Strawberries with the Führer: A Journey from the Third Reich to New Zealand

by Helga Tiscenko

The Führer did not laugh at me. He sat down beside me and we ate strawberries and vanilla ice cream together and I did not spill anything on my blue dress and if he had asked me to die for him there and then I would have done so, unquestioningly.

Helga Tiscenko was born in Germany in 1929, the elder daughter of a warm, close-knit, middle class family. But this was no ordinary family: her parents were committed members of the National Socialist Party and during the Second World War her father rose to the rank of general in the Waffen SS.

Hers is an extraordinary story, written with simplicity, humor and grace. In loving detail, she paints a vivid picture of her childhood in pre-war Germany and then tells of her experiences during the war and the final days of the Third Reich - from a perspective that has not often been explored. After the war - as a sixteen-year-old branded as a 'Nazi brat' - she had to come to terms with its aftermath.

Her account of emigrating to New Zealand, where she and her Russian husband were sent to live in the alien environment of a raw hydro-electric township in the South Island (having been advised that new immigrants should be prepared to do 'pioneering work'), is another extraordinary chapter in the life of this most singular woman. Now, she and her husband Nick, quite simply, describe their present life as 'being in paradise'.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Autobiography

174 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 2000

Reviews

[Mum · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this on World refugee day - so important to understand the situations and lives that people experience and how they overcome, make do and rise above. Very much a pioneer coming to NZ after the war and shocked to learn of the conditions they experienced on arrival and happy to compare to how we've improved. Loved how Kiwis supported this family on arrival. Important to remember we can still touch history and its in the people around us - and we have a lot to learn from our neighbours.

[Rochelle Clarke · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sadly Helga passed away on the 08/01/2023. I met Helga while lving in Timaru, she was a kind and genreous woman. Helga lent me her book to read which was captivating and educating all in one. I laughed and I cried throughout the book. Her account of her families challenges were written beautifully and gave a very important account of life in Germany prior to the rise of the Nazi party, which ultimately fuelled the traction needed to create a race war. She asked me to keep an eye out for her book and buy any copies I could, as the book is no longer in print. If you find a copy, purchase it and savour it, you won't regret reading this lifestory of a very interesting woman.

[Alana · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a fascinating read. I have never really considered a Nazi child’s perspective of the war.This beautifully written book helps expose a child’s innocent view of world war 2 and the impact of the war on her tumultuous life. Written from a new Zealand immigrant’s perspective, it, also highlights the struggles of life in early NZ. A great read for any kiwi.

[Zeb · Rating 5 out of 5]

There is much sadness in this book, however, the writing is mostly light-hearted and humorous.
This book very much speaks to me, as a German gone to Kiwi land; Helga is more my mother's than my generation (Helga was born in 1928), and her experience of the Third Reich very different to the one my mother recalled; but they have much in common nevertheless. Though Helga came from a family fully behind the Third Reich ideololgy (unlike my mother's family) they seem decent people. How can you be both decent AND fall for THAT is raised in the book, but she doesn't go into any attempt of psychological or other explanation or excuse. Other than the obvious, how the WWI and aftermath had set the stage. Nor are there details of what exactly her father was involved with. (She probably doesn't know) She mostly talks as a daughter who loved her parents, and for a time was besotted with that fuehrer as well. And how they could be so misguided is left as an agonizing question, and unanswered. There are many episodes in her story of people helping one another out across the lines of ethnicity, station, nationality. I think it would be a good book to read for anyone thinking you'd have to have been obviously nasty to fall for the ideology. It is not as black and white as that. I put the book in "for young and old" shelf, as I think it is quite suitable for teenagers. Much of the book is written from her teenage years. Certainly no waste of time to read. And she comes across as adorable.

[Simon Armitage · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rated 8/10 An interesting read as "an in hindsight" look back at her life, the author talks of her upbringing as a child of the Hitler hierarchy, her father being a ranking officer in the German Army and ultimately an SS officer. Its interesting to read how her perspective on socialism/fascism changed as she aged and Germany fell apart around her and her family until she was on equal terms with those originally below her. As a young child she was shielded from what was happening around her as is the usual case with a child so her world changed dramatically with her ultimate move to NZ with a husband whom her relatives disproved of due to his nationality. NZ offered a strange new world but opportunities which they took and a completely new way of life evolved from her sheltered early upbringing. Well worth the read.

[Ingrid Self · Rating 4 out of 5]

Refreshing and interesting. A girl grows up in Germany, pre-WWII, and her family are genuine followers of Hitler. It goes from there, heartbreaking in parts, funny in others. She survives and ends up in NZ. Fascinating read. Recommended.

[Ana · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a granddaughter of Germans around the same age as the author and daughter of immigrant Germans to New Zealand, this book seemed very familiar to me. Enjoyed the story & photographs. Very easy read.