The Man in the White Sharkskin Suit: A Jewish Family's Exodus from… (original 2007; edition 2008)

I read this book a second time for a different book group. I liked the journalistic writing, and appreciated learning what Lognado's immigrant family experienced. ( )

A poignant memoir of a Jewish family in Egypt severely impacted by the exodus demanded when Nassar came to power. Well narrated with great love and fine detail. ( )

Definately a book my mother would have loved. Immigrant Jews. Set in WWII era. I dont usually read memoirs, but I found this entertaining. The author delved into all the characters so I really had a feel and an understanding of each of them. ( )

Lagnado's captivating account of her family's life in cosmopolitan Cairo and painful relocation to America centers on her beloved father. Dashing man-about-town Leon Lagnado, who kept to his carousing ways even after marrying a beautiful women 22 years his junior, was enraptured at the age of 55 by the author, his fourth child; affectionately called Loulou, she became her father's companion, even at temple services and the Nile Hilton bar. But the Suez war in 1956 and the Nasser regime's cultural holocaust began forcing Jews from their native Egypt. Leon's injury in a fall and Loulou's mysterious illness (first diagnosed as cat scratch fever, eventually found to be something far worse) delayed the Lagnados' departure until 1963, when they arrived in New York with $212, the maximum they were allowed to take out of Egypt; and Leon, once a prosperous, independent businessman and investor, was reduced to selling ties on the street. In Lagnado's accomplished hands, this personal account illuminates its places and times, providing indelible individual portraits and illustrating the difficulty of assimilation. An exceptional memoir. Leber, Michele ( )

The Man In The White Sharkskin Suit By Lucette Lagnado

Loulou, as she is affectionately known, shares her life from birth in Cairo, the families sad departure and ultimate statelessness that affects them all for many years to come. Life in Egypt, "the Levant", is a magical world of old fashioned ways, family ties and deep Jewish values. As times, war and political leaders change and drive the jews in this area to leave immediately. With no more than a few hundred dollars for their family of six, they begin their journey to Paris where they must choose between emigrating to Israel or America. Viet Nam is looming, President Kennedy has been shot and Leon, the patriarch of the family is miserable with their negligible status, lack of means and saddest of all, lack of any hope for a happy future. The author is descriptive and thorough in her life's account, her relationship with both her parents, brothers, sister and with her own identity. She generously retells the plight of her family, the story of many jewish families who have been forced to relocate and start over in a country that never feels like home. Its the story of any immigrant family, of any religion, of any race. A captivating and educational read. ( )