novel The Deceptions is based on a true story of wartime betrayal told to the author by her late neighbours, Fred and Eva Perger, who were both Holocaust survivors. Moving between wartime Europe and modern Sydney, the novel is about a woman kept captive in the ghetto of Theresienstadt and the Czech gendarme who becomes her prison guard. It's also about the nature of deception and betrayal and the place of truth in families with long-guarded secrets. The Deceptions considers decisions made in the turmoil of war and the consequences not only for those directly involved but also for their descendants. Join Suzanne to discuss this fascinating true story and the moral implications of writing other people's stories.