Lottie, a talented violinist, disappeared during the Holocaust. Can her grand-niece, Charlie, discover what happened?

SEARCHING FOR LOTTIE
by Susan Ross
Holiday House, February 2019

A long-lost cousin, a mysterious locket, a visit to Nana Rose in Florida, a diary written in German, and a very special violin all lead twelve-year-old Charlie to the truth about her great-aunt Lottie in this intriguing, intergenerational mystery. Charlie, a budding violinist, decides to research the life of her great-aunt and namesake for her middle school ancestry project. Everyone in Charlie’s family believes Great-Aunt Charlotte (called Lottie), a violin prodigy, died at the hands of the Nazis, but the more Charlie uncovers about her long-lost relative, the more muddied Great-Aunt Lottie’s story becomes. Could it be that Lottie somehow survived the war by hiding in Hungary? Could she even still be alive today?
In SEARCHING FOR LOTTIE, Susan Ross has written a highly personal work of historical fiction that is closely inspired by her own family history, exploring the ongoing effects of the Holocaust on families today. Includes a letter from the author describing the research that shaped this story.

Susan Ross is an author and writing teacher from Maine. Her first novel, “Kiki and Jacques”, was a Bank Street Best Children’s Book of the Year. SEARCHING FOR LOTTIE is her second novel and draws greatly upon her own family’s experiences and the memories of loved ones lost in the Holocaust.