What was it like to grow up in wartime England — when convoys crossed submarine-infested waters, when families were torn apart, and when a child tried to make sense of war and survival?
In this powerful World War II childhood memoir, Naomi Malan tells her story through the clear eyes of youth. From life in wartime England to exile in the Bahamas and back across the Atlantic, she recalls the fear of German U-boats, the reality of air raids, and the resilience needed to face both danger and displacement.
But this is not only a story of war. It is also a memoir of survival in WWII within a dysfunctional family — a childhood marked by love, loss, family fractures, and the search for belonging. With detachment and flashes of humour, the child’s voice brings to life scenes of innocence and loss, memory and resilience, and the enduring struggle for identity.
Somewhere in the Depths will resonate with readers of wartime memoirs, family histories, and stories of resilience in darkness
Naomi Malan is the author of The Lemon Tree and Other Stories. She has published stories in Contrast South African Quarterly and in Le Monde Dimanche.
