LAST PERFORMANCE AT THE ODEON Being the memoirs of a Jewish woman growing up in Britain – Kibbutz, Love, Death and the search for her Romanian roots

By Carol Susan Nathanson

Last Performance At The Odeon is an evocative and original autobiography, rich in insights into Anglo-Jewish life from the late nineteenth century to the present day, supported by family-historical documents and photographs. Nathanson gives us stories and snapshots of lovers, family, a grandfather who sails the wide open seas, an adventure in South Africa and a Romanian caretaker who watches over the tombs of their fathers – or was it her great-uncle Alf? We never quite know. Her story stands alongside the complexities of her childhood, her search for roots and her desire for completion; the circle of identity that we all aspire to.

Carol Susan Nathanson completed the Graduate Diploma in Writing with Commendation at The National Academy of Writing, and an Honours Degree in Performance Arts. Her prose poetry has been published in anthologies and performed at Foyles in London and Birmingham City University. Carol has lived on Kibbutz, raised a family and worked in the theatre. More recently, she worked as a Consultant Adult Psychotherapist for the NHS. She died after a long time with cancer, in early April 2018, weeks after the launch of this book.

Last Performance At The Odeon is a hypnotic, exquisitely situated, study of remembered love. In an age of formulaic writing, this original book, with a voice and a vitality all of its own, stands out as one to savour and revisit. — Melissa Raphael

A hauntingly beautiful read, touching and tragic. A truly remarkable remembrance, highly recommended. — Steve Hoffman