Waiting for Eugene [Hardcover]

Sallie Lowenstein (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 6-9–Sara Goldman, 12, never knows when her architect father, a Holocaust survivor, will retreat into the dark, frightening world of his childhood memories. She is fascinated by the stories of his time in hiding, and the many, possibly imaginary, characters who kept him company. Meanwhile, Sara nurtures a budding first romance with the boy next door, and her developing artistic skills help her father face his painful past. The story has potential, but stilted dialogue and awkward pacing will limit its appeal. The time period is unclear, though small details and Sara's air of naiveté give it the feel of the 1950s or early '60s. Sara's character never feels fully developed; her reactions to a complex set of issues and problems seem too simple and childlike for her age. Her changing relationship with neighbor Willie is also very thinly sketched. Readers with a strong interest in the Holocaust might find the novel intriguing. Others looking for fiction about survivors may prefer Ida Vos's Anna Is Still Here (Houghton, 1993), Carol Matas's After the War (S & S, 1996), or one of the many excellent nonfiction accounts of children's experiences during the Holocaust.–Miranda Doyle, San Francisco Public Library
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Gr. 6-9. Lowenstein tenderly portrays one family's response to a father's mental illness. Twelve-year-old Sara Goldman's French architect father survived World War II by hiding in a cellar for two years. On his bad days, he is back in that cellar, interacting with other refugees. On his good days, he is charming and attentive, encouraging Sara's love of art, drawing with her, and sharing compelling memories. Lowenstein's empathy for both the father and the rest of the family creates a full and sympathetic picture of the pressures weighing on everyone. This subtle book contains many shining parts: the father's memories, the art lessons, the loving relationship between Sara's parents, Sara's protectiveness toward her father, and her realization that the neighbor boy who plays the cello means more to her than just a friend. Throughout, Lowenstein maintains an accessible, quietly poetic voice. Intriguing illustrations by the author are an integral part of the text. This may not draw a wide audience, but those who enjoy reading about the power of art, music, words, and memory will find treasure here. Debbie Carton
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 11 and up
  
• Hardcover: 200 pages
• Publisher: Lion Stone Books (October 9, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0965848655
• ISBN-13: 978-0965848657
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 5.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,918,990 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Lowenstein's Best, January 8, 2006

By 

M. A. Harper (New Orleans, LA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Waiting for Eugene (Hardcover)

What fiction writer, at this late date, could possibly have anything new to say about the Holocaust? What is inarguably the central tragedy of the 20th Century tends to sink these days beneath the weight of its own horrifying importance. It takes a wholly original imagination to again pull a living human story from the mudslide of sanctified history and make it fresh and chilling, and thank God Sallie Lowenstein has one.

In a more melancholy voice than she has used in the past yet still with convincing childlike levity, Lowenstein wades right in as if the subject is as new to us as it is to her main character, Sarah, a twelve-year-old artist growing up in the less ironic America of four decades ago. Sarah is innocent, corny and goofy, but that naivete can be a virtue, not a setback, because she's able to view both her immigrant father Michel's worsening mental illness and the gradually emerging circumstances of his wartime experiences with an utterly fresh eye. She paints what she imagines. Through her art, Michel's strange and dreamlike stories begin to emerge illustrated on actual paper, providing both father and daughter new perspective on deep griefs and terrors which might help him sort himself out a little. Now if Sarah can only--literally--help him put some pieces back together . . .

Subplots concerning a neighbor boy and a schoolroom bully work better at some moments than at others, but Lowenstein's confident narration of the central plot is done with the light touch of a true child who doesn't know that she's confronting "History". No, this is Sarah's own personal story, and all Sarah cares about are her parents and friends, and the way her hand can create worlds with a pencil, and saving her father. History can go hang.

Long noted for her illustrated children's novels, Lowenstein's artwork again graces her words here. But it's her new willingness to let a little of the ugliness of the adult world shadow her characters that makes them leap off the page. Sarah, a girl you'll either want to parent or be, comes off so real that you even see the ink beneath her nails. EUGENE is the kind of book that lives in the mind long after the last page is reluctantly read.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Haunting Tale, December 10, 2005

By 

Shelley Bush "Country gal" (Glen Rock, PA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Waiting for Eugene (Hardcover)

Sara Goldman knows that she is different. Instead of worrying about boys, makeup, and fashion, she spends her time drawing. She already knows that she will be an artist, she just has to. However, she also is different because of her father. Her father, when well, is an architect. But when he is sick, he still believes that he is hiding from the soldiers during the war. He tells Sara great stories about the people who visited him while he stayed below the barn floor. Sara adores these stories even though she knows that her father is not well. He does not even recognize her when he is sick! Sara has trouble because she thrives on his stories. She draws the characters as her father describes them, fueling his sickness. She is torn between pleasing her mother and her own curiosity about the people her father knew.

Waiting for Eugene is an easy to read novel. Readers will understand Sara's pain as she fights her mother to hear another story, even though she becomes scared of her crazy father. She loves him when he is well and the family thrives. However, just like that, her father can disappear into his fantasy world. Readers will adore this book as much as I did.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of Sallie's Best Books, November 10, 2005

By 

Helen C-D - See all my reviews

This review is from: Waiting for Eugene (Hardcover)

I first wanted to read this book because the girl described on the inside flap sounded like me- artistic and out-of-place with "normal" teens. Once I started reading, though, I kept reading simply because the book was well written and had an intriguing plot. The development of the characters, especially one of the central characters, who does not actually appear in the present-day setting of the novel, is surprising, and very interesting to read. Aside from Sender Unknown, Waiting for Eugene is my favorite of Sallie's books. I highly reccommend it for anyone who has ever felt outside of the "norm," and for anyone who enjoys a good story.