Out of the Woods, author Gretchen Shirm

 In the year 2000, an Australian woman travels to the Hague to work as the secretary for an Australian judge. There, she sits through the trial of a former military man who has been charged with war crimes. 

As the trial proceeds, she is confronted with two conflicting impulses: being deeply affected by the testimony of witnesses, while at the same time plagued by an enduring doubt as tothe defendant’s guilt despite the overwhelming evidence. 

Meanwhile, she begins an unexpected romance and friendship, and these relationships help her to understand the stories of extraordinary survival she hears during the trial. 

When she is called back to Australia to reckon with her own childhood, she finds she can’t quite leave everything she’s heard behind. Out of the Woods asks what it means to bear witness to the suffering of people who have experienced real tragedy and whether it is possible, afterwards, to resume a normal life. 

Author Gretchen Shirm is also the author of books: Having Cried Wolf, Where the Light Falls, and The Crying Room. 

To connect with Gretchen ... 

https://gretchenshirm.com/ 

https://www.instagram.com/gretchenshirm/ 

https://gretchenshirm.substack.com/