National Network for Equitable Library Service

Alina and Tomasz are childhood sweethearts. The night before he leaves for college, Tomasz proposes marriage at a woody hill between their homes. But when their rural village falls to the Nazis, Alina does not hear from Tomasz. Is he alive or dead? USA, present day Alice is challenged by life with her son, Eddie, who has autism spectrum disorder. She feels isolated as her husband struggles to accept their son. When her beloved 95-year-old grandmother, Hanna, is hospitalized, a hidden box of mementoes reveals a tattered photo of a handsome young man, a tiny handmade leather shoe, and a letter too faded to read. Hanna begs Alice: Will she travel to Poland to see what became of those Hanna held dearest, so that she can lay to rest the ghosts of the past before she dies?