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Caroline Woods
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The Cigarette Girl Kindle Edition

by Caroline Woods (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.1 out of 5 stars 485 ratings

BERLIN, 1931: Sisters raised in a Catholic orphanage, Berni and Grete Metzger are each other’s whole world. That is, until life propels them to opposite sides of seedy, splendid, and violent Weimar Berlin.

Berni becomes a cigarette girl, a denizen of the cabaret scene alongside her transgender best friend Anita, who is considering a risky gender reassignment surgery. Meanwhile Grete is hired as a maid to a Nazi family, and begins to form a complicated bond with their son whilst training as a nurse.

As Germany barrels toward the Third Reich and ruin, both sisters eventually come to the same conclusion: they have to leave the country. And they will leave together. But nothing goes as planned as the sisters each make decisions that will change their lives, and their relationship, forever.

SOUTH CAROLINA, 1970: With the recent death of her father, Janeen Moore yearns to know more about her family history, especially the closely guarded story of her mother’s youth in Germany. One day she intercepts a letter intended for her mother: a confession written by a German woman, a plea for forgiveness. What role does Janeen’s mother play in this story, and why does she seem so distressed by recent news that a former SS officer has resurfaced in America?

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  1. Print length
    305 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    HQ
  4. Publication date
    23 Feb. 2017
  5. File size
    840 KB
  6. Page Flip
    Enabled
  7. Word Wise
    Enabled
  8. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
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From the Publisher

bestselling historical books;bestselling fiction books;historical novels;top fiction books

Product description

Review

"Debut novelist Woods is a skilled constructor of scenes that propel readers forward and lay bare the difficulties of living in complicated times. Readers will be moved by the Metzger sisters." --Booklist

About the Author

Caroline Woods has been published in Slice Magazine (which nominated her for a Pushcart Prize), LEMON, 236, BU Creative Writing's Literary Journal, and The Scene. She has taught fiction writing and composition at Boston University and the Boston Conservatory, and has an MFA in Creative Writing from BU. She is the author of Fraulein M. and The Cigarette Girl. Caroline lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts with her husband and daughter.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B01N92JQDD
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ HQ (23 Feb. 2017)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 840 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 305 pages
  • Page numbers source ISBN ‏ : ‎ 1507200226
  • Customer reviews:
    4.1 out of 5 stars 485 ratings

About the author

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Caroline Woods

Caroline Woods

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CAROLINE WOODS holds an M.F.A. in fiction from Boston University. She is the author of the novels The Mesmerist, The Lunar Housewife, and Fräulein M., and she has taught fiction writing at Loyola University Chicago, Boston University, and the Boston Conservatory. Raised in Delaware, she now lives near Chicago with her husband and two daughters.

Customer reviews

4.1 out of 5 stars
485 global ratings

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Top reviews from United Kingdom

  • Kishiko Yarkadas
    5.0 out of 5 stars 'must read, thumb's up!'
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 1 May 2018
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    Among all the stories written on the background of Nazi Germany, this is one of the most descriptive literary works, which intrigues the reader with the intensely emotional movements of the main characters, two sisters called Berni and Grete raised in a Catholic orphanage in Berlin. The two girls are strikingly well contrasted both in their appearance and manners to make the reader visualise them in every single line on a page. Some usage of the German language as well as the cultural connotation in those historical periods effectively takes the reader into the world of the story and stimulates all the senses till the end. This is absolutely a 'must read' book, thumb's up!
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  • Mark A. Bowman
    4.0 out of 5 stars Better than expected
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 29 May 2017
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    Not sure why I bought this as it's not my usual cup of tea but I really enjoyed it. Within a couple of chapters I just had to find out what happened next. Honestly felt I knew these people and would recognise where they lived. Written so well that you can't help caring about these people as though you know them!
    One person found this helpful
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  • Mrs. Mary Mcginlay
    4.0 out of 5 stars good
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 8 May 2020
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    a good story
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  • Annabel Frost
    4.0 out of 5 stars Four Stars
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 16 June 2017
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    Excellent
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  • Margaretdw
    5.0 out of 5 stars I loved this book - thought it was brilliant
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 23 February 2017
    The Cigarette Girl by Caroline Woods

    Brilliant!

    The opening section of Caroline Woods novel is based in South Carolina in 1970 and Janeen Moore and her mother Anita are mourning the death of her father. When a letter arrives for her mother, Janeen reads it and discovers that it is written in German (where her mother was born). Janeen responds to the letter pretending to be her mother. Her mother’s story is then revealed.

    It began in Berlin in 1931 when two sisters Berni and Grete are taken to an orphanage. As the story unfolds we are introduced to the different aspects of life that are affected by Hitler’s rise to power and the impact that has on the German population. This is unlike any other book I have read about this period. Not only is it beautifully written, but it is powerful and scarily realistic. As we know these events did happen and Woods’ plot and structure have the main protagonists leading their lives against this background.

    How could you not worry about poor Grete; how can you fail to admire Berni’s loyalty; Anita’s vulnerability. I never quite knew where the story was headed but always felt divided loyalty, is Grete more deserving; is Berni the most admirable; who is the bravest?
    This is a very clever, well-balanced book that explores relationships and character with the underbelly of Berlin in 1930 as the backdrop.

    I loved it.

    Thank you to NetGalley who supplied this book via Kindle in return for an honest review.
    2 people found this helpful
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  • SMcD04
    4.0 out of 5 stars I really enjoyed it and was kept guessing how it would pan ...
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 13 March 2017
    I received this book from Netgalley for an honest review.
    The book tells the story of two German sisters in Berlin starting in 1931, continuing through the second world war and into present day, We can see how the war affects their lives in different ways. I really enjoyed it and was kept guessing how it would pan out.
    One person found this helpful
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  • Nnoone
    4.0 out of 5 stars Powerfully atmospheric
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 23 February 2017
    This book revolves around the stories of two orphaned sisters who are in a West Berlin orphanage and it starts in 1923. Berni and Grete are the sisters and the book looks at their lives over time from one or the other's perspective up until the late 1930s. There is also a strand of the story which is obviously connected in some way set in America in the 1970s. Over this time the two girls lives take very different paths and have consequences for both of them.

    I found the writing in this book highly evocative right from the start. Berlin with hyperinflation and life in the Catholic orphanage is well painted. If anything the images of their later lives in Berlin are even more vivid. Berni is a "cigarette girl" in a bar - not at all respectable - while Grete is a servant. I found myself completely caught up in their lives.

    The characters in this story are rich. They feel like real people in a real setting and they get to you. Not the most major character but important, Anita's story seemed particularly powerful and poignant at times as an example. She is actually a man who dresses as a woman. Perfectly acceptable (in the right places at least) at the start of this story. Very unacceptable and dangerous as time goes by.

    By the time the tale moves fully to the USA I really did find it very hard indeed to put this down. The twists become dizzying here at times and the rollercoaster of the sisters lives become even more powerfully etched. Powerfully moving at times this is a hard hitting book in places tackling the rise of Nazism and its consequences head on. This is not a book I expect to forget for some time to come and one I really enjoyed reading. Quite definitely a 4.5/5.

    Note - I received an advance digital copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair review
    2 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

  • Nannie
    4.0 out of 5 stars New Perspective
    Reviewed in Canada on 23 June 2017
    Verified Purchase
    This book presented a look at Nazi Germany from the perspective of others besides the Jews who were also badly mistreated and persecuted.
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  • Book Junkie
    5.0 out of 5 stars Stunning In Scope - A Must-Read
    Reviewed in the United States on 17 June 2017
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    The author sets out with what begins as a compelling, yet simple story of 2 sisters in a 1930's German orphanage. Berni and Grete are both well-written from the outset and they cling to each other through the harshest of circumstances.
    They leave the orphanage during the Nazi rise to power. The author does an outstanding job of painting the time. We see not just rampant poverty and unemployment, but also the avant-garde social ideals regarding homosexuality, gender identity and suffrage. We also see why the Nazi rise to power was to happen. I learned a great deal from this book about that period.
    This book is deeply exploratory of gender dysphoria and the unimaginable struggle one with such issues went through then and to a large degree, even now. Germany was at the forefront of the understanding human sexuality until the Nazis tore down the Institute.
    We are taken to 1970, where letters are received and more is learned. The story moves effortlessly through these times laying out tragedy and triumph, love and heartbreak, loyalty and betrayal in places, people and times unexpected.
    This book is unique, touching and despite the subject matter- an absolute pleasure to read. I tip my hat to Ms. Woods for being able to navigate her characters and readers through horrors with such a steady hand. I have nothing to criticize, as I find this to be an excellent book that I am so pleased to have purchased and read.
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  • Sara O. Thompson
    4.0 out of 5 stars This is one of my favorite periods of time in history and I really enjoyed ...
    Reviewed in the United States on 11 June 2017
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    This is one of my favorite periods of time in history and I really enjoyed this read. As a former student of the German language, I liked the sprinkling of German words and phrases (fremdschamen!). It was sad (it was a sad time, of course) but Woods doesn't sink into bleakness or despair. The characters are complex and well-rendered.
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  • Amazon Customer
    3.0 out of 5 stars well-written, but blurb and title misleading...
    Reviewed in the United States on 6 March 2017
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    As a history buff, I was so excited to read the book blurb. A different take on one of my favorite subjects? Yes please! Fraulein M. is definitely unique in its backstory, especially the underground/ counter culture that we don't get to hear a lot about from most fiction works on the subject. I enjoyed the storyline, the characters and the writing.I enjoyed the read, but felt like the ending fell flat, or maybe rushed is a better word. To me, there's nothing worse than reading a book, waiting patiently (or not so patiently...) for certain things to happen because you know it's just on the next page... and then getting an ending that doesn't fit or wrap things up... and not necessarily all neat and tidy-like. It can be ugly. I'm not that girl looking for fairy tale endings. Both the blurb and the jacket paint a much racier picture than what the book actually portrays. This too, was somewhat of a disappointment. Not a deal breaker... just disappointing. The good thing about fiction and reviews is that they are subjective. I love the apple green color I chose for my kitchen, but others don't. Some people like to hang their flat screens over their mantles, but not me. It's okay though, to have different tastes. This book was well-written... I just wanted more from the ending and relationships.
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  • KS
    5.0 out of 5 stars difficult decisions and dilemmas that all families face against the backdrop of a terrible event. Ms
    Reviewed in the United States on 17 February 2017
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    A captivating and important read! Caroline Woods draws you in to this page turner story of two sisters on opposite sides of the political spectrum during the coming of age of World War II. Her research is impeccable. Her MFA from Boston University is evident as is her teaching background at BU and the Boston Conservatory. I couldn't put it down; especially in light of recent events that have happened here in our own country. But this is not a political book; it is a book of moral heart tugs, difficult decisions and dilemmas that all families face against the backdrop of a terrible event. Ms. Woods is very astute and has done her homework. I often stopped and went back over and reread certain passages, just noticing how her characters (no spoilers here) picked up even the smallest details. I've no doubt a movie will be forthcoming; it has all the right stuff and wonderful characters who will have Hollywood's best fighting to option the movie rights. The author herself is a cross between Naomi Watts and Gwyneth Paltrow! KS
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