
My Holocaust
A Novel
Tova Reich
Successful father-and-son business partners Maurice and Norman Messer know a good product when they see it. That product is the Holocaust—and they market it enthusiastically. Maurice is a survivor with a self-inflated personal history. Norman enjoys vicarious victimhood via the second-generation movement. And nothing will prevent them from pushing their agenda and reaping the rewards. Not guilt, pride, or ethics. Not the disappearance of Norman's daughter, Nechama, into the Carmelite convent at Auschwitz or her reemergence as Sister Consolatia of the Cross. Not even the violent takeover of America's most powerful Holocaust memorialization institution by an angry coalition of self-styled "victims" eagerly seeking Holocaust status.
“…Reich’s satire is…cynical…often hilarious—and likely to cause a scandal.” —Publishers Weekly
“Serious and hilarious and utterly scathing... Tova Reich is the master of fury’s return” —Washington Post Book World
“A deliciously wicked satirical novel” —The Forward
“a creation that surpasses mere chutzpah on its way to the profound” —Entertainment Weekly
“viciously funny, head-spinning...this novel is clearly in its own class” —Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel
“Reich has assembled an outlandish cast...[My Holocaust] is piercing and perceptive and cuts a wide swath.” —Booklist
“…it surely will be the subject of much discussion.” —Library Journal
“...provocative satire…powerful darts of wit and perception… clever…” —Kirkus Reviews
“…subversive, painful, brilliant, and, yes, both laugh-out-loud funny and illuminating…” —Los Angeles Times
About the Author
Tova Reich is the author of the novel Camp Jeff (Seven Stories, 2024) and the short story collection The House of Love and Prayer (Seven Stories, 2023). Her novel Mother India (2018) was longlisted for the South Asia Literature Prize and a finalist for the National Jewish Book Award. Her other novels include Mara (1978), Master of the Return (1988), The Jewish War (2012), My Holocaust (2007), and One Hundred Philistine Foreskins (2013). Her stories have appeared in The Atlantic, Harper’s, Ploughshares, and elsewhere. She is the recipient of the National Magazine Award for Fiction, The Edward Lewis Wallant Book Award, and other prizes. She lives on the fringe of Washington, DC.













































































































































































