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English Girl, German Boy: World War II From Both Sides
by Tessa and Martin Börner
273 pages; quality trade paperback (softcover); catalogue #06-2735; ISBN 1-4251-0976-4; US$16.95, C$19.50, EUR13.92, £9.75
English Girl, German Boy authors share personal WW2 stories. "I gobbled up your book, reading it into the early hours of the morning! What an amazing story!"
About the Book
English Girl, German Boy authors share personal stories of World War II
"I gobbled up your book, reading it into the early hours of the morning! What an amazing story! To dedicate it to children of war everywhere in the world is remarkable."
Claudia Schultheis, Menorca, Spain.
For immediate release:
Tessa and Martin Börner, former Oakville, Ontario residents now living in Costa Rica, co-authored their recently published book, English Girl, German Boy - World War II From Both Sides their personal stories of World War II from an English and German perspective.
"I read your book almost non-stop! For me who experienced the war in France, it was really thrilling and close to my memory of Normandy. I was impressed by you both daring to return with your family to communist East Germany and the testimonies of your daughters and son."
Pierre Herbert, Costa Rica.
Starting in the early 20th century, the authors describe the lives of their ancestors in Britain and Germany and guide the reader through events before, during and after the war. Tessa writes about her grief at losing her father - a chief radio officer in the Merchant Navy - in the Battle of the Atlantic, the terror of nightly bombings and food parcels from the USA. Martin gives a graphic account of surviving the Dresden firebombings, the Russian occupation, his escape from communist East Germany and his first years in Canada.
"In 1941, German U-boats were at their peak, sinking freighters shipping food and supplies from the USA to an isolated Britain. From Norway to Spain, the Sondermeldung, special broadcasts on the radio with fanfares and rousing music - 'Today our brave U-boats have sunk 400,000 tons of freighters' - and then more music. Little did I know that my future children's British grandfather was one of the many British Merchant Navy sailors who were torpedoed and drowned in the ice cold waters of the north Atlantic."
Excerpt from English Girl, German Boy - World War II from Both Sides.
‘English Girl, German Boy – World War II From Both Sides’ is available at www.amazon.com. It can also be purchased by calling 905-842-4598 or emailing hilary@montvest.on.ca. In Costa Rica at 506-494-5868 and Libreria Internacional.
About the Author
Tessa and Martin Börner, married in Canada in 1957, are the parents of five children and grandparents to 11 grandchildren. Since 1994, they have lived in Costa Rica and welcomed thousands of visitors to their Bed and Breakfast Posada Mimosa: www.mimosa.co.cr
Excerpts
Reviews
Reader’s Comments
“I read your book almost “non stop”! For me who experienced the war and the reconstruction periods of the 40’s and 50’s, it was really thrilling and close to many of my memories of Normandy: the food rationing, the boarding school time, the bombing, the shelters, the machine-gunning of the “mosquitoes” and… The slaughter! The occupation troops, the black practices and the bombed cities. In 1944 I was in St. Lo, Lower Normandy, which was 91% destroyed and 1955 in Kassel, Hessen, 75% destroyed. I also saw die Frauenkirche and Dresden when reconstruction started in 1991.
“I just wasn’t to say that I gobbled up your book, reading into the early hours of the morning! What an amazing book you have written. I remember so well reading excerpts of Martin’s story in Costa Rica and that it would develop into both your stories is so great. To dedicate it to the children of war everywhere in the world is remarkable. I applaud you and hope that the book gets distributed to school boards and educational institutions.”
“How many memories and how similar the experience both sides went through during the war years. Funny, I have a picture of my parents and myself as a little girl in Germany that it exactly like Tessa’s! I had to look twice it looked so familiar. Congratulations, what a wonderful gift for your grandchildren.”
Kid’s Comments
We recently visited several Toronto schools and talked about our wartime experiences. We were extremely impressed by the student’s intelligent questions and genuine interest in World War 2. Here are some comments from Grade 6 students (11 &12 year olds).
“Personally I think it is better that you both married people from opposite sides because we are all people and we are all the same on the inside. You both taught me a lot…”
“My favorite thing I learned was that you should always trust your inner voice because it might save your life…”
“There are many other things I learned but I think the most important is that it does not matter if you are German or English, we all live on one planet and should all be treated right…”
