Pretty much a nail-biting, cliff-hanging read all the way to the end. This is the story of two young Germans - Effi a spirited girl in the Resistance, and Hanno, an erstwhile Hitler Youth member who deserts the Army in the last days of the crumbling Thousand Year Reich.Both of them are runaways fleeing westwards from the horrors of the advancing Red Army - Effi dreams of finding her father and a new life in America, while Hanno, traumatised by the death of his twin brother, simply wants to go home. Slowly, they learn to trust each other, and traversing the nightmarish landscape of war-torn Germany, they meet other refugees, each with his or her own tale of sorrow to tell.
This is one of the rare stories told from the perspective of German civilians during WWII, and is perhaps the author's attempt at atonement for the apathy of many and a celebration of the unsung courage of a few.
Bring on the sequel!
(Book cover photo: http://www.faber.co.uk)
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