On the top shelf in his aunt’s dressing room, Damien Freeman discovered a collection of family memorabilia that told a story he had always assumed to be perfectly unexceptional.  The Aunt’s Mirrors reveals an unexpected story of how an immigrant family from Poland made a new life – whilst continuing an old one – in 19th century Beechworth, Grafton, Rylstone and Sydney through the shared sense of meaningfulness that permeated the lives of seven generations of this Australian Jewish family.

Damien Freeman’s memoir is utterly engaging, subtle where it counts, robust in its narrative and utterly charming..” Thomas Keneally

Review – Spectrum, Sydney Morning Herald – 24-25 January 2015 by Steven Carroll

“This is an embracing, even epic family history that charts and documents the origins and exploits of the author’s extended Jewish family.  The canvas is vast, but this combination of memoir and migrant tale focuses mainly on the journey from partitioned Poland to Australia and towns such as Beechworth and Grafton to where various strands of the family moved.  The uniting figure is Damien Freeman’s Aunt Louise and the uniting motifs are her mirrors – objects redolent with family history that reflect that history.  There are times when the tale runs the risk of trying to tell too many stories at once, but the mirrors do their job and, along with meditations on memory and family, Freeman not only gives us both a portrait of migrant colonial life from the gold rushes on, but also a homage to “ordinary” life.”

Australian Jewish Historical Society Journal:

“An exceedingly interesting and intelligent family history, felicitously told through the literary device of objects reflected in the mirrors… The book exemplifies family history at its best and most enlightening.”

Richard Zimler, author of The Last Kabbalist of Lisbon:

“Jewish and Australian history converge in this compelling and beautifully documented memoir. The Aunt’s Mirrors is sure to resonate strongly with those readers who adore the details of history.”

Meg Stewart, author of Autobiography of My Mother and Margaret Olley Far From a Still Life:

“A richly detailed celebration of family and significance gleaned from the everyday… the resulting patchwork of personal and social history offers readers much to identify with and savour.”