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Courage to Survive

by Aron Abrahamsen

282 pages; quality trade paperback (softcover); catalogue #07-1336; ISBN 1-4251-3403-3; US$24.95, C$28.69, EUR19.45, £12.90

This true story is about a Norwegian family faced with a decision of whether to leave their home and businesses to escape from the Nazi occupation or wait it out.

About the Book

When the Nazis confiscated our family's three stores, the summer villa, and the bank accounts, it was obvious that a way to escape had to be found. The Norwegian Underground came to our rescue, giving details of the most safe travel routes over the mountainous areas. Regardless, it was fraught with danger, difficulties, and fear. In Amsterdam, our sister, her husband and baby, were sent to a concentration camp. Three times they were scheduled to be shipped to Auschwitz. One brother was imprisoned by the Nazis, but was able to escape. Thankfully all family members survived.

This is an historical/documentary account personalized through the story of this Jewish family, consisting of their mother and father, and their eleven children living in Norway before, and during the Nazi invasion. Their father died before the invasion. Their mother, and the eleven children, each with their own feelings and needs, dealt with the dangers and trauma in their own way. They discovered that the common thread throughout this tapestry of their lives was the courage to survive.

About the Author

Aron Abrahamsen was born and raised in Norway. In 1940 he immigrated to the U.S. at the age 18. He served in the U. S. Navy from 1943 to 1946. After attending college he received a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from California State Polytechnic University, San Luis Obispo, California. After graduation he was recalled into active duty in the Korean War.

During his twenty years in the engineering field, he was at one time a member of a scientific study team to determine the feasibility of sending a manned expedition to the moon with a safe return to the earth. The result of this study paved the way for the Apollo Program. As an engineer he authored several technical papers and lectured on the space program during those early years.

After retiring from the aerospace field he began writing the story of his family.