Full Circle
This story of Jan Neuman, a Czech boy, opens in 1938. It follows him through the events leading up to the war in Europe in 1939-45, the occupation of Czechoslovakia by the Nazis, and the effect this has on him, his family, friends and his community. After liberation in 1945, the Soviets arrive, and later the communists take over in a coup. He flees to the West, stripped of everything dear: friends, family, country. We follow him through devastated Germany, the sewers of Paris, and the refugee camps of Italy. Ultimately he ends up in America. Later, when Communism falls in Eastern Europe after 1989, he returns home only to realise it is no longer for him. His home, the family, and community he was forced to flee, and has yearned for, no longer exist.
It is a well-told story of what happened to central Europe and Europeans in the middle part of the last century. I found it well written and very engaging.
There were a few typos, and I could nit-pick about some minor errors or inconsistencies, but really this book deserves a wider readership. One thing I would strongly recommend: turning the prologue into author’s notes at the end of the book.
e-book reviewed
