The Lost Wife

Alyson Richman

Apr 2012 · Recorded Books · Narrated by Suzanne Toren and George Guidall

About this audiobook

A rapturous novel of star-crossed love in a time of war—from the international bestselling author of The Secret of Clouds.

During the last moments of calm in prewar Prague, Lenka, a young art student, and Josef, who is studying medicine, fall in love. With the promise of a better future, they marry—only to have their dreams shattered by the imminent Nazi invasion. Like so many others, they are torn apart by the currents of war.

Now a successful obstetrician in America, Josef has never forgotten the wife he believes died in the war. But in the Nazi ghetto of Terezín, Lenka survived, relying on her skills as an artist and the memories of a husband she would never see again. Then, decades later and thousands of miles away, an unexpected
encounter in New York leads to an inescapable glance of recognition, and the realization that providence has given Lenka and Josef one more chance.

From the glamorous ease of life in Prague before the occupation to the horrors of Nazi Europe, The Lost Wife explores the power of first love, the resilience of the human spirit, and our capacity to remember.

About the author

Alysin Richman was born on May 19, 1972. She graduated from Wellesley College in 1994 and received a Thomas J. Watson Fellowship. She is best known for her novel The Lost Wife, which is a story about a husband and wife who are separated in a concentration camp during World War II and met up years later at their grandchildren's wedding. Her other title's include The Mask Carver's Son, The Ryhthm of Memory, The Last Van Gogh, and The Garden of Letters. George Guidall is one of the most prolific narrators of audiobooks in the world. He has recorded nearly 650 unabridged novels, everything from "Crime and Punishment" and "The Iliad" to "Snow Falling on Cedars." He began his career as an actor, appearing on Broadway and touring Europe with Helen Hayes in the "Glass Menagerie," " Miracle Worker" and "The Skin of Our Teeth." He received an Obie Award for Best Performance Off-Broadway, and has continued his performances in theater for over 40 years. Guidall has also appeared on television, with roles on the soap "One Life to Live" and "Law and Order," and in movies such as "Malcolm X" and "Tales from the Darkside." His first job reading audiobooks was for the Library of Congress' American Foundation for the Blinds' Talking Books. Since then he has won the most prestigious Audiobook Award, the Audie Award, for Best Unabridged Narration of a novel for his recording of John Irving's "A Widow for One Year." He won the Audie again in 2000 for Wally Lamb's "I Know This Much is True."