I purchased this book myself after seeing so many rave reviews. I can honestly say that the reviews were correct – what an amazing story!! I just can’t bring myself to give it away so go out and get this one!

Pia Lange was German and many Americans didn’t like Germans. Her father moved her family to Philadelphia looking for a better job and opportunity. They lived in a small one bedroom apartment in Philadelphia. When World War I broke out in Europe and her father enlisted to fight leaving Pia, her mother and twin infant brothers with little to live on. Because they were German, their neighbors treated them poorly. Across the street from Pia lived her only friend, Finn. Anti-immigrant feelings were growing as the United States attempted to slow the influx of people arriving daily. So many people were housed in dire circumstances. Living in such close quarters meant that when the Spanish flu arrived, it spread quickly, especially among the poor. First Pia’s friend Finn disappeared, next her mother died and finally Pia herself caught the flu. Without local relatives, Pia is placed in an orphanage. She was assigned to work in the Infants Room since she had experience caring for her baby brothers. Pia desperately hoped her brothers would be brought to the same orphanage but they never arrived.

The Spanish flu orphaned thousands of children. Orphanages were overrun and struggled to provide any form of care to the children. When a traveling nurse arrived and began finding homes for the children, the nuns running the orphanage were happy. Pia asked this nurse to look for her twin brothers while she conducts her nursing visits. This nurse seemed to be in touch with so many people, Pia was hopeful. Pia asked the sisters at the orphanage to ask other orphanages about her brothers. In the chaos of a pandemic, two missing boys seemed inconsequential. Pia worried about her brothers, what her father would think when he arrived home to find his family vanished. How could she explain to her father that she did not know where her brothers were?

A local doctor, Dr. Hudson, called the orphanage looking for help for his wife. Pia is sent to them. She survived the Spanish flu and had experience with children. The Hudson family is nice, kind and loving. They accept Pia into their family and she felt fortunate to have found such a wonderful place to live. The traveling nurse Pia saw at the orphanage arrived at the Hudson house and Pia hoped she brought news of her missing brothers. The nurse wasn’t there with information. The nurse was offering her sympathy to the Hudsons on the loss of their son. There was something about this nurse that just doesn’t seem genuine. Pia begins suspecting the nurse’s intentions were not at all helpful. Can she muster enough courage to tell Mrs. Hudson her concerns? Will Pia find her brothers or did they succumb to the flu as so many others did?

The Orphan Collector examines whether a young girl can cope with abandonment and survivor’s guilt. Pia is a determined, shrewd and resilient girl trying to navigate life alone. Her devotion to family inspired people to help her in her search. There is great emotional depth in this story and the characters, although fictional, are compelling. We are reminded of the value of friends and family in difficult times. Although this story is certainly sad, Pia is a character to believe in. This is a well written, gripping story that stays with you illustrating that although circumstances change, reactions to tragedy often remain the same. I highly recommend this story to everyone. It is Historical Fiction but since we all are trying to recover from the Covid pandemic, I feel reading it is beneficial.

My Rating: 🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻

Additional Thoughts: Our pandemic has brought out many emotions in people. A friendly, gregarious country has changed to a group of people that are scared and mistrusting. As I received my two vaccinations, I felt so many emotions. The strongest emotion I felt was relief. I am a friendly person and not seeing people smile has been sad.

Unlike the survivors of the Spanish flu, we have been inundated with guidelines, advice, statistics and “cures”. Too much information seems as overwhelming as not enough information. Each day brings more good information and as we overcame the Spanish flu, we will emerge triumphant from this trial.

This book serves as a reminder that pandemics end and life continues. Sometimes, that reminder is necessary.