Before her afternoon nap, my mom used to say: “If anyone calls, tell them I died” and we would laugh. Growing up with her cheerful sayings, I had no idea what really happened. I knew that my grandparents went to Germany in 1956, but I didn’t know that my grandfather took his own life when they returned to Tel Aviv. I didn’t know about the legal battle my mom initiated against the German authorities for my grandfather’s death, and I certainly didn’t know about the Nazi psychiatrist that the court appointed as an expert witness in this case. In short, I didn’t know much until I found a box with letters that my grandparents sent from that trip and I went to Germany in their footsteps.
My new book, If anyone calls, tell them I died is scheduled to come out March 22, 2021
“With sensitivity, love, and humor, Emanuel Rosen tells the story of his Yekke grandparents, their immigration and difficulties in the homeland of the Jewish people, and their journey in search of their roots and identity in Germany. An important and fascinating book that awakened in me deep feelings and a longing for a generation that is no more.”
Gabriela Shalev, former Israel’s Ambassador to the U.N.; Professor (Emeritus) the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
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“I thought I’d take a quick look at this book, but then I kept reading all of it in a day and a half.”
W. Michael Blumenthal: Former U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and director of the Jewish Museum Berlin
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“From generation to generation, it becomes more difficult to write about the persecution of Jews before and during WWII as one’s personal past. Too much has been lost, and precisely because of that one wants to write about what can still be found. I respect what Emanuel Rosen did in this book, patiently and carefully exploring the past and guiding us through his findings about the story of his family.”
Bernhard Schlink: Author of “The Reader”
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“This is a gripping and engaging exploration of a family whose lives were indelibly changed by Nazi restrictions, by immigrant life in Israel, and by a grandson’s search for missing parts of the stories.”
Martha Minow: Harvard Law School
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“The mystery of why Emanuel Rosen’s grandfather killed himself haunts this book and keeps the reader gripped until the secrets of the past are ultimately uncovered and revealed. Suicide leaves a legacy of silence for those of us who are left behind and works such as this allows us to begin to understand how we are affected and start to heal. This book will greatly help survivors of suicide loss on their own personal journeys of discovery and hope.”
Carla Fine, Author of “No Time to Say Goodbye: Surviving the Suicide of a Loved One”