 "A disturbing and excellent memoir" | 2008-09-01 |
| - Reviewed By User: AWEJ5JKD3MQMU |
This is an eloquently told, often nearly heartbreaking story of what a young German boy endured as a refugee in the closing days and the years following WWII. Wolfgang Samuel tells his story with grace and heart. He dedicates the book to his mother, a major character in his story who, to keep her family alive, sacrificed nearly everything, even to the point of prostituting herself so her children could eat. As Samuel put it -
"People were hungry and would do whatever was necessary to put food on the table for their children ... We were the people who had nothing and lived from hand to mouth. We were the human debris of that evil war. We had no reserves of food, clothing or anything else that sustained life. We were desperate people, easy to exploit."
In a passage startlingly reminiscent of Gone with the Wind, the classic novel of the US Civil War and its aftermath, Samuel tells of how for many years immediately after the war, his mother had no new clothes. "The nicest looking dress she had owned ... she had made herself from curtains which hung in our barracks apartment ..."
And this is not just a book about being refugees and the awful conditions after the war; it's also a universal coming-of-age story, about a boy grappling with the physical changes of puberty and having no one to talk with about what's happening to him. It's about a boy left to take care of himself at the tender age of 14. It's also an homage to his grandparents, who helped sustain him through these worst of times. In other words, there's an awful lot of stuff in here that so many people will relate to, regardless of their own backgrounds.
I know I'm several years late in discovering this book, but I plan to recommend it highly to everyone, particularly history buffs and humanists interested what the human spirit can endure and still rebound. Because after his eventual emigration to the U.S. in 1950 at age 15 (where German Boy ends), Samuel went on to complete college and made a distinguished career for himself in the US Air Force for 30 years. The next book to go into my Amazon cart will be the sequel to this memoir, called Coming to Colorado. This guy can write! And I want to know the rest of his story. But start here, folks. READ THIS BOOK! - Tim Bazzett, author of Soldier Boy
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| "History through the honest eyes of a child who helped America become great" | 2008-05-11 |
| - Reviewed By User: A1UD24NCOCUV97 |
| I have always been interested in WWII history and this book is excellent as it deals with the consequences of war. Wolfgang was blessed with an incredible memory and this book tells the story of the time from 1945 to 1950 in Germany and how things were. I will not recap the story since others have done it so well, but this is in the top 10 of the hundreds of books I have read. |
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| "Don't hesitate to buy this book." | 2008-01-17 |
| - Reviewed By User: A3M5RCAE7G4Q7R |
This is a great book. I gave the book to a few German friends who lived in Germany during the war. They could identify with the author's experiences.
The author became a U.S citizen and fought in Vietnam. I would have liked to read about the author's experience in this country, and his experience, as a pilot in our Air Force.
A well written book and interesting too.
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| "WQonderful first hand account" | 2007-10-25 |
| - Reviewed By tpmackin |
| Wonderful and descriptive first hand account of living through WWII in Germany and the life there afterwards. |
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| "A compulsive pageturner" | 2007-09-06 |
| - Reviewed By ahj4 |
| The author, who was 10 years old and living in eastern Germany when WWII came to an end, has an amazing memory for telling details and an irresistibly engaging personality. His memoir of that dreadful time is framed as a tribute to his mother, who certainly deserves it, and an unforgettable lesson in history as it is really lived. Once you start reading this book, you will be unable to put it down and you will never forget it. |
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| "Should be Required Reading for All Youths" | 2007-07-18 |
| - Reviewed By User: A22K5JT8EZKU4 |
This harrowing memoir should be required reading for all children. Perhaps, as adults, they will think hard and deeply before embarking on war. The description of life at the end of WWII and postwar Germany are harrowing. The reader cannot help but wonder how he or she would or could cope in the same situation.
I found the comparison among the American, British and Russian zones in postwar Germany to be fascinating. I hope that the friendliness and genorosity which have historically characterized Americans have not been lost in our recent imperialist adventurism and immoral acts. |
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| "German Boy" | 2007-06-04 |
| - Reviewed By jrstrader |
| My friend living in London, England, read this book and suggested it to me. It is the story of a young boy growing up in war torn and defeated Germany. He later comes to America and become an Air Force officer. It is a worthwhile and fascinating study in overcoming hardship. It focuses on a part of war that most accounts of war fail to do: the civilian population and the wars effect on them. But the book is more than that. It is a highly personal account of survival and hardship in growing up. It is a story that had to be told. |
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| "Review: German Boy" | 2007-01-12 |
| - Reviewed By raldilr |
German Boy is a story that rates status as a classic. It contains all of the literature components that make the work a masterpiece. The vicissitudes of a family as seen and experienced by a young boy are exceedingly challenging and appear to be never-ending.
What would seem overwhelming to even those with exceptional grit are to this family and this boy motivators to overcome. The reader experiences the pain and sorrow of disappointments and terrible setbacks, but also the courage, the wisdom, and the sacrifices made in a determination to succeed. The narrative throughout the work is vivid and gripping in all of its detail and simplicity. It is riveting as it summons all the emotions of the ups and downs of life, not an easy life, but one with repeated demands for faith and perseverance. The story seizes attention from start to finish. It is an adventure. It is beautiful!
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| "Well written, moving memoir of a German refugee" | 2005-11-27 |
| - Reviewed By electrocardiogram |
| Very well written page-turner memoir that reads like a novel about a German refugee from East Germany making his way with his mother to West Germany and finally the United States. Innumerable books have been written against Germans since World War II, which unfortunately have equated Germans with supporters of the political establishment during the war. This account shows that many Germans living in Germany (especially East Germany) suffered during the war and did not support the government at that time. The horrid living conditions, lack of food, and the falling of Wolfgang's mother into periodic prostitution to save her family, combined with the author's gradual realization that God had a part in his survival, can bring tears to even the most stoic readers. Another memoir, by Elizabeth Walter called "Barefoot in the Rubble", although not as well written, presents and even more moving account of displaced Germans living in Yugoslavia following World War II. |
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| "Incredible account of survival" | 2005-06-24 |
| - Reviewed By dkdjuniata |
| Wolfgang Samuel provides a first hand, and often overlooked account of the plight of many German civilians as WWII ended. The narrative is extremely well written, and quite frankly, I had a hard time putting the book down. It is a compelling story of survival and the sacrifices of a mother to provide food for her children under extremely difficult circumstances. Anyone who is interested in WWII should include this on their reading list. |
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