Shirley Russak Wachtel's "The Baker of Lost Memories"

Shirley Russak Wachtel is the author of A Castle in Brooklyn. She is the daughter of Holocaust survivors and was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York. Wachtel holds a doctor of letters degree from Drew University and for the past thirty-five years has taught English literature at Middlesex College in Edison, New Jersey. Her podcast, EXTRAordinary People, features inspiring individuals who have overcome obstacles to make a difference. The mother of three grown sons and grandmother to three precocious granddaughters, she currently resides in East Brunswick, New Jersey, with her husband, Arthur.

Here Wachtel dreamcasts an adaptation of her new novel, The Baker of Lost Memories:

My book, The Baker of Lost Memories, is about Lena, the daughter of Holocaust survivors, Anya and Josef. Her parents were once bakers in their own shop in Lodz, Poland before World War II. Working alongside them was their young daughter Ruby, who had a club foot but was perfect in every other way. After tragedy occurs and Anya and Josef make a new home in America, their daughter Lena has questions about the sister she never knew, questions which are mostly met with silence. She feeds a desire to be a baker like her sister to gain her parents’ love. She finds herself confiding in her best friend, Pearl, but when Pearl disappears, Lena builds a new life, marrying and becoming a baker in her own right. Yet she still struggles with gaining her parents’ approval. Only when another unexpected tragedy occurs and Lena finds out about some buried truths, can she rebuild the family she has always needed.

Here is how I would cast the movie version of my book:

Lena—Joey King: Joey has wide dimension as an actress, most recently proven in her role as Halina in the TV drama, We Were the Lucky Ones.

Anya—Kate Winslet: She is a fabulous actress who shows depth in movies like The Reader.

Josef—Adrien Brody: Adrien is adept at tackling roles of tormented survivors, as we see in The Pianist and The Brutalist.

Pearl—Elle Fanning: Fanning possesses an ethereal quality and has recently displayed her ability in A Complete Unknown.

Luke—Austin Butler: A handsome and charismatic actor, Butler can be Elvis or the alluring Luke.

Kenny—Jonah Hill: Jonah has the body type to take on this role and can display the sweetness we find in this character.

Of course, I would choose my son, Charlie Wachtel to direct. Charlie won an Academy Award in 2018 as a screenwriter for the Spike Lee film, BlackKKlansman.

Visit Shirley Wachtel's website.

The Page 69 Test: A Castle in Brooklyn.

My Book, The Movie: A Castle in Brooklyn.

Q&A with Shirley Russak Wachtel.

--Marshal Zeringue