The Lost Café Schindler: One family, two wars and the search for truth by Meriel Schindler

The Lost Café Schindler: One Family, Two Wars and the Search for Truth by Meriel Schindler is a deeply moving family memoir that blends personal history with the wider story of Europe in the 20th century. At the heart of the book is the famous Café Schindler in Innsbruck, Austria, a meeting place that became a symbol of culture, resilience, and survival during some of Europe’s darkest years. Through meticulous research and heartfelt storytelling, Meriel Schindler unravels the truth about her Jewish family’s experiences during World War I, the rise of Nazism, and World War II. Part history, part biography, and part detective story, this memoir explores themes of identity, belonging, memory, and the scars left by conflict. It sheds light on forgotten voices, intergenerational trauma, and the enduring importance of uncovering family truths. Perfect for readers of Edith Eger, Philippe Sands, and family histories set during World War II, The Lost Café Schindler is both a powerful chronicle of survival and a celebration of heritage. It is an essential read for anyone interested in Jewish history, war memoirs, or literary non-fiction that brings the past vividly to life. �� Add The Lost Café Schindler to your collection today and uncover a story of courage, loss, and rediscovery across generations. Publisher Synopis: Kurt Schindler was an impossible man. His daughter Meriel spent her adult life trying to keep him at bay. Kurt had made extravagant claims about their family history. Were they really related to Franz Kafka and Oscar Schindler, of Schindler’s List fame? Or Hitler’s Jewish doctor – Dr Bloch? What really happened on Kristallnacht, the night that Nazis beat Kurt’s father half to death and ransacked the family home? When Kurt died in 2017, Meriel felt compelled to resolve her mixed feelings about him, and to solve the mysteries he had left behind. Starting with photos and papers found in Kurt’s isolated cottage, Meriel embarked on a journey of discovery taking her to Austria, Italy and the USA. She reconnected family members scattered by feuding and war. She pieced together an extraordinary story taking in two centuries, two world wars and a family business: the famous Cafe Schindler. Launched in 1922 as an antidote to the horrors of the First World War, this grand cafe became the whirling social centre of Innsbruck. And then the Nazis arrived. Through the story of the Cafe Schindler and the threads that spool out from it, this moving book weaves together memoir, family history and an untold story of the Jews of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. It explores the restorative power of writing, and offers readers a profound reflection on memory, truth, trauma and the importance of cake.Discover The Lost Café Schindler by Meriel Schindler, a moving family memoir set against the backdrop of two world wars. Blending history, biography, and personal journey, it traces the story of a Jewish family, their beloved Austrian café, and the search for truth across generations.