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msvenner 's review for:
The German Wife
by Kelly Rimmer
This is a fascinating look at Nazism from the perspective of Germans who were caught up in it. The Rhodes family are reunited in Alabama after being forced to work for the Nazis throughout the 30s and the war. Jurgen's expertise in rocketry makes him indefensible to the Reich and later to the American Space program. At the same time we meet Lizzie whose family lost everything during the depression and whose brother joined the military to find work and then was part of the American forces liberating Europe. As he struggles with PTSD, the two families are forced to live in the same small community. The history of each woman is revealed in a shifting timeline.
I really like how the author leaves it up to the reader to decide if the German characters deserve their fate. It is easy to make quick judgements but hearing a narrative from this perspective was very interesting. I found the parallel storyline in the US a little weaker. I was fascinated to read about the treatment and view of PTSD, what then would have been called combat fatigue and found the story of the family getting through the depression interesting, I just didn't feel like the stories connected very well. That part of the narrative seemed forced.
I really like how the author leaves it up to the reader to decide if the German characters deserve their fate. It is easy to make quick judgements but hearing a narrative from this perspective was very interesting. I found the parallel storyline in the US a little weaker. I was fascinated to read about the treatment and view of PTSD, what then would have been called combat fatigue and found the story of the family getting through the depression interesting, I just didn't feel like the stories connected very well. That part of the narrative seemed forced.