The Children of Willesden Lane: Beyond the Kindertransport: A Memoir of Music, Love, and Survival Audible Audiobook – Unabridged Mona Golabek (Author, Narrator), Lee Cohen (Author, Narrator), Hachette Audio (Publisher) (HAchette Audio)

I didn't know what to expect from this memoir-style book but ended up liking it very much. The real-life story of a young girl's escape from Nazi-occupied Vienna to the completely different world of London is compelling and touching. It's also informative about what life was like living in greater London during the heavy bombing. Kudos to the residents who "stayed calm and carried on." Such conditions are difficult to imagine.

Lisa's determination is inspiring as she struggles to keep a promise made to her mother to continue her music studies. The lives of her closest friends in the refugee orphanage are also hinted at. They all served as a substitute family in place of the ones they left behind.Based on the true story of her mother, Mona Golabek describes the inspirational story of Lisa Jura Golabek's escape from Nazi-controlled Austria to England on the famed Kindertransport.Jewish musical prodigy Lisa Jura has a wonderful life in Vienna. But when the Nazis start closing in on the city, life changes irreversibly. Although he has three daughters, Lisa's father is able to secure only one berth on the Kindertransport. The family decides to send Lisa to London, so she may pursue her dreams of a career as a concert pianist.Separated from her beloved family, Lisa bravely endures the trip and a disastrous posting outside London before finding her way to the Willesden Lane Orphanage. It is in this orphanage that Lisa's story truly comes to life. Her music inspires the other orphanage children, and they, in turn, cheer her on in her efforts to make good on her promise to her family to realize her musical potential.
Through hard work and sheer pluck, Lisa wins a scholarship to study piano at the Royal Academy. As she supports herself and studies, she makes a new life for herself and dreams of reconnecting with the family she was forced to leave behind. The resulting tale delivers a message of the power of music to uplift the human spirit and to grant the individual soul endurance, patience, and peace.

I give it four stars instead of five only because the story is told second-hand. The author, Maya Golabek, is Lisa's daughter. She does a fine job of evoking the time and place and covering the major points of her mother's life. Still, it's always preferable to get such a story firsthand. But overall, this was an excellent book.