‘Winter Garden’ grabs the heart, fills the soul

  Family secrets, mother-daughter conflict, and the World War II German Nazi invasion of Leningrad, Russia, are all elements that can be found in Kristin Hannah’s new novel, “Winter Garden.”
  The title of Hannah’s latest book might imply a winter setting, but “Winter Garden,” encompasses all seasons as Hannah tells the heart-wrenching story of one family and the secrets that seem too heavy a burden to share.
  As children, Meredith and her sister Nina always had thought their mother was a bit strange. Cold and withdrawn, Anya Whitson was the epitome of a Russian ice queen, but their father always interceded and gave the girls the love they craved. But when their father passes away, Meredith, now with a family of her own and in charge of the their apple business, is left to deal with her mother and her increasingly strange behavior.
  Meredith appeals to Nina, a roving but renowned photojournalist, to come home to help, and it is Nina who begins to crack through the icy barrier their mother has put between herself and her daughters. Urging her mother to tell the fairy tale she told them as children, Nina soon finds that the story is not fiction, but actually the horrific tale of a woman who desperately sought to survive the destruction of Leningrad during World War II and in doing so, nearly perished herself. As Meredith finds herself drawn to the story as well, the two sisters learn why Anya was the way she was, and why it affected their lives so significantly.
  The journey the three women undertake to unravel the past would soon lend itself to healing the present as well as to securing the future for their family.
  Kristin Hannah has eighteen wonderful, best-selling books to her credit, but “Winter Garden” is her masterpiece. Her story flows seamlessly from the historical brutality of war-torn Leningrad to the peacefulness of Anya’s winter garden to the icy splendor of modern-day Alaska.
  This is a story of mothers, daughters and sisters. It’s also a story of sacrifice, selflessness and strength. And it is a story of the renewing power of love, patience, trust and faith. “Winter Garden” grabs your heart, challenges your mind and fills your soul. Well done, Ms. Hannah.