AUTHOR INTERVIEW

What inspired you to write The Other Half of Life?
Ever since I read Anne Frank and Night as a young girl, I have been fascinated by World War II and the Holocaust. Even today I find myself drawn to books, articles, or stories about that time period. I happened upon an article about the St. Louis and I was incredibly moved by the story. I knew immediately I wanted to try to bring it to life for future generations.

What kind of research did you do?
I read many books and newspaper articles on the voyage of the St. Louis. I also viewed the handful of videos with interviews with survivors. In addition, I read books about life in Germany at the time, the Holocaust, chess, and travel on ocean liners. A more complete list of my sources can be found at the back of the novel. Click here to see some of the sources about the St. Louis that I consulted.

Did you interview any survivors of the St. Louis?
I was lucky enough to interview Mr. Herbert Karliner. Mr. Karliner was twelve when he boarded the St. Louis with his family. The high point of researching and writing this book was unquestionably getting to speak with Mr. Karliner, who is an amazing person. For more on Mr. Karliner, click to read my interview with him.

How can I learn more about the St. Louis?
Here are links that will take you to more information about the actual voyage of the St. Louis.
www.ushmm.org/museum/exhibit.online/stlouis
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Holocaust/stlouis.html