Keeper of Lost Children

By Sadeqa Johnson

Book Overview

*INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER*

In this new novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The House of Eve, one American woman's vision in post WWII Germany will tie together three people in unexpected and soul-stirring ways.

Ethel Gathers, the proud wife of an American Officer, is living in Occupied Germany in the 1950s. After discovering a local orphanage filled with the abandoned mixed-race children of German women and Black American GI's, Ethel feels compelled to help find these children homes.

Philadelphia born Ozzie Phillips volunteers for the recently desegregated army in 1948, eager to make his mark in the world. While serving in Manheim, Germany, he meets a local woman, Jelka, and the two embark on a relationship that will impact their lives forever.

In 1965 Maryland, Sophia Clark is given an opportunity to attend a prestigious all white boarding school and escape her heartless parents. While at the school, she discovers a secret that upends her world and sends her on a quest to unravel her own identity.

Toggling between the lives of these three individuals, Keeper of Lost Children explores how one woman's vision will change the course of countless lives, and demonstrates that love in its myriad of forms--familial, parental, and forbidden, even love of self--can be transcendent.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1668069911
• ISBN13: 9781668069912
• Release Date: February 2026
• Publisher: 37 Ink
• Length: 464 Pages
• Weight: 0.90 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.4" x 6.3" x 9.1"

Customer Reviews

If you think there’s nothing new to WWII novels…you’re wrong. Read this!

As a devoted reader of historical fiction, I’ll be the first to admit that WWII-era novels can sometimes feel overdone. Still, when I learned that Sadeqa Johnson—whose Yellow Wife left a lasting impression on me—had written a WWII novel, I felt genuine excitement rather than hesitation. Keeper of Lost Children more than justified that hope. Johnson brings all the elements that have made her one of my go-to historical fiction authors: meticulous research, emotionally rich storytelling, and deeply developed characters. What makes this novel especially powerful is its focus on a seldom-told consequence of war—the children left behind when servicemen return home, and the mothers who are left navigating loss, survival, and impossible choices. These stories span generations, affecting mixed-race and mixed-citizenship descendants across post-WWII Europe, as well as later conflicts like Korea and Vietnam, yet they are rarely centered. The novel’s multiple points of view—from servicemen to mothers to children—are handled with skill and compassion, each voice adding dimension rather than distraction. Johnson never flattens these perspectives; instead, she allows readers to sit with the emotional complexity and moral ambiguity each character carries. On a deeply personal note, as a biracial child whose mother was once encouraged to give me and my brother away, this story was profoundly cathartic. Seeing both the parental and child perspectives honored with such care made this novel especially resonant for me. This is a book tailor-made for book clubs and thoughtful discussion, touching on identity, belonging, responsibility, and the long shadows cast by war. Keeper of Lost Children is another undeniable win for Sadeqa Johnson.

A moving tale of hope, courage, and belonging

Thanks to NetGalley and 37 Ink for a digital advance reader copy. All comments and opinions are my own unless otherwise noted. You may think you’ve read something like this before, because the title sounds like other books that have come out in the past few years. But this is a fresh story which tackles a little-known saga of one woman’s mission to find homes for abandoned mixed race children after World War II as it highlights the importance of resilience and family. Author Sadeqa Johnson has done an impressive amount of research about this unexplored and fascinating topic. She has crafted a deeply moving story about three people whose lives intersect in this powerful and heartwarming narrative. Skillfully told from three points of view between the 1940s through the 1960s, the lives of vibrantly drawn characters Ethel Gathers, Ozzie Philips, and Sophia Clark gradually converge as the novel progresses. In addition to Ethel’s efforts to rescue abandoned mixed-race children in Germany, the novel also depicts Ozzie’s racist treatment while in the military as well as Sophia’s experience of integration at a prestigious boarding school. This is a novel for everyone as it combines emotional storytelling with historical facts and delivers a moving tale of hope, courage, and belonging.

Keeper of Lost Children keeps you wanting to know more.

Reading this book was like eating, a vanilla cupcake, iced, with rainbow sprinkles. The writer did an excellent job of making me feel transported back in time to the actual period of the story. Characters were detailed such that I could not only see them in my mind, but I thought I knew them. I wholeheartedly recommend this book. It’s a fun read.