In 1920, at the age of
thirteen, Irmgard Gebensleben first traveled from Germany to The
Netherlands on a "war-children transport." She would later marry a Dutch
man and live and raise her family there while keeping close to her
German family and friends through the frequent exchange of letters. Yet
during this period geography was not all that separated them. Increasing
divergence in political opinions and eventual war between their
countries meant letters contained not only family news but personal
perspectives on the individual, local, and national choices that would
result in the most destructive war in history.
This important
collection, first assembled by Irmgard Gebensleben's daughter Hedda
Kalshoven, gives voice to ordinary Germans in the Weimar Republic and
the Third Reich and in the occupied Netherlands. The correspondence
between Irmgard, her friends, and four generations of her family delve
into their most intimate and candid thoughts and feelings about the rise
of National Socialism. The responses to the German invasion and
occupation of the Netherlands expose the deeply divided loyalties of the
family and reveal their attempts to bridge them. Of particular value to
historians, the letters evoke the writers' beliefs and their
understanding of the events happening around them.
This first English translation of Ik denk zoveel aan jullie: Een briefwisseling tussen Nederland en Duitsland 1920-1949,
has been edited, abridged, and annotated by Peter Fritzsche with the
assent and collaboration of Hedda Kalshoven. After the book's original
publication the diary of Irmgard's brother and loyal Wehrmacht soldier,
Eberhard, was discovered and edited by Hedda Kalshoven. Fritzsche has
drawn on this important additional source in his preface.
This book is wonderful for anyone interested in World War II. It is at times both wonderful and heartbreaking. Just a great all around read.
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