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My Name Was Five: A Novel of the Second World War
When a private plane crashes in Florida in 1991, the surviving pilot makes the strangest of remarks. "It was World War II," he says. The National Transportation Safety Board attributes the accident to a collision with birds, but one stubborn investigator insists on going further.
Before long, the investigator's inquiry reveals how the pilot's past had trailed him on his last flight and vividly brings to life a terrifying slice of history - the story of a German boy who grows up in Berlin before, during, and after the Second World War; sadistic teachers just call him Five.
The boy's father, an opponent of the Nazis, ends up in a concentration camp and later in a penal regiment that marches through Russian mine fields to clear the way for regular troops. In contrast, one of the boy's uncles is a fervent Nazi in charge of cleansing Berlin of every last Jew; another uncle revels in the governance of Paris. A favorite aunt, a confidential secretary at the Gestapo, is horrified by all she knows about the "final solution." The boy's mother is the one who keeps him sane when gunfire from a strafing Spitfire kills his best friend standing right next to him on a bridge.
But worse is to come: bombings and firestorms, the senseless sacrifice of children and old men in the Battle of Berlin, the Soviet occupation, along with rape, murder, hunger, and disease, and then the emergence of a new kind of tyranny yet.
In the end, we come upon an unexpected twist that shows how the consequences of war can emerge decades later and in faraway places.
Before long, the investigator's inquiry reveals how the pilot's past had trailed him on his last flight and vividly brings to life a terrifying slice of history - the story of a German boy who grows up in Berlin before, during, and after the Second World War; sadistic teachers just call him Five.
The boy's father, an opponent of the Nazis, ends up in a concentration camp and later in a penal regiment that marches through Russian mine fields to clear the way for regular troops. In contrast, one of the boy's uncles is a fervent Nazi in charge of cleansing Berlin of every last Jew; another uncle revels in the governance of Paris. A favorite aunt, a confidential secretary at the Gestapo, is horrified by all she knows about the "final solution." The boy's mother is the one who keeps him sane when gunfire from a strafing Spitfire kills his best friend standing right next to him on a bridge.
But worse is to come: bombings and firestorms, the senseless sacrifice of children and old men in the Battle of Berlin, the Soviet occupation, along with rape, murder, hunger, and disease, and then the emergence of a new kind of tyranny yet.
In the end, we come upon an unexpected twist that shows how the consequences of war can emerge decades later and in faraway places.
400 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2010
8 people are currently reading
916 people want to read
About the author
Heinz Kohler
104 books7 followersHEINZ KOHLER was born in Berlin, Germany, where he grew up before and during World War II. By the war's end, he found himself in rural East Germany and spent years watching the Nazi tyranny give way to a Communist one. He made it to West Berlin before the Wall went up and came to the United States in the late 1950s. Since 1961, he was associated with Amherst College, Massachusetts, where he became the Willard Long Thorp Professor of Economics, taught Economics as well as Statistics and published numerous textbooks on both subjects. His most recent books include the series SURFING A MAGICAL INTERNET, Book 1: Extraordinary Birds, Book 2: Brainteasers, Book 3: Unusual Plants, Book 4: Remarkable Animals, Book 5: Wonders of the World, Book 6: The World's Greatest Inventions, Book 7: Exploring Northern Europe, Book 8: Exploring Western Europe, Book 9: Exploring Southwestern Europe, Book 10: Exploring Central Europe, Book 11: Exploring Africa, Book 12: Exploring Southeastern Europe, Book 13: Exploring Russia and Central Asia, Book 14: Exploring Western Asia, Book 15: Exploring Southern Asia, Book 16: Exploring Eastern Asia, Book 17: Exploring Australia and Oceania, Book 18: Exploring North America, and Book 19: exploring Central America--all of which introduce the Internet equivalent of the late 1800s, CAUTION: SNAKE OIL! which shows how statistical thinking can help us expose misinformation about our health, and MY NAME WAS FIVE, a memoir of World War II.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
July 1, 2017
I sincerely regret that there are only 5 stars in the system as I would very much like to give this book 10 stars.
If you will only read one book about the Third Reich and WWII, make it this book, and if you have already read 10 or even 100 books about this era, make sure not to miss this particular one.
Let me tell you one thing straight: This book is not a novel; it is a memoir. The author had personal reasons to disguise his memoir as a novel when he wrote it in the 1970s. I think labeling this book a novel was a mistake. O.k., so make it 9 stars instead of 10, or forgive the author and ignore the plane-crash frame of the story (which may or may not be fiction).
When you compare memoirs that have an historic background to straight history books, you'll find that memoirs usually only open a small window, mind you, an impressive window, from which you can imagine what it was like to have lived in this time, at this particular place, but a small window all the same, whereas history books open up a bigger window but rarely convey any subjective experience and feel for the time and place.
This book, however, gives it all. Heinz Kohler was an exceptionally intelligent child with early interest in what was happening in the world. That's why he collected and saved historic data from wherever he could find them, be they announcements his Nazi-teachers had written on the blackboard, be they bulletins, proclamations, or public notices on advertising columns, be they headlines from new or old newspapers. -- The story doesn't end with the war. The terror goes on. Only this time it's not Hitler and the Nazis that spread terror but Stalin and the communists. And what used to be the Gestapo is now the Stasi. The protagonist, meanwhile grown, is still collecting announcements, bulletins, proclamations, and public notices.
The way, the author integrates all this historic data into his book that tells about terror, horror, danger, bad guys, good guys (but more bad guys than good guys), turncoats, phony clerics, family ties, and even love, he combines the pros of a memoir with the pros of a history book, and he does it in the most brilliant way.
All in all, this book is the work of a genius.
The e-version of this book is a steal at $2.99. However -- if your book budget allows it -- I would advise you to buy the paperback. There is nothing wrong with the e-book, but the paperback shows the pictures of the collected historic data so much better.
If you will only read one book about the Third Reich and WWII, make it this book, and if you have already read 10 or even 100 books about this era, make sure not to miss this particular one.
Let me tell you one thing straight: This book is not a novel; it is a memoir. The author had personal reasons to disguise his memoir as a novel when he wrote it in the 1970s. I think labeling this book a novel was a mistake. O.k., so make it 9 stars instead of 10, or forgive the author and ignore the plane-crash frame of the story (which may or may not be fiction).
When you compare memoirs that have an historic background to straight history books, you'll find that memoirs usually only open a small window, mind you, an impressive window, from which you can imagine what it was like to have lived in this time, at this particular place, but a small window all the same, whereas history books open up a bigger window but rarely convey any subjective experience and feel for the time and place.
This book, however, gives it all. Heinz Kohler was an exceptionally intelligent child with early interest in what was happening in the world. That's why he collected and saved historic data from wherever he could find them, be they announcements his Nazi-teachers had written on the blackboard, be they bulletins, proclamations, or public notices on advertising columns, be they headlines from new or old newspapers. -- The story doesn't end with the war. The terror goes on. Only this time it's not Hitler and the Nazis that spread terror but Stalin and the communists. And what used to be the Gestapo is now the Stasi. The protagonist, meanwhile grown, is still collecting announcements, bulletins, proclamations, and public notices.
The way, the author integrates all this historic data into his book that tells about terror, horror, danger, bad guys, good guys (but more bad guys than good guys), turncoats, phony clerics, family ties, and even love, he combines the pros of a memoir with the pros of a history book, and he does it in the most brilliant way.
All in all, this book is the work of a genius.
The e-version of this book is a steal at $2.99. However -- if your book budget allows it -- I would advise you to buy the paperback. There is nothing wrong with the e-book, but the paperback shows the pictures of the collected historic data so much better.
May 5, 2019
'My Name Was Five' is my best read so far in 2019.
I have read many fiction books set around World War II, and also a few non-fiction books (The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich by William Shirer, Inside the Third Reich by Albert Speer). ‘On Hitler’s Mountain’ by Irmgard Hunt was the first non-fiction book I read which provided a view from a regular family in Germany.
‘My Name Was Five’ is an amazing book told from the perspective of a boy who grows up in the midst of intolerance, war and turmoil. While the book is marked as fiction, quite clearly the author borrows a lot from personal experience, as it has a stupendous amount of detail. This is a book where the author bares his soul, and reading it is certain to leave a lasting impact.
The book starts with an incident involving a private plane crash in Florida in 1991, and it seems clearly the result of bird hits. And yet, the pilot makes a strange reference to World War II. From this point onwards till near the end of the book, is the story of the pilot – Hans(el).
Hans grows up in Berlin, and as a school going kid watches as the country descends into prejudice, violence and subsequently war. His parents do not subscribe to Nazism though, and as a result his father Arthur is sent to a concentration camp. Their Jewish friends have to soon leave Berlin. Arthur returns after a few years, only to next receive a punitive posting in an army regiment. The indoctrination is everywhere (school, radio etc); at school for instance – his teacher tells the students about the Nazi philosophy and the resounding success of Germany worldwide. The teacher has as ranking system for the students and refers to them by how he has ranked them. Hans, a very curious and bright kid, is 5. The war brings many painful personal incidents – death of Hans dear friend Dieter, an army man dying in front of him, and at the peak of the bombing – dead bodies on the streets.
After their house is destroying in a bombing raid, Hans, his mother and younger brother Helmut move to Ziesar, where their aunt lives. This is not an easy move, and very soon the area is occupied by the Russians. The occupying force brings with it - violence against the locals, especially horrific incidents of rape against women, one such incident being in Hans’ presence with a gun held to his head. Hans with his open mindedness and inquisitive nature gets into trouble at school very often as well. There are several interesting incidents in the book around the questions he asks – probing philosophies he does not believe in (eg: interests levied being regarded as bad in communism).
Better times do come but the pain will not go away – with the trauma staying for years to come.
This is a very important book for everyone to read. The writing is excellent – providing an inner view of Hans experiences and feelings. Hitler’s regime exacted a staggering price from the world in the war, with Germans being victims as well. As the author says in his afterword, hopefully we as a people will learn our lessons from history, though as of yet does not look like we have fully done so.
I have read many fiction books set around World War II, and also a few non-fiction books (The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich by William Shirer, Inside the Third Reich by Albert Speer). ‘On Hitler’s Mountain’ by Irmgard Hunt was the first non-fiction book I read which provided a view from a regular family in Germany.
‘My Name Was Five’ is an amazing book told from the perspective of a boy who grows up in the midst of intolerance, war and turmoil. While the book is marked as fiction, quite clearly the author borrows a lot from personal experience, as it has a stupendous amount of detail. This is a book where the author bares his soul, and reading it is certain to leave a lasting impact.
The book starts with an incident involving a private plane crash in Florida in 1991, and it seems clearly the result of bird hits. And yet, the pilot makes a strange reference to World War II. From this point onwards till near the end of the book, is the story of the pilot – Hans(el).
Hans grows up in Berlin, and as a school going kid watches as the country descends into prejudice, violence and subsequently war. His parents do not subscribe to Nazism though, and as a result his father Arthur is sent to a concentration camp. Their Jewish friends have to soon leave Berlin. Arthur returns after a few years, only to next receive a punitive posting in an army regiment. The indoctrination is everywhere (school, radio etc); at school for instance – his teacher tells the students about the Nazi philosophy and the resounding success of Germany worldwide. The teacher has as ranking system for the students and refers to them by how he has ranked them. Hans, a very curious and bright kid, is 5. The war brings many painful personal incidents – death of Hans dear friend Dieter, an army man dying in front of him, and at the peak of the bombing – dead bodies on the streets.
After their house is destroying in a bombing raid, Hans, his mother and younger brother Helmut move to Ziesar, where their aunt lives. This is not an easy move, and very soon the area is occupied by the Russians. The occupying force brings with it - violence against the locals, especially horrific incidents of rape against women, one such incident being in Hans’ presence with a gun held to his head. Hans with his open mindedness and inquisitive nature gets into trouble at school very often as well. There are several interesting incidents in the book around the questions he asks – probing philosophies he does not believe in (eg: interests levied being regarded as bad in communism).
Better times do come but the pain will not go away – with the trauma staying for years to come.
This is a very important book for everyone to read. The writing is excellent – providing an inner view of Hans experiences and feelings. Hitler’s regime exacted a staggering price from the world in the war, with Germans being victims as well. As the author says in his afterword, hopefully we as a people will learn our lessons from history, though as of yet does not look like we have fully done so.
September 23, 2012
My Name Was Five describes the Second World War in Berlin from the perspective of a child. In a gripping narrative the author weaves the experiences of the main character together with the larger picture of Germany's road to defeat, destruction, and partial resurrection. He creates a fabric with many dimensions, patterns, and colors. The young boy experiences the effects of propaganda, state terrorism, disastrous war, more propaganda and more state terrorism. He observes the dysfunctional interaction of German culture and education with antisemitism, militarism, and destruction. His father is lost in a concentration camp while an uncle supported the Nazis, a dichotomy many families in war have felt. The thread of dysfunction and alienation continues through life in Communist East Germany. This work is an autobiographical eye witness account of a child who, at Ground 0, lived through the three greatest upheavals of our recent history: War, Fascism, and Communism. A must read!
June 7, 2013
I am a big fan of World War II literature, both fiction and non-fiction. "My Name Was Five: A Novel of the Second World War" by Heinz Kohler is an excellent example of the blending of fact and fiction about the Second World War as viewed from the perspective of a young boy (Hans) who was born at the time that Hitler came into power.
Hans, his mother and his younger brother Helmut spend most of the war living in Berlin. His father is in a concentration camp for being a political enemy of the Nazi regime, but is released when it becomes apparent that more men are needed to keep the German war machine in action. An exceptionally bright boy, Hans is intellectually encouraged from a very young age by his mother, father and Aunt Martel. Naturally curious, he asks dangerous questions about Nazi policies and eavesdrops on conversations that are not meant for little boys. However, it is obvious that his parents, their friends and some of their family do not buy the Nazi rhetoric. They listen to illegal broadcasts from the BBC as often as possible. Hans collects handbills, posters, newspaper articles and propaganda about the war and Nazi policies. Throughout the book, much of this type of material is reproduced.
When Hans first attends school, he and his classmates are assigned seats according to their academic abilities. Hans sits in seat five, near the top of his class, and is thereafter called "Five" and not Hans, until his classroom status moves up or down. Even at school, which is run along party lines, Hans asks intelligent, controversial questions and writes thoughtful essays that often perplex and infuriate his teachers. His best friend, Dieter does not excel academically, but the boys are nearly inseparable. When disaster strikes Dieter, Hans' life changes, and the episode haunts him for the rest of his life.
Eventually Hans, Helmut and their mother leave Berlin to live in a village that is relatively safe from Allied attacks. However, in the village, as in Berlin, aunts and uncles who support the Nazis make life difficult for Hans' family. When the Russians liberate his village, the town becomes part of East Germany and is under Communist control. These same family members jump ship and become supportive of the new government, while Hans and his parents continue to doubt and question the new regime. Under the Stalinist rule, Hans is one of the very few students selected to attend high school away from his home in the village, thanks to the pull of an uncle who has become mayor of the little town.
Once Hans graduates from high school, his family makes a daring decision that saves them from a life of repression. But the wartime experience continues to cause trouble Hans for decades to come.
Written from an unusual point of view, "My Name Was Five: A Novel of the Second World War" is fascinating in its details and insight into the life of Germans that were not supportive of Hitler's policies, trying to survive first in a war-torn city that is the seat of power for the Nazi government, and later, in a village absorbed into a new country with a different, and equally repressive form of government. As the population of the WWII generation ages and passes on, it seems that more information is being revealed, shedding light on how average citizens were affected by this horrific time in history. Heinz Kohler writes an amazing account of a child's exposure to war that should not be missed.
Hans, his mother and his younger brother Helmut spend most of the war living in Berlin. His father is in a concentration camp for being a political enemy of the Nazi regime, but is released when it becomes apparent that more men are needed to keep the German war machine in action. An exceptionally bright boy, Hans is intellectually encouraged from a very young age by his mother, father and Aunt Martel. Naturally curious, he asks dangerous questions about Nazi policies and eavesdrops on conversations that are not meant for little boys. However, it is obvious that his parents, their friends and some of their family do not buy the Nazi rhetoric. They listen to illegal broadcasts from the BBC as often as possible. Hans collects handbills, posters, newspaper articles and propaganda about the war and Nazi policies. Throughout the book, much of this type of material is reproduced.
When Hans first attends school, he and his classmates are assigned seats according to their academic abilities. Hans sits in seat five, near the top of his class, and is thereafter called "Five" and not Hans, until his classroom status moves up or down. Even at school, which is run along party lines, Hans asks intelligent, controversial questions and writes thoughtful essays that often perplex and infuriate his teachers. His best friend, Dieter does not excel academically, but the boys are nearly inseparable. When disaster strikes Dieter, Hans' life changes, and the episode haunts him for the rest of his life.
Eventually Hans, Helmut and their mother leave Berlin to live in a village that is relatively safe from Allied attacks. However, in the village, as in Berlin, aunts and uncles who support the Nazis make life difficult for Hans' family. When the Russians liberate his village, the town becomes part of East Germany and is under Communist control. These same family members jump ship and become supportive of the new government, while Hans and his parents continue to doubt and question the new regime. Under the Stalinist rule, Hans is one of the very few students selected to attend high school away from his home in the village, thanks to the pull of an uncle who has become mayor of the little town.
Once Hans graduates from high school, his family makes a daring decision that saves them from a life of repression. But the wartime experience continues to cause trouble Hans for decades to come.
Written from an unusual point of view, "My Name Was Five: A Novel of the Second World War" is fascinating in its details and insight into the life of Germans that were not supportive of Hitler's policies, trying to survive first in a war-torn city that is the seat of power for the Nazi government, and later, in a village absorbed into a new country with a different, and equally repressive form of government. As the population of the WWII generation ages and passes on, it seems that more information is being revealed, shedding light on how average citizens were affected by this horrific time in history. Heinz Kohler writes an amazing account of a child's exposure to war that should not be missed.
October 9, 2013
Excellent, compelling memoir. Gripping account of wartime Nazi Germany and postwar East Germany, in both periods, any dissent or even nonconformity, could lead you to a concentration camp. Difficult times for a precocious, bright and rebellious schoolboy like the author.After the war he and his family escape to West Berlin, but his childhood sweetheart remains, as she has too much invested in her musical career in the East. Before the Berlin Wall goes up he sneaks over to East to see her, but the relationship is strained due to the enforced separation and their political differences.
The author like many involved in WWII suffers post traumatic stress syndrome, and gets little real help. It is a gripping account of the period and essential reading for those interested in WWII and Post War Germany, told from an insider, and dissenting perspective. The account is made more vivid by the authors skillful use of of media reports and propaganda posters. These are woven into the narrative, and make the period come alive.
The author like many involved in WWII suffers post traumatic stress syndrome, and gets little real help. It is a gripping account of the period and essential reading for those interested in WWII and Post War Germany, told from an insider, and dissenting perspective. The account is made more vivid by the authors skillful use of of media reports and propaganda posters. These are woven into the narrative, and make the period come alive.
February 2, 2010
For more information on "My Name Was Five," visit http://www.mynamewasfive.com/.
February 19, 2013
Excellent!!
July 8, 2016
A novel depicting World War II through the eyes of a young boy growing up in Berlin. Others have said and I imagine it is true that this is more memoir than novel. Highly recommended read.
September 16, 2013
This was a powerful book written from the viewpoint of an intelligent young boy growing up in Nazi Germany. It covers the horrors of that life as well as those of the people living in the madness of Hitler's ideas--and particularly how that affected the Jews living under Hitler's dictates. And it details the difficulties that also became those who survived Hitler only to have to live under the Russians and their ideas of an ideal world: Communism. This is an excellent book that should be read by all. By doing so, perhaps we'll all learn to appreciate what good governance entails and demand that of those we elect to lead us.
August 15, 2013
This was a very informative and well written book. I was nervous at first as it looked to be a high school history book, but was pleasantly surprised. It was interesting to see the affects of WWII and the German culture through the vantage point of a young boy. It provides a great lesson on history, which I had forgotten a lot of since I learned so long ago, without actually being a history book. I would recommend this book to everyone who would like to learn more about that point in history.
March 6, 2019
In June of 1947, just before graduation time, we received a letter from Aunt Martel and it shocked us all. She was working then for the tax department of West Berlin; that part was fine. But her friend Eva, now living in east Berlin, had a new job in Oranienburg and had told her that the Sachsenhausen concentration camp was back in business!
There were tens of thousands of prisoners, she had told her. Some of the new prisoners were German officers transferred from Western Allied camps, others were former Nazi officials. There were also Nazi collaborators, like film and theater directors and SS doctors. But many of the prisoners, and this was the shocking thing, were alleged anti-Communists, who had confessed under torture. Still others were alleged werewolves, who had been denounced by someone for "acts against the Soviet occupation forces." In addition, and perhaps even more surprising, there were thousands of Russian inmates. They included former POWs who had been classified as Nazi collaborators, because they hadn't fought to the death, and large numbers of regular soldiers who had contacted venereal diseases in Germany.
"There we go again," my father said. "Now they do it in the name of Marx."
"What are venereal diseases?" I asked.
My mother told me to ask my father and my father told me to ask my mother.
Perhaps My Name Was Five is a memoir, disguised as a novel. Or perhaps, as the author states in the afterward, this is a work of detailed historical fiction that integrates *real* historic events into the life of a fictional German family. Regardless, this is an excellent look at lived experience in Berlin during WW 2, and then afterwards during Soviet occupation.
A small plane (very similar to the one in the image) crashes in 1991 near Key West Florida. The pilot, alive but dazed and confused, initially says "It was World War 2". The official NTSB accident report attributes the crash to a large flock of sea gulls which collided with the small plane--smashing the cockpit windshield and jamming crucial equipment. However, the executive editor of Modern Aviation feels that there must be more to the crash. He suspects that the pilot's statement is a reflection of ongoing psychological trauma. He tracks down the pilot, and interviews him many times. The result is the rest of the book.
His reflections take us from 1937, when Hans, at the age of 4, witnessed his father's arrest for conscientious objections to the rising Nazi party. We're right there with him as he starts kindergarten and is initiated by the cruel older boys who are part of Hitler's Youth. We cringe with him as he hides in underground bunkers, and then navigates the bombed streets of Berlin on his way to school. Hans story continues past WW2 into the Soviet occupation of East Germany during the late 1940's through the last chapter dated 1961.
My two cents: Late last year I read The Good at Heart, which showed a German family's experiences of WW2. Kohler's offering, however, is less a novel and more a gripping historical saga. He includes images of propaganda posters, news clippings, and pictures of Germans going about their lives which were taken at that time. He doesn't mince words or sugar coat Hans' experience. We are shown the horrors of war--the terror of phosphorous bombs, and whole piles of dead Berliners pulled from the rubble and left in the center of the streets. I can't even begin to comprehend how these sights would affect the psych of a young child. As in The Good at Heart , readers are shown that many Germans didn't like or agree with Hitler. Not many knew where the German Jews were going, and even less knew what was happening to them--but there were resistance movements. Kohler wrote a historically significant account of a time that we must educate ourselves about so that history does not repeat itself. Highly recommended, and given 5 stars or a rating of "Perfect/favorites"!
There were tens of thousands of prisoners, she had told her. Some of the new prisoners were German officers transferred from Western Allied camps, others were former Nazi officials. There were also Nazi collaborators, like film and theater directors and SS doctors. But many of the prisoners, and this was the shocking thing, were alleged anti-Communists, who had confessed under torture. Still others were alleged werewolves, who had been denounced by someone for "acts against the Soviet occupation forces." In addition, and perhaps even more surprising, there were thousands of Russian inmates. They included former POWs who had been classified as Nazi collaborators, because they hadn't fought to the death, and large numbers of regular soldiers who had contacted venereal diseases in Germany.
"There we go again," my father said. "Now they do it in the name of Marx."
"What are venereal diseases?" I asked.
My mother told me to ask my father and my father told me to ask my mother.
Perhaps My Name Was Five is a memoir, disguised as a novel. Or perhaps, as the author states in the afterward, this is a work of detailed historical fiction that integrates *real* historic events into the life of a fictional German family. Regardless, this is an excellent look at lived experience in Berlin during WW 2, and then afterwards during Soviet occupation.
A small plane (very similar to the one in the image) crashes in 1991 near Key West Florida. The pilot, alive but dazed and confused, initially says "It was World War 2". The official NTSB accident report attributes the crash to a large flock of sea gulls which collided with the small plane--smashing the cockpit windshield and jamming crucial equipment. However, the executive editor of Modern Aviation feels that there must be more to the crash. He suspects that the pilot's statement is a reflection of ongoing psychological trauma. He tracks down the pilot, and interviews him many times. The result is the rest of the book.
His reflections take us from 1937, when Hans, at the age of 4, witnessed his father's arrest for conscientious objections to the rising Nazi party. We're right there with him as he starts kindergarten and is initiated by the cruel older boys who are part of Hitler's Youth. We cringe with him as he hides in underground bunkers, and then navigates the bombed streets of Berlin on his way to school. Hans story continues past WW2 into the Soviet occupation of East Germany during the late 1940's through the last chapter dated 1961.
My two cents: Late last year I read The Good at Heart, which showed a German family's experiences of WW2. Kohler's offering, however, is less a novel and more a gripping historical saga. He includes images of propaganda posters, news clippings, and pictures of Germans going about their lives which were taken at that time. He doesn't mince words or sugar coat Hans' experience. We are shown the horrors of war--the terror of phosphorous bombs, and whole piles of dead Berliners pulled from the rubble and left in the center of the streets. I can't even begin to comprehend how these sights would affect the psych of a young child. As in The Good at Heart , readers are shown that many Germans didn't like or agree with Hitler. Not many knew where the German Jews were going, and even less knew what was happening to them--but there were resistance movements. Kohler wrote a historically significant account of a time that we must educate ourselves about so that history does not repeat itself. Highly recommended, and given 5 stars or a rating of "Perfect/favorites"!
February 7, 2017
This is one of the most moving fictional novels I’ve read about World War Two from the perspective of a young boy growing up in Germany during and after the war.
The story touches on all the major events that the average German didn’t agree with when it came to the treatment of Jews and others who detested Hitler and his henchman, but knew not how to combat it. For to do so would result in their imprisonment and or disappearance.
This happens to Hansel’s father. His is deemed an enemy of the state and is sent to Buchenwald for reeducation. Amazingly, he actually gets released later in the story. Hansel watches and listens to his mother’s stories and why many of their friends are whisked away at night without a trace or for those who remain, suffer the indignation of “Kristallnacht.” His mother is staunch proponent of the direction Germany is headed. Yet she has the insight to not make her comments common knowledge.
Number five, is the author’s name when he’s in primary school. The teacher had no time for names and found numbers to be more descriptive and condemning to his pupils. The higher the number, the more prestigious the student.
Each week his teacher would attempt to drill the students with more Nazi propaganda. His mother would dismiss it and tell him, “Your teacher is an idiot.” He would hear this time and time again over the years about not only the Nazis, but the Communists as well.
With that said, you are going to be seeing all the horrors of the war. The descriptions of the fire bombings are right out of Dresden or Hamburg. It is graphic and frightening. The Russian occupation is exactly what you’d expect. The frontline troops get along with the residents and make the best of the situation. The occupation forces, that’s another story. I have read many accounts from Russian soldiers who held a true hatred for the troops that followed them raping and plundering Germany under the guise of “they deserved it.” We know Stalin allowed it to happen for what the Germans did in Eastern Europe. Still, the frontline men had no stomach for the treatment but to speak out would seal their own doom.
The last chapter seemed entirely too drawn out. It’s about the plane crash tying into the beginning of the story. It was just too long and monotonous.
If you are looking for a story that provides an excellent insight into what life for a youngster was like under the Nazis and then the Communists, this is a must read.
Four stars.
The story touches on all the major events that the average German didn’t agree with when it came to the treatment of Jews and others who detested Hitler and his henchman, but knew not how to combat it. For to do so would result in their imprisonment and or disappearance.
This happens to Hansel’s father. His is deemed an enemy of the state and is sent to Buchenwald for reeducation. Amazingly, he actually gets released later in the story. Hansel watches and listens to his mother’s stories and why many of their friends are whisked away at night without a trace or for those who remain, suffer the indignation of “Kristallnacht.” His mother is staunch proponent of the direction Germany is headed. Yet she has the insight to not make her comments common knowledge.
Number five, is the author’s name when he’s in primary school. The teacher had no time for names and found numbers to be more descriptive and condemning to his pupils. The higher the number, the more prestigious the student.
Each week his teacher would attempt to drill the students with more Nazi propaganda. His mother would dismiss it and tell him, “Your teacher is an idiot.” He would hear this time and time again over the years about not only the Nazis, but the Communists as well.
With that said, you are going to be seeing all the horrors of the war. The descriptions of the fire bombings are right out of Dresden or Hamburg. It is graphic and frightening. The Russian occupation is exactly what you’d expect. The frontline troops get along with the residents and make the best of the situation. The occupation forces, that’s another story. I have read many accounts from Russian soldiers who held a true hatred for the troops that followed them raping and plundering Germany under the guise of “they deserved it.” We know Stalin allowed it to happen for what the Germans did in Eastern Europe. Still, the frontline men had no stomach for the treatment but to speak out would seal their own doom.
The last chapter seemed entirely too drawn out. It’s about the plane crash tying into the beginning of the story. It was just too long and monotonous.
If you are looking for a story that provides an excellent insight into what life for a youngster was like under the Nazis and then the Communists, this is a must read.
Four stars.
November 3, 2014
The boy, Hans was known to his Nazi teacher as Five. This was the way the teacher placed the students-1 was the best, 56 the worse. Hans managed to get himself in the 5th position. I am sure it is in fact the story of Heinz himself. A fascinating read about a boy who grows up first in Nazi Germany and then, who happens to live in the wrong place when Germany is divided and ends up in the Russian sector. He finds out he has gone from bad to worse as the sadism of the Nazi's is exchanged for the sadism of Communism. I was surprised he stayed there when he was not far from the border, but I presume he cared for his family and worried they might be killed if he defected. In the end he does manage to get to the West, but this is a fascinating look at two different evils which came on the heels of each other. it also shows the difference between the Russian soldiers, who raped and killed their was through East Germany and the Americans who took prisoners and left the women alone.
February 28, 2017
An extremely well-researched account of pre and post WWII Germany, elucidating the horrors of war, fascism and communism. The historical occurrences are seamlessly laced with author’s personal experiences, making the book not only informative but also highly engaging. Also, the war propaganda posters and post bombing photographs peppered throughout the book are a great touch.
December 29, 2017
Makes you think a bit
Yes a novel but much of the time it doesn't read like a novel.
The historical information was good. The look at daily life of a family who had much adjusting to do through the rise of Hitler, the death of Hitler and then the occupation by the Russians. The affect of the ' iron curtain' on the citizens of Germany - both east and west - was stark.
The years between his arrival in US and then the end of the book 1991 were not developed other than in the readers mind (based on the last sentences of the book.)
Yes a novel but much of the time it doesn't read like a novel.
The historical information was good. The look at daily life of a family who had much adjusting to do through the rise of Hitler, the death of Hitler and then the occupation by the Russians. The affect of the ' iron curtain' on the citizens of Germany - both east and west - was stark.
The years between his arrival in US and then the end of the book 1991 were not developed other than in the readers mind (based on the last sentences of the book.)
February 11, 2020
Kohler's fiction book is a compilation and organization of stories he knew from his childhood. He either experienced the events or he knew the people who had the experiences. It is gruesome, moving, sometimes repellant, fascinating, and sometimes in the later part of the book more detailed than I wanted. The later part is his work and many documents.
He used pictures of posters from the war years that are very interesting. He also gives details that make it a good reference book.
He used pictures of posters from the war years that are very interesting. He also gives details that make it a good reference book.
June 15, 2015
Well worth a read
An different look at the history of WWII, one I had not considered before. The childhood look at the rise of Hitler through the eyes of a four and a half year old boy, very well researched and very thought provoking.
An different look at the history of WWII, one I had not considered before. The childhood look at the rise of Hitler through the eyes of a four and a half year old boy, very well researched and very thought provoking.
January 28, 2023
Decent historical fiction about world war 2 and the aftermath with creating east and West Berlin. Not very well written however
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