Hidden Letters of Velta B. - Paperback

by Gina Ochsner (Author)

FINALIST FOR THE OREGON BOOK AWARDS--KEN KESEY AWARD FOR FICTION

"Intimate, vibrant, and richly colored."--Portland Monthly

"[An] extraordinary feat of storytelling . . . A spellbinding novel as tough as it is beautiful." -- Helen Simonson, author of The Summer Before the War

"A beautifully spun tale . . . An astonishing alchemy of history, romance, and fable." --Kirkus Reviews, starred review

Maris was born knowing things: his very large, very special ears enable him to hear the secrets of the dead, as well as the memories that haunt his Latvian hometown. As a boy, Maris finds himself heir to an odd assortment of hidden letters, letters from which he would weave a story that could finally expose--and maybe even patch--the holes in the fabric of his family and their town.

With humor, heart, and her characteristic "luminous writing [and] affection for her characters" (New York Times), Gina Ochsner creates an intimate, hopeful portrait of a fascinating town in all its complications and charm. From the onset of World War II through the cold shock of independence, we see how, despite years of distrust, a community can come through love and loss to the joy of understanding.

"A captivating novel of secrets, love, and memory . . . This terrific novel knocked me out." --Janet Fitch, author of Paint It Black

"A gift on par with Joanne Harris's Chocolat . . . Quirky, ethereal, hilarious, and sorrowful." --Shelf Awareness

Author Biography

GINA OCHSNER is the author of The Russian Dreambook of Color and Flight, a novel long-listed for the Orange Prize, and two story collections. Her awards include the Flannery O'Connor Award, the William Faulkner Prize, the Oregon Book Award, Guggenheim and NEA grants, and the Raymond Carver Prize. She lives in Keizer, Oregon.