Libby Fischer Hellmann

My eyes hold deep, dark craters beneath them that stand proudly as testament to this tale's ability to cause a tired human (me!) to forfeit sleep to read just...one...more....page. The characters truly do take on lives of their own; even potentially difficult personalities somehow maintaining (either throughout or eventually) an air of humanity that paints them as entirely three dimensional while set in a very difficult and tumultous time. There was a moment or two, had I not been completely show more captivated by the tale, that I would have liked to put the book down to mourn a little for lost humanity.

I devoured the book in less than two evenings.

If I had any complaints at all it would be the seemingly all too easy (and quick!) descent of one of the main characters (not saying much to give little away). The end also seemed quick, a wrap-up not unlike an old mystery tale where the detective stands amidst a crowd of suspects deftly unraveling the crime and fingering the guilty in one tidy scene. Do not let that dissuade you though, it is a more a symptom of there being space and desire to lengthen/prolong this book rather than it taking away from the act of experiencing it. show less

High Crimes is an excellent political thriller that takes something that happens regularly (people infiltrating groups who think differently with the intention of being disruptive) and runs with it. If you can't read a thriller unless everyone on your end of the political spectrum are good then you might not be grown up enough for this one. Like any such work it takes who is in power, the right currently (even though they are a significant minority), and amplifies the old adage that power show more corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.

I find it funny that those who claim to be so tough get their little feelings hurt when a story isn't filled with enough propaganda for them. If the story were reversed they would probably put it on Breitbart and believe it was true, such are the mental shortcomings of those currently destroying democracy. If the people in the story are simply taken as characters without whining about them being on one side or the other, there are plenty of flaws to go around. And that is what makes a good story. If all you want is more of the same kool-aid, well, go try to decipher Trumpenfuehrer's tweets or his childish rallies. If you want a story that is well written and taken from the contemporary toxic waste that is our current administration, this is a great work.

Recommended for readers with functioning brains who enjoy political thrillers. For whiny right-wingnuts who feel entitled to everything, well, you're too cowardly to enjoy this so go back in momma's basement and read Breitbart and plan your next assault on a pizza restaurant running a child trafficking ring from their nonexistent basement.

Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley. show less

This story has been told often: Hitler becomes stronger and bolder, creeping across Europe and destroying everything in his path, starting in Germany. Nobody believes it at first, because it is unbelievable and because it happens bit by bit, step by step. Suddenly the Jews (and other undesirables, anyone in the way of Hitler’s perfect world) realize they haven’t only been marginalized, they’ve been pushed aside, pushed away, unfathomably harshly dealt with, found unworthy of the basic show more necessities of life itself - discarded. Yes, we’ve heard this story before, but it never loses its potency. And in the always strong, capable, and excellent hands of author Libby Fischer Hellmann it comes fully alive and feels personal and unique.

WW2 is Hellmann’s forte. In Max’s War she perfectly captures the befuddlement of the German Jews. This cannot be happening to them. They are Germans. Good Germans. They contribute to society. They run businesses. They perform their civic duties. They are good citizens. So they are unwilling and unable to accept what is right before them, what is happening to them, even though it’s obvious and the end is inevitable. They search far too long for an explanation, for a way to fix this, to belong once again when it’s now apparent that that will never happen again.

Max’s mother wants the family to leave Germany and go to America as soon as the persecution starts, even securing papers for them so they can travel. But his father believes she’s overreacting, that the current state of the nation can’t last much longer and things will return to normal. Meanwhile, little by little they are shunned by old friends, lose business and Max is forced to change schools. It’s not until his father is arrested and imprisoned for a time that he finally agrees they must leave their home. America is no longer an option, so they resettle in Holland. His close friend and first love Renée and her family have already emigrated to Shanghai.

Things are good in Holland for a while. Max’s father is back in business, his mother is active in women’s groups, and Max makes friends at school. He misses Renée but it seems that was not meant to be. He meets Annaliese and once again his heart is full. But Hitler’s march stops for no one, and Holland is in his path. Max joins the resistance and vows he and Annaliese will use those papers he mother obtained years ago and go to America. But disaster strikes and Max barely escapes. His parents refuse to leave, citing his father’s illness as the reason. Max finds himself in Chicago with family and tries to make a life for himself as a mechanic. When Max learns of his parents’ deaths in Holland at the hands of the Nazis, he enlists in the US Army, determined to do whatever he can to stop this insanity. What has to this point been a heartbreaking story of one family’s struggle now becomes even more intense and fascinating thanks to author Hellmann’s meticulous research and attention to detail.

After basic training Max is sent to Camp Ritchie, Maryland, where he is trained in interrogation and counterintelligence and becomes a “Ritchie Boy.” The Ritchie Boys were a special collection of soldiers, with sizable numbers of German-Austrian recruits, who were used primarily for interrogation of prisoners on the front lines and counterintelligence in Europe because of their knowledge of the German language and culture. As a Ritchie Boy Max makes a difference many times over.

The story follows Max through the end of the war and his return to Germany in his work for the Americans in the German denazification program. How will that feel? Will anyone he knew as that young boy who left years ago still be there? Still be alive? Will it feel like home, or is his home – and heart – now in America?

Max’s War is a stunning portrayal of the horror, struggles, danger and despair for all those good souls who suffered and were victimized. And it is also the story of the perseverance and determination of a young boy who becomes a strong, determined man. I was completely drawn into the story and couldn’t put it down. I recommend it without hesitation. Libby Fischer Hellmann is always a disciplined, excellent, satisfying author and Max’s War is a brilliant example of that. I voluntarily leave this review; all opinions are my own. show less

WAR, SPIES & BOBBY SOX: STORIES ABOUT WORLD WAR II AT HOME by Libby Fischer Hellman is a trio of historical stories about the effect of war on the home front. WWII has always been a fascinating topic to me but it was all about the battlefields, Hitler, and my mother’s and grandmother’s innocent home front stories about rationing and volunteering and writing letters to “our boys.” It certainly was not about spies or secret meetings or POW camps down the road from us in Illinois.

The show more author writes that WWII was the last time there was such clarity between good and evil. I agree, but as I read these three stories, that clarity became a little blurry. These stories aren’t about fighting in some far off land, but rather about individuals that could have been our neighbors – or us – and what happens when difficult decisions have to be made and that line between good and evil isn’t quite so clear. What if a German refugee was forced to spy on the early years of the Manhattan Project in Chicago? What if an inexperienced, unsatisfied young farm girl finds herself in close proximity to men she should not be drawn to? What if suspicious events are happening in your own neighborhood but the word espionage isn’t even part of your vocabulary and you don’t know what these events mean or what, if anything, you should do about them?

I have long been a fan of Libby Fischer Hellman’s work so I had high expectations for this compilation and I was not disappointed. The Incidental Spy was, in fact, the first story I read by her and it was just as powerful and compelling this time around. Lena’s life is hard. She is forced to leave her home, her parents, and her love in Nazi Germany to live in safety with her aunt in the United States. She does eventually settle in to her new home, and finds rewarding, meaningful work, and love again. Life is good. But things don’t always go as we wish and Lena still has more to endure. She is a strong, resourceful woman and she is determined to survive whatever life throws her way, but it’s not easy. She has to make some tough choices, and Libby Fischer Hellman builds the suspense and keeps us wondering until the very end.

POW showed a side effect of the war that most of us probably never even realized existed. Even though her father is away fighting and those are actual POWs in the nearby camp, Mary Catherine is just a young girl helping her mother. The war isn’t a part of her everyday life. This story is about feelings and possible actions and consequences. Again, very powerful and compelling.

The last story in the trio, The Day Miriam Hirsch Disappeared, takes place in the late ‘30s as the country geared up to fight Hitler. Espionage surrounds the disappearance of an actress from the thriving Jewish community of Chicago’s Lawndale, but the main characters, Jacob and Barney, are like the rest of us and don’t have any perspective for events they think they understand but really do not. Very thought provoking and more than a little scary.

The stories may be short, but the characters are well developed and believable, and even though there are no tanks or machine guns or bombers there are battlefields, as well as suspense and tragedy. The stories open your eyes and make you think and will stay in your mind. I highly recommend this book along with everything else Libby Fischer Hellman has written.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review but I also purchased a copy for my library. show less