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Hearts of the Fathers
Levi Zuckerman, a Jewish soldier in the Soviet Army, saves Gerda and another woman from an attack by two of his commanding officers, but he must nearly kill both men to do so. Levi and Gerda hide in the East German mission home. Born and raised in Berlin, Levi wants to find his parents but fears the worst.
A treasure more valuable than gold or art is missing—genealogical records stolen by Hitler from Germany’s churches. Mission president Erick Ranke must locate those records before the Soviets do.
Lives are inextricably connected in this thrilling novel about the power of covenants and conviction.
A treasure more valuable than gold or art is missing—genealogical records stolen by Hitler from Germany’s churches. Mission president Erick Ranke must locate those records before the Soviets do.
Lives are inextricably connected in this thrilling novel about the power of covenants and conviction.
- GenresHistorical Fiction
318 pages, Paperback
Published February 27, 2017
5 people are currently reading
298 people want to read
About the author
Darryl W. Harris Sr.
11 books14 followersDarryl W. Harris Sr., born and raised in Youngstown, Ohio officially began his working career shortly after high school by joining the United States Airforce as a dental assistant/dental x-ray tech. After completing his commitment he returned to the private sector pursing a career in the music industry and serving as a promoter and road manager for several national recording artists. For the past 26 years Mr. Harris has enjoyed a career in the hotel industry while serving as the National Diversity Sales Manager for the Peabody Little Rock Hotel and is presently the doorman for the Little Rock Marriott Hotel. A certified scuba diver, he also is the father of four boys with nine grandchildren to date.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
May 17, 2017
An exceptional look at World War II from the eyes of a German boy, a Jewish Russian soldier, and a Mormon German woman. It also details the search immediately following the war for the church records hidden away by the Nazis.
March 16, 2017
I received this book in exchange for a truthful review.
And truthfully, I really enjoyed Darryl Harris's rendition of Germany at the end of WWII. I'm so used to hearing how all Germans were horrible people. This book portrays it more how it really was. There were people caught up in the whole avalanche who were intrinsically good people but could not avoid getting some Nazi on them. Harris put me right in the action with a gun on my hip and a train ticket for crossing the war ravaged country. He really did his research.
Gerda Brendler is a widow in search of her son. They told her he had died at age five, when actually the hospital had entered him in a special program to re-indoctrinate small children by re-homing them to good Nazi homes. Gerda looks for years for a boy she isn't even sure is alive. She meets Levi Zuckerman when he saves her from being raped by his commanding officer, a Russian.
Levi Zuckerman is a Jew who fled to his family living in Russia. Now he's back in Berlin in a Russian unit, in charge of communicating with the German survivors. They travel Berlin looking for women, weapons, and items to steal and send back to the Russian Motherland. Until Zuckerman stops his officer from raping two German girls. After that he's on the run and must hide in the LDS Mission Home with Gerda, a girl he's learning to have feelings for. At the same time, he wants to find his lost parents, whom he fears have died in concentration camps.
Brindler and Zuckerman are harbored by Erick Ranke, the Mission President and man in charge of finding lost genealogical records the Nazis have hidden away. It's a race against time for Ranke, Brindler, and Zuckerman. The Russians couldn't care less about a bunch of old books, other than to sell them for firewood. They're after art and valuables to send to Russia. The Nazis aren't guarding them anymore. It seems nobody really wants anything but what will make them a little money to live on.
To Renke and his helpers, finding the precious books is everything. They work tirelessly to decipher hints and run down red herrings and finally, with the help of several miracles from God, they find what they're looking for.
This is an important, fast-paced read that tells it like it was. I really enjoyed it. I give it 5 stars.
And truthfully, I really enjoyed Darryl Harris's rendition of Germany at the end of WWII. I'm so used to hearing how all Germans were horrible people. This book portrays it more how it really was. There were people caught up in the whole avalanche who were intrinsically good people but could not avoid getting some Nazi on them. Harris put me right in the action with a gun on my hip and a train ticket for crossing the war ravaged country. He really did his research.
Gerda Brendler is a widow in search of her son. They told her he had died at age five, when actually the hospital had entered him in a special program to re-indoctrinate small children by re-homing them to good Nazi homes. Gerda looks for years for a boy she isn't even sure is alive. She meets Levi Zuckerman when he saves her from being raped by his commanding officer, a Russian.
Levi Zuckerman is a Jew who fled to his family living in Russia. Now he's back in Berlin in a Russian unit, in charge of communicating with the German survivors. They travel Berlin looking for women, weapons, and items to steal and send back to the Russian Motherland. Until Zuckerman stops his officer from raping two German girls. After that he's on the run and must hide in the LDS Mission Home with Gerda, a girl he's learning to have feelings for. At the same time, he wants to find his lost parents, whom he fears have died in concentration camps.
Brindler and Zuckerman are harbored by Erick Ranke, the Mission President and man in charge of finding lost genealogical records the Nazis have hidden away. It's a race against time for Ranke, Brindler, and Zuckerman. The Russians couldn't care less about a bunch of old books, other than to sell them for firewood. They're after art and valuables to send to Russia. The Nazis aren't guarding them anymore. It seems nobody really wants anything but what will make them a little money to live on.
To Renke and his helpers, finding the precious books is everything. They work tirelessly to decipher hints and run down red herrings and finally, with the help of several miracles from God, they find what they're looking for.
This is an important, fast-paced read that tells it like it was. I really enjoyed it. I give it 5 stars.
August 5, 2017
Story of East German Mormons and their experience with the war, as well as Jews' experience in East Berlin as the Russians conquered them. Painful.
June 8, 2020
This book is set in Germany at the end of WWII and focuses on several characters.
One is a German born Jew whose parents sent him to Russia to live with an uncle so he wouldn't have to be a German soldier. He is a Russian solder instead and helps to translate and fight.
Another is a woman whose son was taken from her when he was five because he was blond and blue-eyed and she was told he died. Her husband died fighting in the war and she became a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
There are several other characters who are followed throughout the book as well and then they all come together to find genealogical records for the German people and work to preserve them.
This book was difficult to read sometimes because of how much it still applies today with prejudices and evil in the world, but I found so many great things to apply to my own life and think of while I was reading.
Content: War, death, pillaging of women (not graphic)
One is a German born Jew whose parents sent him to Russia to live with an uncle so he wouldn't have to be a German soldier. He is a Russian solder instead and helps to translate and fight.
Another is a woman whose son was taken from her when he was five because he was blond and blue-eyed and she was told he died. Her husband died fighting in the war and she became a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
There are several other characters who are followed throughout the book as well and then they all come together to find genealogical records for the German people and work to preserve them.
This book was difficult to read sometimes because of how much it still applies today with prejudices and evil in the world, but I found so many great things to apply to my own life and think of while I was reading.
Content: War, death, pillaging of women (not graphic)
February 7, 2018
This is a story of three people, whose lives become intertwined while the war is ending. Gerda’s 5 year-old son is stolen from her, and raised as a German soldier. She spends her entire life trying to find him. Erick’s mission when the war is over is to find and preserve genealogical records that were stolen by the Nazi’s. And Levi’s mission, after he rescues Gerda from rape, is to find his parents after the war.
This book had so many errors, it was painful to read, and took away from enjoying the story. I had to skim the last 2/3 of the book.
This book had so many errors, it was painful to read, and took away from enjoying the story. I had to skim the last 2/3 of the book.
February 13, 2026
What makes this book exceptional is how it weaves historical tension with emotional depth. The search for stolen genealogical records adds a compelling layer, reminding readers that heritage and memory can be as valuable as any treasure. Having lived through moments where family history felt fragile or nearly lost, I found this theme especially moving. The novel highlights how preserving records is ultimately about preserving people their stories, connections, and dignity. The pacing is gripping, and the moral questions raised stay with you long after finishing the book.
December 16, 2017
This book shows a whole new way to look at Germany after World War II. I didn't know much about life in Germany immediately following the war. History books and our teachers focused on Hitler, the Holocaust, and concentration camps. Harris certainly did a lot of research to write this book. It is painful to read, yet I highly recommend it to adult readers.
I received my copy free through Goodreads.
I received my copy free through Goodreads.
March 29, 2019
The historical fiction story starts is Berlin, Germany in 1936 and follows Gerda as she tries to find her son, Marko and Levi, a Jewish, Russian soldier who grew up a German originally from Berlin. The story jumps years forward to the final days of WWII. Then it’s onto finding treasures stolen by Hitler - genealogy records. Was Marko also considered a treasure also stolen by Hitler?
Not exceptional writing but overall an enjoyable read.
Not exceptional writing but overall an enjoyable read.
July 2, 2018
I learned a lot about the end of WWII in this book.
March 14, 2019
Very detailed not for everyone
December 15, 2019
Really liked the info about the genealogy records being preserved, then found in the nick of time. Several real miracles. The side stories were interesting - a few too many cliches.
April 20, 2017
One of the story lines of this book concerns the atrocities perpetrated on the German people during WWII, especially women, by the Russian army as they marched through Germany to Berlin. It was eye-opening, to say the least. I knew there were no great feelings between the Russians and the other Allied countries, and this book showed me one of the reasons.
The book also explains the search, by a German Mormon leader, for German church records and genealogies that had been stolen from all the churches in Germany by the Nazis during the war, just as all the fine art and treasures had been. The Monuments Men searched for the art treasures while the Mormon leader, alone, searched for the church records.
Darryl Harris obviously did his homework on this story. I was hooked from the beginning and was fascinated and horrified by turns. The story is very well researched and documented. The book does include the Jews, but is mostly about the regular German people who dealt as best they could with the Nazis and their diabolical actions to secure an Aryan world.
The book also explains the search, by a German Mormon leader, for German church records and genealogies that had been stolen from all the churches in Germany by the Nazis during the war, just as all the fine art and treasures had been. The Monuments Men searched for the art treasures while the Mormon leader, alone, searched for the church records.
Darryl Harris obviously did his homework on this story. I was hooked from the beginning and was fascinated and horrified by turns. The story is very well researched and documented. The book does include the Jews, but is mostly about the regular German people who dealt as best they could with the Nazis and their diabolical actions to secure an Aryan world.
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May 30, 2017Interesting take on events of WW2 - and what followed. I can't imagine living in Berlin at the end of WW2, and this book broke my heart all over again for those who suffer the atrocities of war.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews