Best of
European-Literature

2018

Buttons in My Soup


Moshe Ziv - 2018
    This is without a doubt one of the most fascinating testimonies of that dark period, thanks to the author's ability not only to recount what he endured, but also to reflect on his feelings back then, in the camps. Existential difficulties preceded the deportation of Hungarian Jewry, yet nothing could have been worse than the extermination camps.Moshe was 15 years old when he arrived at Auschwitz-Birkenau, yet he passed the selection and survived. The Nazis sent the occupants of his barrack to their death, while he managed to slip out of their hands, and survived. He was sent to Buchenwald, worked in hard labor in the quarry, and survived. By joining a new work group, on the spur of the moment, he arrived at a labor camp in Magdeburg Germany, where he also managed to survive. There were 2,800 prisoners with him at Magdeburg, 400 remained when the Nazis dismantled the camp and returned its inhabitants to Buchenwald. Only 200 completed the journey, and when liberation day came only 40 survived, including the 17-year-old author.

In the Face of Fear: The Authentic Holocaust Survival Story of the Weisz Family


Thomas Weisz - 2018
    Tomorrow they will be taken to the ghetto, the last step before deportation to Auschwitz and certain death. But one man defies the Nazis and seeks to deny them these victims. Alone, unarmed and crippled, Joseph Cseh, a smooth talking (black marketer), struggles to rescue the woman he loves and her entire family. Surrounded on all sides he stands up to the fascists, playing a life and death con game. But can he bluff the Gestapo and defeat an army? This is the amazing true story of the Weisz family and the man who took it upon himself to try and do some good in a world turned evil.

Sabina: In the Eye of the Storm


Bella Kuligowska Zucker - 2018
    In September 1939, Bella was a carefree teenager living in Poland when the German army struck. She was rounded up with her friends and family and sent to a series of grim Jewish ghettos. After loved ones were separated and lost through the war years, Bella survived by changing her identity. Narrowly escaping death each time, she moved from place to place, odd job to odd job, new name to new name. After finding the birth certificate of a Catholic girl five years her senior, she became Sabina Mazurek. Then she went into the eye of the storm, Germany, where she believed she might be safest. "Sabina is her story. As in "Diary of a Young Girl" by Anne Frank and "Night" by Elie Wiesel, Bella Kuligowska marshaled unexpected resources to manage as a teen during the horrors of World War II. Sabina offers a different perspective on how many Jews survived outside of the concentration camps, in more familiar yet infinitely hostile settings, with the help of others along the way.

A Raid Over Berlin


John Martin - 2018
    It must have been at this moment that I thought I was going to die because I became remarkably calm.’ Trapped inside a burning Lancaster bomber, 20,000 feet above Berlin, airman John Martin consigned himself to his fate and turned his thoughts to his fiancée back home. In a miraculous turn of events, however, the twenty-one year old was thrown clear of his disintegrating aeroplane and found himself parachuting into the heart of Nazi Germany. He was soon to be captured and began his period as a prisoner of war.This engaging and compulsively readable true-life account of a Second World War airman, who cheated death in the sky, only to face interrogation and the prospect of being shot by the Gestapo, before having to endure months of hardship as a prisoner of war.

The Nazi, the Princess, and the Shoemaker


Scott M. Neuman - 2018
     The book describes Binem's childhood in the rural Polish village of Radziejow, and details how his family and community were devastated by the trauma of the Nazi invasion and unimaginably cruel occupation of Poland. At the age of 24, Binem escapes a German forced labor camp and struggles to survive the harsh Polish winter by sleeping in haystacks during the day and begging food from peasant farmers at night. Through a chance encounter with a former schoolmate, Binem is taken in by the Osten-Sackens, an aristocratic Polish woman (the “Princess”) and her ethnic German husband, who Binem later learns is a secret Gestapo agent. When Germany begins to lose the war, their son, an SS officer (the “Nazi”), forces Binem to vow to protect his parents from inevitable attempts at retribution. Binem makes good on his promise (three times!) saving Osten-Sacken twice from Russian soldiers and later by testifying on his behalf in a Polish court. The book describes Binem’s Holocaust experience in harrowing detail, from its lows, including a suicide attempt in the Jewish graveyard where his parents were buried, to its highs, such as finishing off the war as an honored guest at the Osten-Sacken mansion, and his celebratory speech to the Russian Jewish officers who liberated him.

Shores Beyond Shores: From Holocaust to Hope, My True Story


Irene Butter - 2018
    Play is restricted. Family and friends disappear. Finally, with the Dutch police at their door comes the reality that Irene’s father has not moved his family far enough from Hitler’s Germany.By January 1945, the family is struggling to survive a death camp. Irene tends her ailing parents, cares for starving kids, and even helps bring clothes to her Amsterdam neighbor Anne Frank, before her family is offered a singular chance for freedom…providing the Nazi doctor says they are healthy enough. After two weeks of heart-lifting miracles and heart-breaking tragedies, Irene arrives in the Algerian desert to journey into redemption and womanhood, without her parents or brother.Irene’s first person memoir, Shores Beyond Shores, is an account of how the heart keeps its common humanity in the most inhumane and turbulent of times. Irene’s hard-earned lessons are a timeless inspiration.

Hiding in Plain Sight: My Holocaust Story of Survival


Beatrice Sonders - 2018
    But when the Germans and Ukrainians obliterated David-Horodok in 1941, killing off all Jewish men in the town, everything changed.Left to fend for themselves, Basia and her mother fled 100 kilometers south, driven into the infamous Sarny ghetto. Tragedy struck again as the Germans liquidated the ghetto in 1942, and Basia went into the first of many hiding places. After years of running from soldiers, changing her identity, and hiding her faith, Basia emerged as a survivor – shepherding the rebirth of her faith and her family in America.

Enemies: A War Story


Kenneth Rosenberg - 2018
    From there, they traveled across the Pacific to Japan, and then on to occupied France, landing in that country on the very day that Germany declared war on the United States. Their epic adventure had suddenly taken a dark turn. Wolfgang Wergin and Herbie Haupt were American citizens, though German by birth. Both had lived in America since the age of five, yet now they were given a choice by German officials. They could join a Nazi sabotage mission heading back to the United States to blow up aluminum factories, or they could be drafted into the German army and sent to the Russian front. One of these young men chose the first option, and one the second. Only one of them would survive. While this fragment of history is mostly forgotten today, the episode became one of the most sensational news stories of its time, garnering intense national interest. "Enemies: A War Story" is a fictionalized version of this true story, sticking as close to the facts as possible. This is a novel that raises challenging questions about the meanings of patriotism, justice, and American morality during difficult times.

The War Nurses


Lizzie Page - 2018
    Lane and Nadine Dorries. As war takes its toll, the love and care of two brave young nurses become everything to the wounded soldiers they tend... 1914. Two plucky young nurses pledge to help the war effort: Mairi, a wholesome idealist hoping to leave behind her past and Elsie, a glamorous single mother with a weakness for handsome soldiers. Despite their differences, the pair become firm friends. At the emergency medical shelter where they're based, Elsie and Mairi work around the clock to treat wounded soldiers. It's heart-breaking work and they are at constant risk from shelling, fire and disease. Occasionally there are happier times… parties, trips and letters. And maybe even the possibility of love with an attractive officer in their care… But as the war continues and the stress of duty threatens to pull the two women apart, will Elsie and Mairi's special nurses' bond be strong enough to see them through? Based on a true story, Mairi and Elsie's devotion and bravery will make you smile and cry. You won't want to put it down!

Ironopolis


Glen James Brown - 2018
    For the future ...But these streets know many stories, some hide secrets … Jean holds the key to the disappearance of a famous artist … Jim's youth is shattered during the euphoric raves of ’89 … A brutal boyhood prank scars three generations of Frank's family … Corina’s gambling addiction costs her far more than money … And Alan, a man devastated by his past, unravels the darkness of his terrifying father, a man whose shadow has loomed large over the estate for a lifetime. And then there is the ageless Peg Powler, part myth, part reality: why is she stalking them all?‘Human nature? Class politics? Whatever it was, it wasn’t us … Deep down we were part of a whole, single energy, and all we had to do was be ready to sink down together.’

When the War is Over


Anja May - 2018
     The true account of a teenage soldier in World War 2 Germany. Germany, 1945. Ever since Anton Kohler first heard the vibrant sound of the violin, he’s dreamed of mastering the instrument. But when his father dies, the fifteen-year-old must give up his passion to support his seven younger siblings. As the Russian army marches closer to his hometown, Anton and his best friend Gerhard are pulled from their families and forced to help defend their home in a last desperate stand. When Anton witnesses the slaughter of concentration camp prisoners, he vows to escape the war and find a way home to his family and his girl, Luise. In the chaos of impending defeat, Anton is torn between his promise to protect the life of his best friend and his desire to survive the war with his conscience intact. Based on a true account, this coming-of-age story set in the last turbulent months of World War 2, Germany, is a tale of love and friendship, of hope and loss. Read When the War is Over now to experience the poignant journey of a teenage soldier.

Wood, Luck & Survival: The Journey of a Father and his Son Through the Holocaust Horrors


Reuven (Gutkin) Govrin - 2018
    When the German army invaded Riga, Latvian Jewry numbered about 95,000, of which only about 1,000 survived the war. The story of how Wood and luck somehow enabled Max and his father to survive the Holocaust, unlike so many, is riveting. The family business was engaged with forestry and wood, so Max, his older brother, and their father were forced to work in wood for the Nazis, while his mother and little brother were murdered. A harrowing journey replete with painful memories… The book traces their harrowing journey from work camp to work camp, a terrible choice that the father is forced to make, the aftermath of the war in Europe, and finally arrival in Israel. For 65 years Max silently bore the burden of these memories until the author led him on a path of discovery through his painful personal history. Scroll up now and get your copy of Wood, luck & survival!

The Secret Vow


Natalie Meg Evans - 2018
    She leaves behind a terrible secret, and her survival in this strange and beautiful new city depends on nobody ever discovering who – and what – she is. Immediately, Katya is swept up in the city’s glamour – particularly the boutiques on the main boulevard, where glittering gowns are hand-sewn for an exclusive clientele. Dare Katya dream that she may someday wear – or even design – one of these dazzling creations? It feels like an impossible wish, until she meets businessman Harry Morten. Tall, handsome and well-connected, Harry could give Katya everything she wants and more… but at what price? And should she break the vow she’s made and trust him with her secret when her very survival could be at stake?

A Spy In Vienna: A Paul Muller Novel of Political Intrigue


William N. Walker - 2018
    It is the second Paul Muller novel set in Europe before World War II. Muller is recruited to become a spy to resist Hitler's campaign to absorb Austria into the German Reich and, from his perch in Vienna, finds himself at the epicenter of the desperate struggle to preserve Austrian independence. Muller plays a dangerous game in helping Austria oppose Hitler's demands and he hatches a bold plan to divert Austria's gold reserves so they stay out of Hitler's grasp. The novel captures this gripping drama in rich and vivid detail as political pressures mount and the threat of war looms. A Spy in Vienna re-creates for readers the fraught atmosphere of 1930's, when the threat of Nazi violence hung over Europe. Aficionados of that epoch will relish the authenticity of the novel, which reawakens the tensions and turbulence of the era, with its undercurrent of violence and fear. The narrative recaptures the urgency of the crisis as repeated confrontations escalated to an explosive conclusion. Today, sitting at the safe remove of eighty years, we know the outcome. Hitler's bald aggression prevailed; his takeover of Austria became a crucial stepping stone leading to World War II. But the characters in the novel know none of this; for them, the events they are caught up in are frightening and bewildering, confronting them with dire choices and fearful consequences. The novel transports the reader into that contemporary maelstrom of intrigue and danger—combining real history with a compelling story. Admirers of Paul Muller in Danzig will revel in his new adventures in Vienna, as once again he confronts Nazi tyranny.

An Ocean Between Us


Rachel Quinn - 2018
    In a sleepy coastal village south of Dublin, eighteen-year-old Aileen Sweeney meets soldier Niall O’Rourke at a dance, and the spark between them soon ignites a powerful love.But when Niall makes a life-changing and contentious decision, Aileen’s hopes and dreams fall apart. In an instant Niall is transformed from dashing suitor to social outcast, and the fallout leaves each of them navigating the consequences alone. Putting her innocence behind her, Aileen must make her own tough choices—choices that will set the course of the rest of her life.Aileen and Niall have promised to stay true to each other while they’re apart, but in a world at war and where nothing is certain, can their relationship really survive the distance of an ocean?

Child of the Forest: Based on the Life Story of Charlene Perlmutter Schiff


Jack L. Grossman - 2018
    Alone, starving, freezing at times, and running and hiding for her life, Musia sought refuge in the forest for two years while Holocaust death camps loomed nearby. Child of the Forest is based on the true story and tribulations of Shulamit "Musia" Perlmutter, born in 1929 to Simcha and Fruma Perlmutter, and stands as a memorial to her extraordinary courage.

The Melody of the Soul


Liz Tolsma - 2018
    The only person she has left is her beloved grandmother, and she's determined to keep her safe. But protecting Grandmother won't be easy--not with a Nazi officer billeted below them.Anna must keep a low profile. There's one thing she refuses to give up, though. Despite instruments being declared illegal, Anna defiantly continues to practice her violin. She has to believe that the war will end someday and her career will be waiting. Fortunately for Anna, the officer, Horst Engel, enjoys her soothing music. It distracts him from his dissatisfaction with Nazi ideology and reminds him that beauty still exists in an increasingly ugly world.When his neighbors face deportation, Horst is moved to risk everything to hide them. Anna finds herself falling in love with the handsome officer and his brave heart. But what he reveals to her might break her trust and stop the music forever. . . .

My Soul is Filled With Joy: A Holocaust Story


Karen Treiger - 2018
    It was August 3, 1943, just one day after Sam escaped the Camp during a prisoner uprising. With 870,000 murdered at Treblinka, Sam was one of approximately 65 to survive and live until the end of the war. Esther had been hiding in that patch of forest for a year and was out that morning, looking for mushrooms to eat. They met and after hearing of the prisoner revolt, she took him to the Righteous Gentiles who, at great danger to themselves, hid them in their barn for three days while the Nazis, Ukrainians and Poles scoured the area looking for escapees. Deciding to stay and hide with Esther, they dug a forest pit where they “lived” when it was not freezing. They subsisted in the pit and the barns – hungry, cold, and scared – for another year until they were liberated by the Red Army in July of 1944. This is only one piece of their harrowing story of survival. This book tells the story of Sam and Esther, Holocaust survivors, who lost their entire families because of Hitler’s Final Solution. After four years in Displaced Person’s Camps, they arrived in New York Harbor to build a new life. The author, Karen Treiger, is Sam and Esther’s daughter-in-law, and with in-depth research and a bit of luck was able to find the three surviving children of the Styś families – those Righteous Gentiles who helped Sam and Esther during that dark time. She and her family traveled to Poland to walk in Sam and Esther’s footsteps and to meet the Styś children. It was intensely emotional, and the family heard some of what Sam and Esther lived through from those who helped them survive. Also, with the help of a Polish Priest, she was able to locate and meet a Goldberg cousin they never knew they had. My Soul is Filled with Joy: A Holocaust Story brings to life the horror of the Nazis’ actions and the toll that it exacted on so many Jewish families. This is also a story of hope, love and determination; of a family rediscovering the path taken by their parents to find life and freedom in a new world. Sam and Esther’s story is one of love and the will to live no matter what they had to endure. It reminds us that we are still learning the lessons of the Holocaust. TRIBUTES “Karen has written a powerful and personal account of Sam and Esther Goldberg. This book is a must read for those interested in the greatest crime in the history of mankind.” Chris Webb, Author/Historian, Founder of the Holocaust Historical Society,br> “It is vital that this book—as well as other accounts of the Holocaust— be preserved and disseminated widely to future generations to help prevent anything similar from ever happening again.”Marion Blumenthal Lazan, Holocaust Survivor and Co-Author, Four Perfect Pebbles“One can only bow one’s head, out of an unutterable gratitude, to the author for her contribution to the sacred narrative of our people. I call this book sacred, for (as with all forms of scripture) it tells not only what happened - but how to live in light of the story.”Rabbi Yitz Greenberg, President Emeritus, CLAL: The National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership; chairman, the United States Holocaust Memorial Council, 2000-2002. “We are haunted by the question of inexplicable evil. If you want to be inspired in spite of the horrors one human being can do to another human being, read this book.

Coffin Corner Boys: One Bomber, Ten Men, and Their Harrowing Escape from Nazi-Occupied France


Carole Engle Avriett - 2018
    Their B-17 is shot down and the airmen—stumbling through fields and villages—scatter across Europe. Some struggled to flee for safety. Others were captured immediately and imprisoned. Now, for the first time, their incredible story of grit, survival, and reunion is told. In 1944, George Starks was just a nineteen-year-old kid from Florida when he and his high school buddies enlisted in the US military. They wanted to join the action of WWII. George was assigned to the 92nd Bomb Group—in which the median age was 22—and on his crew’s first bombing mission together received the most vulnerable spot of a B-17 mission configuration: low squadron, low group, flying #6 in the bomber box formation. Airmen called George’s position the “Coffin Corner” because here exposure was most likely to draw hostile fire. Sure enough, George’s plane was shot down by a German Fw190, and he jumped at 25,000 feet for the “first and only time,” as he tells the story. He landed near Vitry-le-Perthois to begin a 300-mile trek through the dangers of war-torn France towards the freedom of neutral Switzerland. Through waist-deep snow, seering exhaustion, and close encounters with Nazis, George repeated to himself the mantra “just one more day.” He battled to keep walking. His comrades were scattered all across Europe and experienced places as formidable as German POW camps and as hospitable as Spain, each crew member always wondering about the fate of the others. After the war, George made two vows: he would never lose touch with his men again and one day would attempt to thank those who had risked their lives to save his. Despite passage of time and demands of career and family, he accomplished both. He reunited with his crew then twenty-five years later returned to France to locate as many of the brave souls who had helped him evade the enemy as he could. Join George as he retraces his steps to freedom and discover the amazing stories of sacrifice and survival and how ten young American boys plus their French Helpers became heroes.

Of Another Time and Place


Brad Schaeffer - 2018
    How many men after all could have that name, and be both a retired musician and a former Luftwaffe ace? She had so many unanswered questions. How would he explain the violence, the many deaths by his own hand? How had he survived when so many of his comrades perished under the guns of the Allied air armadas? And most important, had this man somehow found redemption? Or was he just another grizzled old Nazi living out his last days in undeserved anonymity, still unrepentant for the horrors his people inflicted upon the world, and her people in particular. Rachael Azerod, a New York reporter, flies to London to interview Harmon Becker, the former German WW II hero whom Hitler himself awarded the highest honors—but she has her own reasons for meeting. Was he just a soldier? Or did he do something so astounding that not even he was willing to remember it…until now.   Of Another Time and Place is a novel about love, redemption, and two young lovers separated by war and desperate to survive the unparalleled violence consuming their war-torn nation. It is the story of a country gone astray, mesmerized by their mad Fuehrer, and the artist-turned-warrior and his courageous bride who vow to break his spell and make a difference, even it if means dangling at end of a Nazi rope. A worthy addition to the pantheon of beloved war novels from A Farewell to Arms to All Quiet on the Western Front, Brad Schaeffer’s gripping story draws the reader into the very heart of the conflagration that was the Second World War. He takes the reader deep into the conflicts that raged not only in the skies over Germany, but within the hearts of combatants and non-combatants alike who found themselves trying to maintain their humanity when all decency seemed to have abandoned the happy lives they once knew.

The Century Girls: The Final Word from the Women Who've Lived the Past Hundred Years of British History


Tessa Dunlop - 2018
    Told in their own voices, The Century Girls celebrates seven centenarians who lived that change: what they saw, how they were treated, who they loved, what they did and where they are now. With stories that are intimately knitted into the history of these islands, The Century Girls is a time-travel adventure featuring society’s oldest, most precious national treasures.In 1918 the Suffragettes famously blazed the trail for women, this book reveals what came next for girls growing up in twentieth century Great Britain, whether they resided in Scotland, England, Wales or Northern Ireland; whether they were housewives, or in the workplace; and describing their surroundings of the city, the countryside, or coming to the British Isles from the one of the Commonwealth countries. The narrative will travel through the experiences of some key figures who are now themselves well over a hundred years old. It will tell the human story of how women gradually began to build independent lives for themselves in the modern world of post-Great War Britain, by re-telling what their actual day-to-day reality was like, through the decades.

I'm Not From Around Here: A Jewish Boy Telling the Historical Story of his Family's Holocaust Survival in WW2 (Biographical Fiction Based on a Memoir)


Ishai Klinowsky - 2018
    It takes place against the backdrop of the Holocaust, the fate of the refugees at the end of the war, and the rebirth of the new Israel.The heroes of the plot are unusual, an antithesis of the weak and submissive Jew, sweeping the reader into a whirlwind of events and countless breathtaking adventures. How does a weak and very naive girl survive for three years in a deadly forced labor camp where others could not survive for more than a few months? Lola, the mother, whom we encounter as an innocent girl, sweeps the reader close to the hell of the monstrous and notorious labor camp, Ludwigsdorf. How does an “antithesis Jew” look to the submissive Jew? Staszek, the father, a street fighter and a tough and hard-working man from Warsaw, is hot-tempered, cunning, and daring. His gypsy appearance and colorful figure lead many women to fall easily into his arms. What does a spoiled "mother's son" and "father's daughter" feel when they see their family collapsing? From the eyes of an eight-year-old boy, the writer describes a stormy childhood with many heartrending vicissitudes: parents who disappear overnight, living with strangers, being trapped in a tough orphanage ... and more...Written in flowing and sensitive language, the story presents an accurate balance between a personal and family story and the story of a people. Scroll up now to get your copy of I’m Not From Around Here!

Last Stories


William Trevor - 2018
    Here we encounter a tutor and his pupil, whose lives are thrown into turmoil when they meet again years later; a young girl who discovers the mother she believed dead is alive and well; and a piano-teacher who accepts her pupil's theft in exchange for his beautiful music.

Two Sisters: A Journey of Survival Through Auschwitz


Livia Krancberg - 2018
    Would she have made it on her own? Who knows, even with Livia’s remarkable resilience which she still exhibits today in her nineties. It was Rose, with her desire to protect Livia and her instincts for survival that kept them, time and time again, from the many dangers which could have cost both of them their lives. From the moment they were on the transport to Auschwitz, and then saw their mother, along with Rose’s little son taken away and sent to the gas chambers, it was Rose who seem to anticipate what lay ahead. Maybe it was an extra morsel of food that could be obtained or an article of warm clothing. Rose always came through, even at great risk. Two Sisters is so much more than a story of survival during the Holocaust. It is the beautiful portrayal of a young girl―and later young woman―coming of age in rural Romania. Her academic achievements, schoolgirl crushes, and family life are all explored, revealed in detail for all of us. Carefully written and beautifully crafted, it serves as an extraordinary example of the power of the memoir in Holocaust understanding.

The Darkest Hour: WWII Tales of Resistance


Roberta KaganJohn R. McKay - 2018
    When the world falls to terror and tyranny reigns… ...how far would you go to resist? Would you risk your own life or the lives of the ones you love? From a young Jewish woman in love fighting her way out of the Warsaw ghetto, to a Czech assassin rising above his fears for an attempt on a Nazi Hangman’s life, to a daughter who vows to avenge her family by taking down a Japanese commander, and a French boy's touching act of defiance no matter how small. Come and get a glimpse of the invisible side of WWII - the Resistance, those who refuse to bow down to brutality. Hold your breath and hope for the best in the darkest of times, when our heroes and heroines risk all to defy evil so the light of freedom will shine over their countries again. This collection includes ten never before published novellas by ten of today’s bestselling WWII historical fiction authors. Foreword by Terry Lynn Thomas, author of The Silent Woman, the USA Today Bestseller. Featured Stories: Bubbe’s Nightingale by Roberta Kagan Catriona’s War by Jean Grainger Reluctant Informer by Marion Kummerow Killing the Hangman by Ellie Midwood The Moon Chaser by Alexa Kang Enemy at the Gate by Mary D. Brooks The Occupation by Deborah Swift Code Name Camille by Kathryn Gauci V for Victory by John R McKay Sound of Resistance by Ryan Armstrong *** All proceeds will be donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum In Washington DC ***

Claiming My Place: Coming of Age in the Shadow of the Holocaust


Planaria Price - 2018
    Still, even in the years before World War II, she faced discrimination as a Jew—but with her ash-blond hair she was often able to pass as just another Pole. When her town was invaded by Nazis, she knew her Aryan coloring gave her an advantage, and she faced an awful choice: stay in the place she had always called home, or leave behind everything she knew to try to survive. She took on a new identity as Basia Tanska, and her journey led her directly into Nazi Germany. Planaria Price, along with Basia's daughter Helen West, tells this incredible life story directly in the first person. Claiming My Place is a stunning portrayal of bravery, love, loss, and the power of storytelling.

Sinclair: The World's End Murders Through the Eyes of a Killer


Ryan Green - 2018
    They had their whole lives ahead of them. They had nothing to fear and everything to look forward to. Their naked bodies were discovered the following day. They were found six miles apart from each other. No attempt had been made to conceal their bodies, and both girls had been beaten, gagged, tied, raped and strangled. The case attracted widespread media attention and despite the Police's best efforts, they were unable to identify a culprit. Within the next six months, the investigation was scaled down. The World's End killers were still at large. Free to continue terrorising the streets of Scotland. Thanks to the advances in DNA profiling, investigators were able to link the murders of Christine Eadie and Helen Scott to an Angus Sinclair, who was known to the Police. Sinclair had pleaded guilty to culpable homicide of an eight-year-old girl when he was just sixteen and was serving a life sentence for the murder of another seventeen-year-old girl. It is not known how many victims suffered at the hands of Sinclair. He is thought to have killed at least another four women but it could have been twice that amount. Bestselling author Ryan Green assumes the role of Angus Sinclair and attempts to fill in the blanks on one of Scotland's most notorious serial killers. Sinclair is a shocking true story about lust, manipulation, dominance and extreme violence. CAUTION: This book contains descriptive accounts of sexual abuse and violence. If you are especially sensitive to this material, it might be advisable not to read any further.

The Novel of Ferrara


Giorgio Bassani - 2018
    Now published in English for the first time as the unified masterwork Bassani intended, The Novel of Ferrara brings together Bassani’s six classics, fully revised by the author at the end of his life: Within the Walls, The Gold-Rimmed Spectacles, The Garden of the Finzi-Continis, Behind the Door, The Heron, and The Smell of Hay.Set in the northern Italian town of Ferrara before, during, and after the Second World War, these interlocking stories present a fully rounded world of unforgettable characters: the respected doctor whose homosexuality is tolerated until he is humiliatingly exposed by an exploitative youth; a survivor of the Nazi death camps whose neighbors’ celebration of his return gradually turns to ostracism; a young man discovering the ugly, treacherous price that people will pay for a sense of belonging; the Jewish aristocrat whose social position has been erased; the indomitable schoolteacher, Celia Trotti, whose Communist idealism disturbs and challenges a postwar generation.The Novel of Ferrara memorializes not only the Ferrarese people, but the city itself, which assumes a character and a voice deeply inflected by the Jewish community to which the narrator belongs. Suffused with new life by acclaimed translator and poet Jamie McKendrick, this seminal work seals Bassani’s reputation as “a quietly insistent chronicler of our age’s various menaces to liberty” (Jonathan Keates).

In the Shadow of the Storm


Ella Zeiss - 2018
    Their friends the Scholzes are less lucky. Captured and transported to labour camps in the icy Far North, the future seems a bleak, dark nightmare for the couple and their three children.As the 1930s march towards the inevitable horror of war, and Europe is engulfed in hostility and persecution, the Pfeiffers find there is only so long—and so far—you can run before someone uncovers your past…In their darkest hours, these two families must do everything—anything—to survive. Will they ever find peace in the new world order?

The Blue Bench


Paul Marriner - 2018
    The body of the Unknown Warrior is coming home, can Britain find peace? '..an important novel..' Margate 1920. The Great War is over but Britain mourns and its spirit is not yet mended.Edward and William have returned from the front as changed men. Together they have survived grotesque horrors and remain haunted by memories of comrades who did not come home. The summer season in Margate is a chance for them to rebuild their lives and reconcile the past.Evelyn and Catherine are young women ready to live life to the full. Their independence has been hard won and, with little knowledge of the cost of their freedom, they are ready to face new challenges side by side.Can they define their own future and open their hearts to the prospect of finding love? Will the summer of 1920 be a turning point for these new friends? As the body of the Unknown Warrior is returned, can the nation find a way forward? '..a brilliant story told brilliantly..''..it is a beautiful book, expertly written, emotive and warm..'

The 21 Escapes of Lt Alastair Cram


David M. Guss - 2018
    

The Girl in the Pink Raincoat


Alrene Hughes - 2018
    Manchester, 1939. On the eve of war Gracie Earnshaw is working in Rosenberg's Raincoat factory – a job she hates – but her life is about to be turned upside down when she falls in love with Jacob, the boss’s charismatic nephew. Through Jacob, with his ambitions to be a writer, Gracie glimpses another world: theatre, music and prejudice. But their forbidden romance is cut short when Jacob is arrested and tragedy unfolds.Gracie struggles with heartbreak, danger and old family secrets, but the love of her first sweetheart comes back to her in an unexpected way giving her the chance of a new life and happiness.

Landing on the Edge of Eternity: Twenty-Four Hours at Omaha Beach


Robert Kershaw - 2018
    Early in 1944, German commander Field Marshal Erwin Rommel took one look at the gentle, sloping sands and announced "They will come here!” He was referring to "Omaha Beach”—the prime American D-Day landing site. The beach was subsequently transformed into three miles of lethal, bunker-protected arcs of fire, with seaside chalets converted into concrete strongpoints, fringed by layers of barbed wire and mines. The Germans called it “the Devil's Garden."When Company A of the US 116th Regiment landed on Omaha Beach in D-Day’s first wave on 6th June 1944, it lost 96% of its effective strength. Sixteen teams of US engineers arriving in the second wave were unable to blow the beach obstacles, as first wave survivors were still sheltering behind them. This was the beginning of the historic day that Landing on the Edge of Eternity narrates hour by hour—rom midnight to midnight—tracking German and American soldiers fighting across the beachhead. Mustered on their troop transport decks at 2am, the American infantry departed in landing craft at 5am. Skimming across high waves, deafened by immense broadsides from supporting battleships and weak from seasickness, they caught sight of land at 6.15. Eleven minutes later, the assault was floundering under intense German fire. Two and a half hours in, General Bradley, commanding the landings aboard USS Augusta, had to decide if to proceed or evacuate. On June 6th there were well over 2,400 casualties on Omaha Beach – easily D-Day’s highest death toll.The Wehrmacht thought they had bludgeoned the Americans into bloody submission, yet by mid-afternoon, the American troops were ashore. Why were the casualties so grim, and how could the Germans have failed? Juxtaposing the American experience—pinned down, swamped by a rising tide, facing young Wehrmacht soldiers fighting desperately for their lives, Kershaw draws on eyewitness accounts, memories, letters, and post-combat reports to expose the true horrors of Omaha Beach.These are stories of humanity, resilience, and dark humor; of comradeship and a gritty patriotism holding beleaguered men together. Landing on the Edge of Eternity is a dramatic historical ride through an amphibious landing that looked as though it might never succeed.

El Hacho


Luis Carrasco - 2018
    Wonderfully crafted, El Hacho is a poignant and compelling story of struggle and hope.

I Am Sasha


Anita Selzer - 2018
    One mother’s incredible courage. Based on an astounding true story.It is German-occupied Poland in 1942 and Jewish lives are at risk. Nazi soldiers order young boys to pull down their trousers to see if they are circumcised. Many are summarily shot or sent to the camps. A remarkable mother takes an ingenious step. To avoid suspicion, she trains her teenage son to be a girl: his clothing, voice, hair, manners and more. Together, mother and son face incredible odds as their story sweeps backwards and forwards across occupied Europe.

Potato Thief: Surviving WWII as the Enemy's Daughter


Maria Wilhemina Brandner - 2018
     And yet she not only survived, but thrived. Through her memoirs, join this spunky young girl through adventure, heartbreak, spiritual growth, and lost innocence amid the realities of war.

Goodbye for Now


M.J. Hollows - 2018
    Refusing to fight, Joe stays behind as a conscientious objector battling against the propaganda.On the Western front, George soon discovers that war is not the great adventure he was led to believe. Surrounded by mud, blood and horror his mindset begins to shift as he questions everything he was once sure of.At home in Liverpool, Joe has his own war to win. Judged and imprisoned for his cowardice, he is determined to stand by his convictions, no matter the cost.By the end of The Great War only one brother will survive, but which?

Three Voices


Nora Sarel - 2018
    Now an elderly woman with nothing but her memories to guide her – she embarks on a journey to unravel the truth of her past, once and for all.You have never read a story quite like this. Based on real events, Three Voices illustrates the trauma and relief of a woman escaping the atrocities of the Holocaust, traveling the world and eventually reclaiming her childhood. This incredible tale, pieced together from three unique perspectives, weaves past, present and future into a heart-wrenching experience that will change you. Watch Lena take her life back Lena remembers everything from her childhood. She doesn’t know that her whole life is about to be turned upside down as she comes face-to-face with another Lena. A once-in-a-lifetime meeting between the two Lena’s and the town's priest, sends shockwaves that reverberate through the truth that was known to her. Scroll up and grab your copy of Three Voices today

Live For Me


Colin Falconer - 2018
    But this is Nazi Germany in 1933, and things like love don’t count for much any more. Netanel Rosenberg never expected Marie Helder to stand by him. He told her not to, it was too dangerous. She should forget about him. Even when he is the last Jew left in the town, hiding away in secret, still she will not abandon him. Her last words to him, when he is finally discovered: “Whatever happens, don’t give up – live for me.” Through the nightmare of the holocaust, Netanel clings to the promise he made her. But neither he or Marie can imagine what fate has in store for each of them – and what they will have to do to keep their promise to each other.

The Time Between: Love, loyalty and betrayal in Nazi-occupied Amsterdam


Bryna Hellmann-Gillson - 2018
    They print illegal newspapers and false documents, hide Jewish children, commit sabotage and murder. Their lives come together through Adrian, a young man risking his life in the resistance. He is Pam’s brother, Jo’s first infatuation and Hannah’s lover. “Isn’t this the between time?” he asks. “One day real life stopped, when the Germans came, and some day real life will start again.” For some of them, it did.

Amsterdam 1940-1945 The Shadow of My Life


Bep Gomperts - 2018
    At the age of two Bep and her family were trapped by the Nazis when Germany occupied Holland on the 10th May 1940. Under no illusions as to the fate of the Jews, they went into hiding with the help of relatives and political associates active in the Dutch Resistance. Bep was separated from her mother and lived undercover as a “Christian” child until they were reunited at the end of the war. The majority of Bep’s family perished in the concentration camps. The brutal years of occupation and famine left an indelible scar on the people’s psyche. In Bep’s life, it cast a long shadow, the painful ramifications felt decades later. Told with great candour, Bep Gomperts richly depicts the extraordinary courage of innocent civilians engulfed by Total War.

Nein!: Standing up to Hitler 1935–1944


Paddy Ashdown - 2018
    In part, he was right. By 1945, his armies were being crushed on all fronts, his regime collapsing with many fleeing retribution for their crimes. Yet, even before the war started, there were Germans very high in Hitler’s command committed to bringing about his death and defeat.Paddy Ashdown tells, for the first time, the story of those at the very top of Hitler’s Germany who tried first to prevent the Second World War and then to deny Hitler victory. Based on newly released files, the repeated attempts of the plotters to warn the Allies about Hitler’s plans are revealed. Key strands to the book’s narrative lie with the actions of Abwehr head Admiral Wilhelm Canaris to frustrate Hitler’s policies once the war had started; the plots to kill Hitler and, finally the systematic passage of key German military secrets to London, Washington and Moscow through MI6, the OSS (fore-runner to the CIA) and the “Lucy Ring” Russian spy network based in Switzerland. From 1943 onwards, concerted efforts were made to strike a separate peace with the West to shorten the war and prevent eastern Europe falling under the Soviet yoke.What is revealed is that the anti-Hitler bomb plots, which have received so much attention are, in fact only a small part of a much wider story; one in which those at the highest levels of the German state used every means possible – conspiracy, assassination, espionage – to ensure that, for the sake of the long-term reputation of their country and the survival of liberal and democratic values, Hitler could not be allowed to win the war. It is a matter of record that the European Union we have today and the nature and central position of Germany within it, is, in very large measure, the future envisaged by the plotters and for which they gave their lives.

Eight Stories: Tales of War and Loss


Erich Maria Remarque - 2018
    This exquisite collection revives Remarque's unforgettable voice, presenting a series of short stories that have long ago faded from public memory. From the haunting description of an abandoned battlefield to the pain of losing a loved one in the war to soldiers' struggles with what we now recognize as PTSD, the stories offer an unflinching glimpse into the physical, emotional, and even spiritual implications of World War I. In this collection, we follow the trials of naive war widow Annette Stoll, reflect on the power of small acts of kindness toward a dying soldier, and join Johann Bartok, a weary prisoner of war, in his struggle to reunite with his wife. Although a century has passed since the end of the Great War, Remarque's writing offers a timeless reflection on the many costs of war. Eight Stories offers a beautiful tribute to the pain that war inflicts on soldiers and civilians alike, and resurrects the work of a master author whose legacy - like the war itself - will endure for generations to come.

A Life Rebuilt: The Remarkable Transformation of a War Orphan


Sylvia Ruth Gutmann - 2018
    In the summer of 1942, three-year-old Sylvia, her two older sisters, and her young mother were arrested by the Vichy police and shipped to the French internment camp in Rivesaltes. Shortly thereafter, her mother was deported to Auschwitz, leaving her three children behind. Six months later, Sylvia’s bedridden father was also deported to Auschwitz. Sylvia and her sisters would never see their parents again.Deeply traumatized, Sylvia arrived in New York City at age seven, where a well-meaning uncle and a cruel aunt took her in. Don’t speak of it. Put it behind you. Move on, they told her. The messages she received in America forced her to again keep silent and hide in full view. She spent the next five decades struggling to put the pieces of her life back together and to fully understand the past she was too young to remember.A Life Rebuilt: The Remarkable Transformation of a War Orphan chronicles an odyssey that spans sixty years, three countries, and thousands of miles. Remarkably, at age sixty-two, Sylvia developed a relationship with a young man, forty years her junior, and against all odds she moved to Germany to live with him. Here she began to share the story of her family’s fate with German students, senior citizens, and even neo-Nazi groups. By doing so, Sylvia reconciled with the people she had feared and loathed, and resurrected the lives of the parents she cannot remember, and cannot forget. Heartbreaking and ultimately inspiring, this memoir of loss, love, resilience, belonging, identity, and authenticity has a surprising resolution, told in an intimate voice with candor, substance, and heart.

The Fall of Europe


Fred Majdalany - 2018
     This was Adolf Hitler's Europe - the formidable fortress that cast its last shadow across half the world and which, indeed, seemed nearly ready to sustain itself for a millennium. But it was corroding from within before the Allies stormed the walls. The Fall of Europe tells us why. Fred Majdalany's sweeping history condenses an enormous amount of material with precision and grace, unraveling the story of the Nazi collapse and offering fresh insights into the men who shaped the most massive of wars.

The Restless Sea


Vanessa de Haan - 2018
    The frozen world of the Russian Arctic convoys may be harsh, but it opens his eyes to a new life.While on leave in the Navy’s secret Scottish harbour, Jack meets Olivia, the cossetted daughter of an officer family. Free to roam, Olivia relishes the new freedom granted by war. But her family – and especially the well-connected Charlie, now a fast-rising pilot – don’t welcome these changes. Least of all the arrival of Jack, the boy who casts doubt on each of their futures.The war inflicts danger and social upheaval like never before. But the most unlikely friendships are forged in times when people live like they don’t want tomorrow to come…

Searching for Gertrude


D.E. Haggerty - 2018
    No matter what. I'll find you, and we'll be reunited.When Gertrude is forced to flee Nazi Germany with her family, Rudolf is left behind. Despite the distance, he remains devoted to her. Even after her letters stop. Eight years pass before Rudolf is finally able to follow Gertrude to Istanbul. Their reunion should be inevitable, but Rudolf can't find Gertrude. He stumbles upon Rosalyn who immediately agrees to help him search for his lost love.Willing to do anything in their search, they find themselves entangled with a British intelligence officer. As the danger increases and the search for Gertrude stretches on, Rudolf and Rosalyn grow close, but Rudolf gave his heart away long ago.How far would you go to find the woman you love? Includes questions and discussion points for book clubs.

We Are Here: talking with Australia's oldest Holocaust survivors


Fiona Harari - 2018
    His goal included the eradication of European Jewry, a plan that would ultimately claim six million lives. By 1945, almost two in three European Jews were dead. So were millions of other victims of Nazism. For those who survived, liberation came with the enormous weight of guilt and memory as they began the second part of their lives, often in faraway places such as Australia, which would become home to one of the world’s highest per capita communities of Holocaust survivors. Now the last of those adult survivors have reached an age once considered unattainable. They outlasted Nazism, and today, in their tenth and eleventh decades, have outlived most of their contemporaries. Eighteen of these Australians, originally from all over Europe, tell what it is like to have endured those years, and how they lived long after them.

The Bell of Treason: The Czech Story of the 1938 Munich Agreement


P.E. Caquet - 2018
    I believe it is peace for our time. We thank you from the bottom of our hearts. Go home and get a nice quiet sleep." Winston Churchill commented dryly: "We have chosen shame and will get war." Pierre Caquet's history of the events leading to the Munich Agreement and its aftermath is told for the first time from the point of view of the peoples of Czechoslovakia and the many Germans and others (including Thomas Mann) who had taken refuge there from the Nazis. Basing his account on countless previously unexamined sources including the press, memoirs, private journals, military plans, parliamentary records, film and radio, Pierre Caquet presents the familiar tale of one of the most shameful episodes in modern European history in a tragic new shape.

A Cobbler's Tale: A Novel


Neil Perry Gordon - 2018
     In 1910, at the historic height of the massive Eastern European immigration wave to the New World, Pincus decides to leave behind his pregnant wife, and three small children, in order to seek a new life for his family in the burgeoning Lower East Side of Manhattan. On his traumatic voyage across the Atlantic Ocean on the SS Amerika steamship, Pincus meets Jakob Adler, a young man running from an accidental murder of a notorious crime boss in Warsaw. The story also explores the challenges of pregnant Clara Potasznik as she does her best to protect her family, while the bloodiest battles of World War I explode within miles of her family home, a small village called Krzywcza. Moshe, the young son of Pincus and Clara Potasznik, discovers his divine ability to foretell dire events, and to offer real comfort those in pain, taking the reader into the wisdom and mystery surrounding the ancient Jewish mysticism, known as Kabbalah. A Cobbler’s Tale is a story of a family’s survival against tremendous odds.

The Black Earth


Philip Kazan - 2018
    When the Turkish Army occupies Smyrna, Zoë Haggitiris escapes with her family, only to lose everything. Alone in a sea of desperate strangers, her life is touched, for a moment, by a young English boy, Tom Collyer, also lost, before the compassion of a stranger leads her into a new life. Years later when war breaks out, Tom finds himself in Greece and in the chaos of the British retreat, fate will lead him back to Zoë. But he will discover that the war will not end so easily for either of them.

Sons of Freedom: The Forgotten American Soldiers Who Defeated Germany in World War I


Geoffrey Wawro - 2018
    Historians have dismissed the American war effort as largely economic and symbolic. But as Geoffrey Wawro shows in Sons of Freedom, the French and British were on the verge of collapse in 1918, and would have lost the war without the Doughboys. Field Marshal Douglas Haig, commander of the British Expeditionary Force, described the Allied victory as a "miracle"--but it was a distinctly American miracle. In Sons of Freedom, prize-winning historian Geoffrey Wawro weaves together in thrilling detail the battles, strategic deliberations, and dreadful human cost of the American war effort--first defending Paris, and then cutting the German army's lifeline in the Meuse-Argonne. A major revision of the history of World War I, Sons of Freedom resurrects the brave heroes who saved the Allies, defeated Germany, and established the United States as the greatest of the great powers.

Determined: A Memoir


Martin Baranek - 2018
    The fact that in this book Martin's own words testify in some detail to his experiences from ghetto to work camp to extermination camps to death march to liberation and eventual arrival to the Land of Israel, powerfully teaches us that the unbelievable actually happened. This is an eye opening window into humanity at its lowest and cruelest. It is also one human being's intense will to survive and rebuild his life anew. I found it riveting and gut wrenching. Martin Baranek's journey is a triumph of hope over despair."--Rabbi Gary Glickstein"I first encountered Martin Baranek as an articulate and reflective survivor in the course of my research on the Wierzbnik ghetto and the Starachowice slave labor camps. As his powerful memoir records, these were but the first two circles of Hitler's inferno through which he descended in the years of the Holocaust. They were followed by Birkenau, Mauthausen, and Gunskirchen, with each stage of his incredible odyssey more challenging and horrifying than the previous one. Martin's overall story remains very powerful."--Christopher R. Browning, Frank Porter Graham Professor of History Emeritus, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill"It has been said that a thousand doors had to open and close in the exact right time and succession in order for one to survive the Holocaust. If even one door opened or closed at the wrong time, your fate was sealed. Unlike 6 million other Jews, the doors Martin Baranek went through appeared for him at just the right time. But his survival was not just a matter of luck. Shining through on every page of this exceptionally moving tale are Martin's courage, perseverance and sheer will to live under the most brutal of conditions This painfully honest account is a true testament to the power of the human spirit to triumph over unimaginable adversity. Martin' story is a remarkable memoir that is nothing short of inspiring.You may have questions about God after reading this book - but you will most certainly believe in miracles."--Eli Rubenstein, National Director, March of the Living Canada"...This is a fascinating chronicle of the Holocaust by an amazing man who shares the tale of his painful tragedy and the triumph of his survival against all odds. We are privileged that Martin has shared his story with countless participants of the March of the Living that will pass on his message of NEVER FORGET to future generations..."--Mel Mann, Executive Director - Friends of the March of the Living, Miami, FL

My Opposition: The Diary of Friedrich Kellner - A German Against the Third Reich


Friedrich Kellner - 2018
    A mid-level official in a provincial town, Friedrich Kellner kept a secret diary from 1939 to 1945, risking his life to record Germany's path to dictatorship and genocide and to protest his countrymen's complicity in the regime's brutalities. Just one month into the war he is aware that Jews are marked for extermination and later records how soldiers on leave spoke openly about the mass murder of Jews and the murder of POWs; he also documents the Gestapo's merciless rule at home from euthanasia campaigns against the handicapped and mentally ill to the execution of anyone found listening to foreign broadcasts. This essential testimony of everyday life under the Third Reich is accompanied by a foreword by Alan Steinweis and the remarkable story of how the diary was brought to light by Robert Scott Kellner, Friedrich's grandson.

Oscar Wilde: A Life From Beginning to End


Hourly History - 2018
     Who was Oscar Wilde? Was he just an author of witty but meaningless plays, only out to get a laugh or two? The answer is a resounding no. Oscar Wilde was an Irish poet and playwright in the late nineteenth century. His controversial plays were riddled with mockery of social status, cleverly covered by the use of comedy. Inside you will read about... ✓ Blue China and Long Hair ✓ Marriage and Men ✓ The Picture of Dorian Gray ✓ The Sodomy Trials ✓ Life After Prison ✓ Death and Posthumous Pardon And much more! Wilde may have paved the way for people living a little off the center line. He was full of flash and flare, and he wrote some of those colorful traits into his literature. Take a journey into the world of Oscar Wilde and find out just how individualistic he was.

The Son


Florian Zeller - 2018
    Believe me. I don't know what's happened, but something has. He's changed. He . . . And I'm wondering if . . . To be absolutely honest with you . . . I'm even wondering if . . . Nicolas, just two years ago a smiling boy, is going through a difficult phase after his parents' divorce. He's listless, skipping classes, lying. He believes moving in with his father and his new family may help. And a different school, a fresh start. When he doesn't feel comfortable there, when he senses he isn't wanted, he decides that going back to his mother's may be the answer. But at some point, options are going to dry up. And then what?I'm telling you. I don't understand what's happening to me. Florian Zeller's The Son forms the final part in a trilogy with The Mother and The Father, all of which are translated by Christopher Hampton. The Son premieres at the Kiln Theatre, London, in February 2019.

The Final Race: The Incredible World War II Story of the Olympian Who Inspired Chariots of Fire


Eric T. Eichinger - 2018
    He was the most famous Briton at the time, having just won the gold in the Olympic 400-meter race. The story of that race―and the one he didn't run―was told in the popular movie classic Chariots of Fire.But what most of us don't know is what became of Eric Liddell in the years after the credits rolled. As the storm clouds of World War II rolled in, Eric had already made decisions in his life that gave him the resilience to stand tall while others fell into despair. His strength of character led him to choose an uncertain future in China during World War II in order to continue helping the Chinese. He lived purposefully even as his world crumbled and he experienced the horror and deprivations of a Japanese internment camp.Eric's story is a story of hope in the face of uncertainty, resilience in the face of unspeakable odds, and inspiring vision of what life means, even when the final hour comes.The first race you run isn't your most important one. It's the final race that matters most.You won't want to miss this story of an Olympian who chose the better way.

No Man's Land


Chrystyna Lucyk-Berger - 2018
    He wants control. The Fascist regime wants both.1920, former Austrian Tyrol. Katharina Thaler faces becoming the first woman to ever own a farm in the Reschen Valley. The end of the Great War has taken more than her beloved family, it has robbed the province of its autonomy and severed it in half. As her countrymen fight to prevent the annexation to Italy, Katharina finds a wounded Italian engineer on her mountain. Her decision to save Angelo Grimani’s life, however, thrusts both into the midst of a new world order—a labyrinth of corruption, prejudice and greed.Trapped between a growing fascist regime and a man who threatens to tear her home away, Katharina must decide what to protect: love or country?

ACROSS THE CHANNEL: WWII NOVEL


Chris Glatte - 2018
     Nazi-occupied France is a dangerous place. Boyhood fantasies of taking the fight to the enemy are fine from the safety of England, but the reality is far different. To survive, the boys must learn to trust one another. Cold, scared and desperate they stumble upon a small country farm occupied by a girl and her father. They’ve little choice but to trust them. Soon, they become the target of a brutal Gestapo manhunt. The boys must harden their hearts to the brutality of a world at war, or be consumed.

Dina - Surviving Undercover: From the Darkness of The Holocaust to The Light of The Future


Dina Drori - 2018
    She survived covertly, with fake identity papers, one of the most horrendous periods in human history. Her life-saving wisdom and inner knowing became an inspiration to all Her many breathtaking personal stories give a rare, unique perspective on one of the war’s most horrific times, when both the Germans and Soviets armies bombed Warsaw during the Polish Uprising. Dina was alone in the midst of this living hell. Each obstacle she encountered, each decision and intuitive insight that led her to act one way and not another, saved her life and altered her destiny forever.Dina became a mentor for life, her integrity, hope and belief are radiating throughout everything she does until this day. This book is a gateway to her amazing life. It holds within the story of her unique journey and precious life wisdom. Scroll up now to get your copy of Dina: Surviving Undercover!

The First Soldier: Hitler as Military Leader


Stephen G. Fritz - 2018
    The author of three highly acclaimed books on the era, Stephen Fritz upends this characterization of Hitler as an ill-informed fantasist and demonstrates the ways in which his strategy was coherent and even competent. That Hitler saw World War II as the only way to retrieve Germany’s fortunes and build an expansionist Thousand-Year Reich is uncontroversial. But while his generals did sometimes object to Hitler’s tactics and operational direction, they often made the same errors in judgment and were in agreement regarding larger strategic and political goals. A necessary volume for understanding the influence of World War I on Hitler’s thinking, this work is also an eye-opening reappraisal of major events like the invasion of Russia and the battle for Normandy.

The Truth About Us


Tia Souders - 2018
    But what if your past is a lie?When eighteen-year-old Abigail Bridges' grandmother dies, she discovers a cryptic letter hidden in her jewelry box.With one final request, her grandmother asks her to reveal a long-hidden family secret.There is only one rule: tell no one.But breaking the rules is inevitable once she meets the enigmatic Kaden Oliver and confides in him.Armed with her grandmother's letters and a journal from the Holocaust, they search for answers, hidden in her family's heritage.Only, nothing can prepare her for the truth. Now, she is faced with the ultimate choice. Family or justice?

Women's Experiences in the Holocaust: In Their Own Words


Agnes Grunwald-Spier - 2018
    It explains why women’s difficulties were different to those of men. Men were taken away and the women were left to cope with children and elderly relatives and obliged to take on new roles. Women like Andrew Sachs' mother had to deal with organising departure for a foreign country and making choices about what to take and what to abandon. The often desperate hunt for food for themselves and those in their care more often than not fell to the women, as did medical issues. They had to face pregnancies, abortions and, in some camps, medical experiments. Many women wrote diaries, memoirs, letters and books about their experiences and these have been used extensively here. The accounts include women who fought or worked in the resistance, like Zivia Lubetkin who was part of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. Dr Gisella Perl was a doctor in Auschwitz under the infamous Dr Mengele. Some young girls acted as Kashariyot, underground couriers between ghettos. Their varied experiences represent the extremities of human suffering, endeavour and courage. The author herself is a survivor, born in 1944. Her mother struggled to keep her safe in the mayhem of the Budapest Ghetto when she was a tiny baby and dealt with the threat from Russian soldiers after the liberation of Budapest in January 1945.

In Hitler's Shadow: Post-War Germany & the Girls of the BDM


Tim Heath - 2018
    Through the eyes of the BDM girls, it recounts the struggle to rebuild lives destroyed by years of war, and how a country came to terms with terrible war crimes committed in its name. The result is powerful, sad, harrowing, humorous and shocking. In the realms of the study of female Hitler Youth organizations in Nazi Germany, In Hitler's Shadow has no equal.

Love Lost in the War: A WW2 Historical Holocaust Survivors Love Story (Biographical Fiction Based On A True Story)


Orit Raz - 2018
    One day Israel tells Paula that he will marry her in a few years. She objects, and their friendship ends. But when the Germans enter the city, they flee together to Russia and volunteer in Soviet labor camps - to survive. They are sent to different places. Paula works as a nurse, where she excels and is sent to Moscow to study medicine. There she marries Mila and has a son, but Mila dies at war soon after. At war’s end, in love from afar, will they ever succeed in reuniting? Meanwhile, Israel returns to his hometown as a Polish soldier and finds a letter from Paula. Their love is rekindled from afar, and he proposes marriage by mail. But will Israel ever be able to manipulate the Russian authorities to obtain a visa to penetrate the Iron Curtain and then reunite with Paula in Moscow? Will their love ever again be free to flourish? Scroll up now and get your copy of Love Lost In The War!

Virgo: The Art of Living Well and Finding Happiness According to Your Star Sign (Pocket Astrology)


Sally Kirkman - 2018
    You are the perfectionist and writer of the zodiac. The signs of the zodiac can give us great insight into our day-to-day living as well as the many talents and qualities we possess.But in an increasingly unpredictable world, how can we make sense of them? And what do they mean?This insightful and introductory guide delves deep into your star sign, revealing unique traits and meanings which you didn't know. Along the way, you will discover how your sign defies your compatibility, how to improve your health and what your gifts are.***The Pocket Astrology series will teach you how to live well and enhance every aspect of your life. From friendship to compatibility, careers to finance, you will discover new elements to your sign and learn about the ancient art of astrology.Other books in the series include: Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius,Capricorn, Aquarius, Pisces

I Am A Leftover From World War 2: A Memoir


Renee Antar - 2018
    For Renee Antar’s mother, the specter of Hitler and his Nazi’s followed her from Holland to New York City and was the defining feature of the next seven decades for her and her family’s life.In this brutally frank and candid memoir the author describes the personal hell of growing up under the shadow of a mother tortured by both mental illness and the recurring horrors of The Holocaust.

Divided Loyalties: Algiers 1941 (Fighting France)


Paul A. Myers - 2018
    This is the true story underlying this tale of historical fiction. People move history. A lonely wife works as a secretary for an important French general while her husband serves as a Vichy diplomat in Nazi Germany. A young American diplomat has a secret mission. A French counterespionage agent and his alluring lady friend have a score to settle. A slinky German foreign correspondent charms her way into the top social circles of Algiers. A Nazi diplomat has perverse tastes while his sadistic Gestapo bodyguard keeps blackmailers at bay. Refugees and adventurers, Vichy officers, German armistice officials, and American diplomats jockey for position as Sunday dinner at the posh Hotel Aletti approaches -- on December 7, 1941.

I Belong to Vienna: A Jewish Family's Story of Exile and Return


Anna Goldenberg - 2018
    Hans, their elder son, survives by hiding in an apartment in the middle of Nazi-controlled Vienna. But this is no Anne Frank-like existence; teenage Hans passes time in the municipal library and buys standing room tickets to the Vienna State Opera. He never sees his family again. Goldenberg reconstructs this unique story in magnificent reportage. She also portrays Vienna’s undying allure—although they tried living in the United States after World War Two, both grandparents eventually returned to the Austrian capital. The author, too, has returned to her native Vienna after living in New York herself, and her fierce attachment to her birthplace enlivens her engrossing biographical history. A probing tale of heroism, resilience, identity and belonging, marked by a surprising freshness as a new generation comes to terms with history’s darkest era.

Living with Hitler: Accounts of Hitler’s Household Staff


Karl Wilhelm Krause - 2018
    

Daughter of the Cold War


Grace Kennan Warnecke - 2018
    Daughter of one of the most influential diplomats of the twentieth century, wife of the scion of a newspaper dynasty and mother of the youngest owner of a major league baseball team, Grace eventually found her way out from under the shadows of others to forge a dynamic career of her own. Born in Latvia, Grace lived in seven countries and spoke five languages before the age of eleven. As a child, she witnessed Hitler’s march into Prague, attended a Soviet school during World War II, and sailed the seas with her father. In a multi-faceted career, she worked as a professional photographer, television producer, and book editor and critic. Eventually, like her father, she became a Russian specialist, but of a very different kind. She accompanied Ted Kennedy and his family to Russia, escorted Joan Baez to Moscow to meet with dissident Andrei Sakharov, and hosted Josef Stalin’s daughter on the family farm after Svetlana defected to the United States. While running her own consulting company in Russia, she witnessed the breakup of the Soviet Union, and later became director of a women’s economic empowerment project in a newly independent Ukraine.Daughter of the Cold War is a tale of all these adventures and so much more. This compelling and evocative memoir allows readers to follow Grace's amazing path through life – a whirlwind journey of survival, risk, and self-discovery through a kaleidoscope of many countries, historic events, and fascinating people.

Copley's Hunch


Douglas Clark - 2018
     By a chance meeting, Horton, a Spitfire pilot, and Copley, the commando sergeant of a small raiding party form an alliance to escape Nazi-held France. The two men carry their courage as they journey through the ravages of war-torn country. From hiding in cider barrels, unlikely allies and involvement in a minor-naval engagement, the pair endure moments of breathless peril, tension and action. Back home they are hailed as heroes—the pilot, Horton, especially, as he is the third of three brothers to have escaped from Nazi territory. But the sergeant, Copley, has nagging doubts about Horton’s story. He passes his doubts on to Military Intelligence. A very hush-hush investigation begins. And gradually a strange secret is revealed, and an even stranger conspiracy. An old hand with a new name, Douglas Clark’s venture into the world of Combined Operations is a brilliant success—absorbing as a mystery, gripping as an escape yarn—which is not surprising for he is an old soldier himself. About the author Douglas Clark was born in Lincolnshire in 1919 and died in 1993. He was educated at the University of London and during WWII he served with the Royal Horse Artillery. He wrote over 20 crime novels and under other names, including James Ditton and Peter Hosier.

The Nazis: The Rise and Fall of History’s Most Evil Empire


Paul Roland - 2018
    As their figurehead, they chose an Austrian corporal with a twisted psyche, who rose from obscurity to command the world's most formidable military machine.The Nazis includes fascinating psychological profiles of Nazi henchmen in an attempt to discover the character flaws that made them commit their terrible crimes. This gallery of social misfits was held together by its admiration for Hitler, who dragged the German nation towards the abyss and brought about the deaths of more than 60 million people worldwide.

The White House


O'neil Sharma - 2018
    A victim of the concentration camps himself, Saul finds he must confront his own horrific past as a Sonderkommando, in order to solve the crimes being committed in the present day. However, he is fast losing control of his ability to restrain the nightmare images he has suppressed for so long. As his Alzheimer’s progresses Saul faces the prospect of spending his remaining days in the very place he has spent his life trying to forget: Auschwitz.

The First Day on the Eastern Front: Germany Invades the Soviet Union, June 22, 1941


Craig W.H. Luther - 2018
    From launching points in newly acquired Poland, in three prongs--North, Central, South--German forces stormed western Russia, virtually from the Baltic to the Black Sea. By late fall, the invasion had foundered against Russian weather, terrain, and resistance, and by December, it had failed at the gates of Moscow, but early on, as the Germans sliced through Russian territory and soldiers with impunity, capturing hundreds of thousands, it seemed as though Russia would fall. In the spirit of Martin Middlebrook's classic First Day on the Somme, Craig Luther narrates the events of June 22, 1941, a day when German military might was at its peak and seemed as though it would easily conquer the Soviet Union, a day the common soldiers would remember for its tension and the frogs bellowing in the Polish marshlands. It was a day when the German blitzkrieg decimated Soviet command and control within hours and seemed like nothing would stop it from taking Moscow. Luther narrates June 22--one of the pivotal days of World War II--from high command down to the tanks and soldiers at the sharp end, covering strategy as well as tactics and the vivid personal stories of the men who crossed the border into the Soviet Union that fateful day, which is the Eastern Front in microcosm, representing the years of industrial-scale warfare that followed and the unremitting hostility of Germans and Soviets.

World War II Night Before Christmas


Mike Guardia - 2018
    "Mike Guardia’s beautifully illustrated new children’s book 'World War II Night Before Christmas' shares a heartfelt glimpse into the sacrifices Allied troops made during World War II, along with a joyful dose of Christmas spirit. " - Big Blend Radio and TV Magazine

Silk Cocoon: A Story of Love, Treachery and Prejudice in War-torn Nazi Germany


PHILIP G BROCK - 2018
    He believes his future is bright and promising. He takes great pride in the new Nazi government and its vision to be a world leader. He lives by the Fuhrer’s words. “The weak must be chiseled away. I want young men and women who can suffer pain. A young German must be as swift as a greyhound, as tough as leather, and as hard as Krupp’s steel.” Hans has a beautiful wife and child and a successful business. He thinks he has total control of his life and nothing can change that. Hans soon finds, with the onset of war, his world spins out of his control. He’s called to active military service in the infantry and becomes the sniper for company C. He soon learns his life is in danger from both friend and foe. In his absence, his family and business fall into peril. As the war progresses, Hans begins to question the actions of the government. When he’s forced to witness the slaughter of men, women and children at the Plunda Work Camp, he realizes the country is run by monsters. In a surprise ending, Hans finds himself called upon to answer for the part he was forced to play in these atrocities.

Testament


Kim Sherwood - 2018
    It's why Eva was closest to her grandfather: a charismatic painter - and a keeper of secrets. So when he dies, she's hit by a greater loss - of the questions he never answered, and the past he never shared.It's then she finds the letter from the Jewish Museum in Berlin. They have uncovered the testimony he gave after his forced labour service in Hungary, which took him to the death camps and then to England as a refugee. This is how he survived.But there is a deeper story that Eva will unravel - of how her grandfather learnt to live afterwards. As she confronts the lies that have haunted her family, their identity shifts and her own takes shape. The testament is in her hands.Kim Sherwood's extraordinary first novel is a powerful statement of intent. Beautifully written, moving and hopeful, it crosses the tidemark where the third generation meets the first, finding a new language to express love, legacy and our place within history.

Six Thousand Miles to Home: A Novel Inspired by a True Story of World War II


Kim Dana Kupperman - 2018
    They evade Nazi capture, only to be arrested by the Soviets, who have invaded Poland from the east. Deported to northern Russia, they endure the savage conditions in a forced-labor camp. The Nazis invade the USSR, and the release of Polish prisoners in the Soviet Gulag is negotiated. The Kohns’ journey continues through Russia, Central Asia, across the Caspian Sea to Iran. Now in a foreign land as impoverished refugees, their hometown occupied by Nazis, and their relations and friends displaced across the world, can they discover generosity, hope, and even love in Tehran?Hard to put down, difficult to forget. — Gina NahaiHere are the wages of authenticity: both the pervasive horror of a murderous era and the threatened yet valiant current of humanity. — Baron WormserTender and terrifying. — Eugenia KimConjures a world of man-made horror, where, every so often, cracks of exquisite light are made to shine through. — Rachel Basch

Desperate Valour: Triumph at Anzio


Flint Whitlock - 2018
    The planners hoped that the Allied invasion would surprise the Germans and threaten their defensive line in southern Europe. But the invasion stalled a few miles inland and the Allies faced a five-month bloody fight. In the end, American and British troops accomplished one of the great defensive stands of all time, turning defeat into victory.Using previously unpublished archival material, including memoirs from American, British, and German veterans, award-winning historian Flint Whitlock reveals the entire allied and German campaign, never forgetting the experiences of the soldiers in muddy, freezing, water-filled foxholes, struggling to hold off endless waves of infantry assaults, aerial bombardments, and artillery barrages.Desperate Valour is the first comprehensive account of the unrelenting slugfest at Anzio and a stirring chronicle of courage beyond measure.