The Sunflower House by Adriana Allegri

The Sunflower House by Adriana Allegri – Audio 

ARC from Macmillan Audio, Netgalley and St. Martins Press for an honest review

Book Blurb:

In a sleepy German village, Allina Strauss’s life seems idyllic: she works at her uncle’s bookshop, makes strudel with her aunt, and spends weekends with her friends and fiancé. But it’s 1939, Adolf Hitler is Chancellor, and Allina’s family hides a terrifying secret—her birth mother was Jewish, making her a Mischling.
One fateful night after losing everyone she loves, Allina is forced into service as a nurse at a state-run baby factory called Hochland Home. There, she becomes both witness and participant to the horrors of Heinrich Himmler’s ruthless eugenics program. The Sunflower House is a meticulously-researched debut historical novel that uncovers the notorious Lebensborn Program of Nazi Germany. Allina must keep her Jewish identity a secret in order to survive, but when she discovers the neglect occurring within the home, she’s determined not only to save herself, but also the children in her care.

My Review: 4.5 stars

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The Sunflower House by Adriana Allegri absolutely blew me away with both its beautiful writing and impeccable research. It’s hard to believe this is a debut novel. 

I read an incredible amount of historical fiction and tend to lean into WW2 books in particular. It’s amazing how there’s always more to learn about that particular time period.

In this story, we are introduced to two fascinating, brave and wonderful characters that understood the indecency and cruelty of Heinrich Himmler’s disgusting Lebensborn Program. This home for women, was for women to seduce Nazi officers so that more pure blood Aryan babies would be born. I’ve read about this topic before, but there was something about this book that made it special and more appealing to the reader.

Allina, a Mischling, meaning she isn’t of pure blood, has false papers confirming her Aryan status. She falls into a close alliance with Gruppenfuhrer Karl van Strassburg who was not like the other officers and together begin to trust one another. Trust was not easy as everyone was out to please the Nazi regime, but these two did everything they could to save as many children as possible. This is a must read, and book clubs will have so much to discuss. Highly recommend.