Book Description

A half-Danish, half-German woman grows up in the midst of World War II before leaving Europe for America in this debut memoir. Born to a Danish mother and a German father in 1938 Berlin, Farrin's earliest memories include her mother's severe warning: "Don't say anything to anyone at any time." Later, she remembers their apartment being destroyed by a bomb in 1943. After the author's father went missing in the war, her mother took her, her little sister, Irene, and a baby brother affected by Down syndrome, Jurgen, to Denmark. There, they slowly adjusted to living the subtle stigma of their German connections until their mother found a new community in the Mormon Church. The fifteen-year-old author's mother soon secured visas and passage to America, and the teen's life was drastically changed yet again after they arrived in Salt Lake City. They eventually settled in California, living in a small cottage just off Hollywood Boulevard. Farrin's reluctance about America later gave way to ambition; she attended Stanford University and met her future husband, Jim. Together, they raised five children in nine different foreign cities. Although the daily trials of life as a foreigner and immigrant weighed on the author throughout her life, she continued to derive strength from her faith and her fiercely determined mother. She ably relates the complex character of her mother, and her account of her strange symbiosis with Mutti is equally engaging. Anyone with an interest in history or immigrant experiences will still find Farrin's tale to be thrilling. Kirkus Review