'Berlin, 1936. Ernst Schäfer, a young, ambitious zoologist and keen hunter and collector, has come to the attention of Heinrich Himmler, who invites him to lead a group of SS scientists to the frozen mountains of Tibet. Their secret mission: to search for the origins of the Aryan race. Ernst has doubts initially, but soon seizes the opportunity to rise through the ranks of the Third Reich.
'While Ernst prepares for the trip, he marries Herta, his childhood sweetheart. But Herta, a flautist who refuses to play from the songbook of womanhood and marriage under the Reich, grows increasingly suspicious of Ernst and his expedition.
'When Ernst and his colleagues finally leave Germany in 1938, they realise the world has its eyes fixed on the horror they have left behind in their homeland.
'A lyrical and poignant cautionary tale, The Hollow Bones brings to life one of the Nazi regime’s little-known villains through the eyes of the animals he destroyed and the wife he undermined in the name of science and cold ambition.'
Source: Publisher's blurb.
Leah Kaminsky
Astrid Edwards
(interviewer),
2020
19327110
2020
single work
podcast
interview
'Leah Kaminsky is a physician and award-winning writer of fiction and non-fiction. Her work explores illness, medicine, science and the end of life.
'Her debut novel The Waiting Room won the Voss Literary Prize and was shortlisted for the Helen Asher Award. Her second novel, The Hollow Bones won the 2019 International Book Awards in both Literary Fiction and Historical Fiction categories and the 2019 Best Book Awards for Literary Fiction.
'We’re all Going to Die has been described as ‘a joyful book about death’. She also conceived and edited Writer MD, a collection of prominent physician-writers, and is co-author of Cracking the Code.
'She has written for the BBC, Huffington Post, Sydney Morning Herald, Griffith Review, SBS and LitHub, amongst others.'
Source: The Garret.
'It’s not difficult to understand why the story of German zoologist Ernst Schafer might be attractive to a novelist. A doctoral student in ornithology, Schafer made a name for himself in the 1930s, travelling with American expeditions to Tibet and China.' (Introduction)
'Leah Kaminsky’s novel The Hollow Bones focuses on Ernst Schäfer, a German who was sent to Tibet by Himmler in the late 1930s, outwardly to collect plant and animal specimens; secretly to ‘search for the origins of the Aryan race’. Himmler’s abhorrent obsessions are not focused on – indeed, Schäfer’s expedition only makes up the final third of Kaminsky’s book. The first two-thirds concentrate on Ernst’s relationship with his young wife, Herta, and his deepening involvement with the SS.' (Introduction)
'Leah Kaminsky’s novel The Hollow Bones focuses on Ernst Schäfer, a German who was sent to Tibet by Himmler in the late 1930s, outwardly to collect plant and animal specimens; secretly to ‘search for the origins of the Aryan race’. Himmler’s abhorrent obsessions are not focused on – indeed, Schäfer’s expedition only makes up the final third of Kaminsky’s book. The first two-thirds concentrate on Ernst’s relationship with his young wife, Herta, and his deepening involvement with the SS.' (Introduction)
'It’s not difficult to understand why the story of German zoologist Ernst Schafer might be attractive to a novelist. A doctoral student in ornithology, Schafer made a name for himself in the 1930s, travelling with American expeditions to Tibet and China.' (Introduction)
Leah Kaminsky
Astrid Edwards
(interviewer),
2020
19327110
2020
single work
podcast
interview
'Leah Kaminsky is a physician and award-winning writer of fiction and non-fiction. Her work explores illness, medicine, science and the end of life.
'Her debut novel The Waiting Room won the Voss Literary Prize and was shortlisted for the Helen Asher Award. Her second novel, The Hollow Bones won the 2019 International Book Awards in both Literary Fiction and Historical Fiction categories and the 2019 Best Book Awards for Literary Fiction.
'We’re all Going to Die has been described as ‘a joyful book about death’. She also conceived and edited Writer MD, a collection of prominent physician-writers, and is co-author of Cracking the Code.
'She has written for the BBC, Huffington Post, Sydney Morning Herald, Griffith Review, SBS and LitHub, amongst others.'
Source: The Garret.
