Joe's War: My Father Decoded

by Annette Kobak

A mesmerizing and dramatic memoir of the author’s search for her father’s secret life during and after World War II as his homelands were taken over by the Nazis and then the Soviet Union.
For Annette Kobak, there was always something mysterious about her father, something dark. But for forty-five years the reasons for his silence–the sources of his hidden pain–were left unspoken. _ With astonishing bravery and clear-sightedness, Kobak delves into her father’s past, hoping to find answers that will in turn set her free. His story is born on the border of Czechoslovakia and Poland, he fled east from the Nazis when war broke out only to find the Red Army moving in. Arbitrarily imprisoned by the Russians, he ended up fighting with the Polish forces in France before finally escaping to Britain, where he spent the rest of the war listening to Soviet messages for the Allies in London.

In uncovering this story, Kobak also lets us reexperience, close-up, the shocking history of what the Allies did–and didn’t do–for the small countries of Europe that were desperate for their help. _ Written from her own travels in her father’s footsteps, and from extended conversations with her father and others whose lives were also touched by this odyssey, Joe’s War is about the inner costs of conflict and the redeeming power of truth telling. It is the work of an immensely gifted writer.

Genres: War, Memoir, History, Nonfiction

464 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2004

Reviews

[Darla Ebert · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author's father certainly led a fascinating and frightening life during WW 2 in Poland and German, England and other parts of Europe. Approximately 16 years of age when the war was in its infancy, "Joe" grew up on the run, fighting, having near-death experiences, watching friends die...his life is a revealing testimony to the will to survive that God places within each of us. I DID get bogged down in the details after a couple of hundred pages but that was more due to my own short attention span.

[Elle Kay · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would have preferred (& likely enjoyed) an excerpt. Joe's story (as told to his daughter), her travels re-tracing his steps and her commentary on the impact his experiences had on their family were all interesting. Unfortunately they were all mired in pages and pages of verbatim speeches, war correspondence and other historical reports which were detailed, dry and (to me) de-railed the story. If I wanted to read a history textbook, I would go back to university. Also the vocabulary was at times cumbersome (potentially because as a Canadian the vernacular is not the same as the British author's) and she utilizes a fair amount of Polish, German and Czech terminology.

[Steven Minniear · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good start and good ending. Middle filled up with personal point of view on Eastern European Twentieth century history - the gist of it being everybody did something bad to the Poles and the Czechs. History is always much more messy and less guilt free. Nonetheless, a very good book to get an alternate look from an Eastern European point of view (except it was written by the daughter of a Czech/Polish immigre who grew up in England. The end does a nice bit about how things are never quite what you think they are.

[Sally Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Highly recommended. Not an easy or fast read, but I learned so so so much. I had no real idea of what happened in Eastern Europe before WWII, of the perfidy of the Allies (Neville Chamberlain, world-class asshat). Buy a copy and take your time with this. Parts of it drag a bit, but the history is well and clearly told, with just enough personal insight and relevance to make it that much more compelling.

[Tom]

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