Letters to Auntie Fori

Letters to Auntie Fori (2002) is a collection of letters collated in a book by Sir Martin Gilbert to Fori Nehru, explaining the history of Jewish people over the course of 5,000 years. It was published by Orion Publishing Group in 2002.^[1]

Letters to Auntie Fori

Author	Sir Martin Gilbert
Language	English
Genre	History
Published	2002
Publisher	Orion Publishing Group
Publication place	UK
Pages	460
ISBN	0-75381-693-8

Background

Fori Nehru met Martin Gilbert in 1958.^[2] He was a friend of her son Ashok, from university days, and later historian and official biographer of Winston Churchill.^[2] When Gilbert arrived at the Nehru home that year he was unwell, and he later recounted that she successfully nursed him to recovery with rice and yoghurt.^[2] They continued to keep in touch but did not see each other again until 40 years later in 1998.^[2] He referred to the Nehru's as Auntie Fori and uncle Birju, and until 1998 had no idea she was from Budapest's Jewish community.^[2][3] She asked him to recommend a book about the history of Jews.^[2][4] In response, he wrote her one letter every week for 140 weeks, each addressed "Dear Auntie Fori", tracing the course of Jewish history over 5,000 years.^[2][5] The letters were collectively published in the book titled Letters to Auntie Fori: The 5,000-Year History of the Jewish People and Their Faith.^[2][5]

Layout

The book is divided into four parts, preceded by acknowledgments and an introduction, and followed by an epilogue, appendix, bibliography, maps, and an index.

References

1. Benjamin, Ivry (2 May 2017). "Shobha Nehru, A Quiet Witness To History, Dies At 108". The Forward. Archived from the original on 24 November 2023. Retrieved 24 November 2023.
2. Gilbert, Martin (2002). "Introduction". The Story of the Jewish People: Letters to Auntie Fori. London: Phoenix. pp. xiii–xvii. ISBN 0-75381-693-8.
3. Barry, Ellen (29 April 2017). "Shobha Nehru Dies at 108; Escaped Holocaust and Married Into Indian Politics". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 3 March 2022. Retrieved 26 February 2022.
4. Alderman, Geoffrey (26 April 2002). "Diaspora tales". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 24 November 2023. Retrieved 24 November 2023.
5. "Sir Martin's Letters to Auntie Fori". Sir Martin Gilbert. 1 July 2020. Archived from the original on 24 November 2023. Retrieved 3 March 2022.

External links

• Gilbert, Martin (2002). Letters to Auntie Fori : the 5000-year history of the Jewish people and their faith. New York : Schocken Books. ISBN 978-0-8052-4188-4.