2021 IPPY Award: Bronze - EUROPE – BEST REGIONAL NON-FICTION
 
This is the story of an orphaned Polish countess, Anna Maria Berezowska.
 
With her always is a diary, hidden within a medieval Bible cover, where Anna records four years of her struggle to survive the bloody wars shattering Eastern Europe in the late 1700s.
 
Anna is often joined by her wild and sensual cousin Sophia. These two strong and resilient young women navigate royal ballrooms and rustic villages, the courtship of counts, violence in the forests, and intrigues of the heart as danger fills every corner of their lives.
 
Powerful, authentic, and exquisitely written, Countess Anna's coming-of-age saga accurately portrays her longing to be remembered by her descendants. Centuries later, these pages finally grant her that wish.
 
Translated from mainly old Polish, The Diary of Countess Anna Maria Berezowska, is a unique and detailed glimpse into a real period of social upheaval which will leave you questioning every historical drama you have ever read.
 
“An extraordinary glimpse into the turbulent life of a young Polish countess, providing context for some of the most significant moments in European history.” —John Vandenbos, Founder and Editor-in-Chief of FUSAC magazine in Paris