Checkpoint Charlie

by Tom Arnold

The year is 1966. Cold War tensions are high. American society is fragmented by racial unrest and an unpopular war in Viet Nam. Europe is divided by the Iron Curtain; an ugly, concrete wall slices through Berlin. Against this tumultuous backdrop, four young expatriates travel to Berlin where they befriend two East German dissidents. After a harrowing arrest by the hated and feared border police, the Volkspolizei, the expats concoct a dangerous scheme to help their new friends escape. Will David, the angry leader, Louisa, a cool-headed girl who prevents disaster time and time again, and Simon, a Brit with large appetites and little to lose, succeed in helping Johann, an artist, and his beautiful girlfriend Liesl, reach freedom in the west?

320 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2006

About the author

Tom Arnold has won multiple awards or his journalism endeavors. He holds a B.A in Journalism from the University of Tulsa and a Masters in Journalism from North Texas State University. He also holds a J.D. from Southern Methodist School of Law. While working from the Suburban News, a subsidiary of the Dallas Morning News, he won three Katie awards from the Dallas Press Club for editing the best suburbean newspaper in North Texas. He was previously the editor of a national trade magazine, The Bowling Proprietors Association of America. His articles have appeared in multiple newpapers and magazines through out Texas, where he lives with his wife, Dr. Ingrid Arnold