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Motherland by Maria Hummel
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Motherland (edition 2014)

by Maria Hummel

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1545176,159 (3.61)2
Fiction. Literature. Historical Fiction. HTML:A "haunting . . . searing and honest" (People) family saga inspired by Maria Hummel's own extended family and their status as Mitläufer, Germans who “went along” with Nazism, reaping its benefits and later paying the consequences.
/> Inspired by the stories told by her father about his German childhood and letters between her grandparents that were hidden in an attic wall for fifty years, Motherland is a novel that attempts to reckon with the paradox of the author's father—a product of her grandparents’ fiercely protective love—and their status as passive Nazi–sympathizers known as Mitläufer.
At the center of Motherland lies the Kappus family: Frank is a reconstructive surgeon who lost his beloved wife in childbirth. Two months later, just before being drafted into medical military service, Frank marries a young woman charged with looking after the surviving baby and his two grieving sons. Alone in the house, Liesl attempts to keep the children fed with dwindling food supplies, safe from the constant Allied air attacks and the tides of desperate refugees flooding their town. When one child begins to mentally unravel, Liesl must discover the source of the boy’s infirmity or lose him forever to Hadamar, the infamous hospital for “unfit” children.
Bearing witness to the shame and courage of Third Reich families during the devastating final days of the war, each family member’s fateful choice leads the reader deeper into questions of complicity and innocence, and to the novel’s heartbreaking and unforgettable conclusion.
"Hummel's haunting novel is set in the ravaged landscape of German just before the country's collapse at the end of World War . . . Searing and honest, her book illuminates the reality of war away from the front lines—betrayal and compromise, neighbor turning on neighbor, the unexpected heroism of ordinary people—with a compassion and depth of understanding that will touch your heart." —People.… (more)
Member:sallyse
Title:Motherland
Authors:Maria Hummel
Info:Counterpoint (2014), Hardcover, 400 pages
Collections:Your library
Rating:****
Tags:Germany, WWII, families

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Motherland by Maria Hummel

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Showing 5 of 5
Using her family story as a guide, the author recounts the experience of one German family during the WWII. Asking the questions, "What did they love? What did they fear?" the story of the horror, pain, hunger, suffering, longing, love that is part of all human nature comes to life...sadly so. ( )
  SignoraEdie | Mar 14, 2015 |
5221. motherland, by Maria Hummel (read 20 Nov 2014) This is an unremittingly doleful work of fiction depicting the lives of a family in western Germany in the closing days of World War II. One must feel sorrow for the people subjected to the bombing even though we know the war has to be won by the allies to avoid the evil of Nazidom. Even when the war ends there is no end to the tough life of the characters of the novel, which seems as burdened when the Americans occupy the German town as it was before they came. Some time that life improved, since the book is inspired by the experiences of the author's grandparents--the author being American. But no hint of that improvement is shown in the novel, which ends in 1945 with the characters deep in gloom ( )
1 vote Schmerguls | Nov 20, 2014 |
I have anticipated that the book would be boring and difficult to finish. I was surprised. The book centered in Germany during the final stages of WWII. For some odd reason, March Violets by Philip Kerr, contrasted the two novels. Hummel's book is better written and easier to read and understand. So many interesting characters, such as Liesl, the young step-mother, left with three young step-sons as the war and all its problems attack Liesl's resolve. Hummel portrays the characters and setting very well, and the story creeps slowly as the reader learns of the terrors and heartaches in Germany during WWII. At times, the doctor/husband, Frank, seems a distant figure. The ending falls apart as the war ends and the Germans must cope with a divided and shattered country. The novel builds in momentum to the conclusion that fizzles. ( )
  delphimo | Sep 25, 2014 |
I was curious to read a novel of Nazi Germany that focused on the experiences of a German family. How complicit were they? What did they know and when? Although the novel was insightful to a point, it never answered those questions to my satisfaction. Maybe there is no clear answer. Maybe that was the point. Nevertheless, I was immediately captured by the fear, trepidation, and desperation of the main characters. The simple image of spilled coffee spoke volumes in this author’s deft hands. Nazis and the Jewish holocaust were the backdrop behind a German family’s struggle to survive. The tension palpable as neighbors proved untrustworthy and self-serving. While it was interesting to see the war from this perspective, it was difficult to feel empathy for the characters because I couldn’t help but feel that they had brought it all upon themselves. Still, a very good read that gave me much to think about. Recommended for fans of historical fiction. ( )
  TheLoopyLibrarian | Jul 20, 2014 |
Maria Hummel's Motherland takes place during 1944-45 and is a World War II story that is well written and completely engaging. The sections of the novel are focused on two main characters. The first is Liesl, the new wife of a German surgeon, Frank, recently called up for duty in the army and deployed. Frank was a widower with three young sons. Knowing he was about to be drafted, he married Liesl very soon after his first wife died in childbirth. Young Liesl, once an admirer of Hitler, actively begins to fear the Nazis when the officials try to send Frank's middle son away to a place for "inferior children" after he shows signs of lead poisoning. Liesl is friendless, despised by her neighbors, who were friends of Frank's first wife, a Nazi supporter. The other sections of the book follow Frank in his hospital, worrying about his horrifically wounded patients, his family back home, and about escaping the enemy, who are sure to win the war. Hummel's characters are well-drawn and sympathetic. She gives the reader a vivid picture of the deprivations and hardships of ordinary German people during the war. Recommended. ( )
  JGoto | Oct 4, 2013 |
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Fiction. Literature. Historical Fiction. HTML:A "haunting . . . searing and honest" (People) family saga inspired by Maria Hummel's own extended family and their status as Mitläufer, Germans who “went along” with Nazism, reaping its benefits and later paying the consequences.
Inspired by the stories told by her father about his German childhood and letters between her grandparents that were hidden in an attic wall for fifty years, Motherland is a novel that attempts to reckon with the paradox of the author's father—a product of her grandparents’ fiercely protective love—and their status as passive Nazi–sympathizers known as Mitläufer.
At the center of Motherland lies the Kappus family: Frank is a reconstructive surgeon who lost his beloved wife in childbirth. Two months later, just before being drafted into medical military service, Frank marries a young woman charged with looking after the surviving baby and his two grieving sons. Alone in the house, Liesl attempts to keep the children fed with dwindling food supplies, safe from the constant Allied air attacks and the tides of desperate refugees flooding their town. When one child begins to mentally unravel, Liesl must discover the source of the boy’s infirmity or lose him forever to Hadamar, the infamous hospital for “unfit” children.
Bearing witness to the shame and courage of Third Reich families during the devastating final days of the war, each family member’s fateful choice leads the reader deeper into questions of complicity and innocence, and to the novel’s heartbreaking and unforgettable conclusion.
"Hummel's haunting novel is set in the ravaged landscape of German just before the country's collapse at the end of World War . . . Searing and honest, her book illuminates the reality of war away from the front lines—betrayal and compromise, neighbor turning on neighbor, the unexpected heroism of ordinary people—with a compassion and depth of understanding that will touch your heart." —People.

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