Nine Lives of a Marriage - Book Review

Nine Lives of a Marriage - a curious journey

The story of  Eva and George Friedlander's journey from war-time Hungary to becoming an American family. With a twist.
by Eva Friedllander and Mickey Goodman

review by Lauren Traub Teton

"Nine Lives of a Marriage" moves along quickly and reads like a juicy novel. The story starts in Budapest, Hungary in 1945 and we learn of the ambitious success of Eva Duke and her secretarial service. Dr. George Friedlander arrives with a bang and changes the course of young Eva's life. She  falls in love with the charismatic chemist and abandons her fiance who is away in a work camp. Back story tells of the horrors of the work and concentraion camps. Next stop Italy for good times after the war. The couple marries, and reluctantly leaves their beloved adopted home of Italy for a last chance at finding a better life in America when they are offered visas for the 3rd and final time.

In the United States, the young couple assimilates beautifully as they have in Italy. George has always had an eye for women, and Sadie, the flirtatious and curvy real estate agent who works with him on investment properties, becomes a fixture in their household and their lives. The story is woven rich in details, and curiously dispassionately, except for the early love affair with George and the parts back in Hungary when Eva goes to visit her sick mother and falls back into the arms of her old beau, Dan.

This book is a very entertaining read, and is formatted in a handy size for those of us who still read books made of paper. It is a great beach or travel read. Just remember to have another book lined up because you will finish it fast and be craving another good book afterwards!

Meet Eva Friedlander in video here.
Buy the book here.