Hear My Story: Melissa Hunter

In this episode, author Melissa Hunter shares the deeply personal journey of uncovering and preserving her grandmother Sala Werthaiser’s Holocaust survival story through her historical novel, What She Lost. Melissa recounts her grandmother’s imprisonment in seven concentration camps, the devastating loss of her family, and the resilience that carried her through unimaginable trauma.

“When I was hearing her history, I was like, ‘This is it. This is what I need to write. If I write nothing else in my life, this is the story that I want to get down on paper.’” — Melissa, on being moved to put her grandmother’s life story into a novel

Melissa discusses her writing process, the emotional toll of telling this story, and why she ultimately chose fiction as the medium. A powerful moment in the conversation focuses on “Bloody Wednesday,” a traumatic event in Sala’s hometown of Olkusz, Poland, where Jewish men were forced into the town square, humiliated, and many were executed. This experience left an indelible mark on Sala and shaped her perspective during the war.

Melissa reflects on her identity as a third-generation descendant of Holocaust survivors, the importance of storytelling in combating antisemitism, and the responsibility of passing down history to future generations.

This episode is part of the Cynthia & Harold Guttman Family Center for Storytelling. Subscribe here https://www.youtube.com/@holocaustandhumanity  

Our gratitude to Margaret & Michael Valentine for their ongoing support of this series.  

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