The Good Soldier: From Austrian Social Democracy to Communist Captivity with a Soldier of Panzer-Grenadier Division "Grossdeutschland"

Alfred Novotny

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9780977756308: The Good Soldier: From Austrian Social Democracy to Communist Captivity with a Soldier of Panzer-Grenadier Division "Grossdeutschland"

ISBN 10: 0977756300 ISBN 13: 9780977756308

Publisher: The Aberjona Press, 2006

Unabridged audiobook 6-disc set, read by the author Alfred Novotny was born in Vienna on 1 April 1924, and was perfectly placed to suffer the ancient Chinese curse: “May you live in interesting times.” His times were interesting and deadly, but that he survived them is not the greatest surprise. Rather, what stands out is that Fred never lost his compassion, nor his humanity, nor his mind. Growing up in 1930s Vienna, the former home of a young, frustrated, and fuming artist named Adolf Hitler, Fred was the stepson of a dedicated Social Democrat. As such, he grew up with a visceral and deep dislike and distrust of their rival parties, including the National Socialists, or “Nazis.” Although the political situation in Austria throughout the 1930s was stormy, the German annexation of Austria absolutely ended effective opposition to the “New Order.” Attracted by the superficial benefits of unity with Germany and the evident achievements of the Nazis, young Alfred gradually parted ways with his stepfather. He performed his duty to the Reich when called up for service in the Reich Labor Corps, and later proudly served in the most elite division of the German Army in World War II, Panzer-Grenadier Division Gro�deutschland ("Greater Germany"). From 1942 forward, Fred saw more than his share of combat. Starting with action as a member of a hurriedly-armed labor detachment in the famous British naval and commando raid at St. Nazaire, France, in March 1942, Fred later joined the Gro�deutschland Division in time to participate in some of the most well-knownand most bloody battles of the war on the Eastern Front. During the Germans’ last great offensive in the Soviet Union in 1943, Fred fought at Poltava and in the titanic clash of thousands of tanks at Kursk. Wounded there, he later returned to his unit and fought in the long series of fiercely-contested defensive battles that ended only when the Soviets occupied much of eastern and central Germany and Austria. . . and when Hitler and the Thousand Year Reich were finally destroyed. Like so many members of German units, Fred was happy to surrender to the US Army at the end of the war, but under the terms of inter-Allied agreements reached months before, units which had fought only against the Soviets were turned over to the Red Army, en masse. Thus began the ordeal after the ordeal—2� years in Soviet prison camps. After being freed from captivity by the Soviets, Fred eventually escaped the old world and the old conflicts . . . and started a new life in the United States, free of the competing "isms" of Europe that had wreaked misery on millions. The Eastern Front experiences of the former Panzergrenadier now come alive against a background of combat sound effects and period music that provide an entirely new experience for those seeking a more intimate familiarity with the author’s story.

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From the Inside Flap:

Insightful and revealing memoir of the son of an actively Socialist family who nevertheless proudly served in Panzer-Grenadier Division “Grossdeutschland” during some of the most momentous battles of WWII. After years of brutal Soviet captivity, the author emigrated to the United States and cast Old Europe behind, embracing capitalism and freedom. Read by the author, the Eastern Front experiences of this former Panzergrenadier come alive against a background of combat sound effects and period music.

About the Author:

Alfred Novotny was born in Vienna on 1 April 1924, and was perfectly placed to suffer the ancient Chinese curse: “May you live in interesting times.” His times were interesting and deadly, but that he survived them is not the greatest surprise. Rather, what stands out is that Fred never lost his compassion, nor his humanity, nor his mind. During WWII Novotny served in the Reich Labor Corps, and later was a soldier in the most elite division of the German Army, Panzer-Grenadier Division "Gro�deutschland". After his release from Soviet captivity, Fred Novotny returned to his native Vienna and resumed the career he had begun at the age of 14 as a waiter in luxury restaurants. In 1956, he and his wife, Lisl, emigrated to the United States, and Fred continued his work as a wine steward in Illinois. Eventually, Fred parlayed his training, experience, and hard work into undreamt-of success, rising to a partnership in a series of luxury hotels in Illinois and Iowa. In 1973, he was elected to the presidency of the Illinois Association of Hoteliers and Restaurateurs.

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