Book Launch | Suzanne Leal

There are stories that entertain, and there are stories that matter. The Year We Escaped is both.

Set in the chaos of World War II, it follows four young people as they flee their homes and forge fragile bonds in the face of destruction.

Join acclaimed author Suzanne Leal as she unpacks the truth behind her latest novel – a tale rich with dignity, absurdity, and the quiet bravery of ordinary lives caught in extraordinary times.

📅 Date: Thursday 12 June | 12.30 PM – 1.30PM
📍 Location: SMSA, Henry Carmichael Theatre, Level 1, 280 Pitt Street
🎟️ Tickets: Free for SMSA members, $10 for Friends and Non-Members

ABOUT THE BOOK

For fans of Jackie French and Katrina Nannestad, The Year We Escaped is a heart-stopping and remarkable World War II story by talented author Suzanne Leal.

Europe, 1940

With war on their doorstep, German classmates Klara and Rachel, and French brothers Lucien and Paul, are forced to leave their homes. They are taken to Gurs, a French detention camp in the south-west of France. It’s a crowded place, with little comfort and even less food.

When Klara and Rachel are promised safe refuge in a remote French village, Lucien and Paul are anxious to join them — and will risk their own lives to get there.

Filled with adventure, danger and intrigue, this is the story of four unlikely friends desperate to escape from a war that keeps coming closer.

ABOUT SUZANNE LEAL

Suzanne is the author of novels The Teacher’s Secret, Border Street and The Deceptions, for which she won the Nib People’s Choice Prize and was shortlisted for the Davitt Awards, and the Mark and Evette Moran Nib Literary Award.

A senior member of the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal and facilitator at community, corporate and literary events, Suzanne is the host of Thursday Book Club, a relaxed, friendly book club connecting readers online. www.suzanneleal.com