Crossing the Eastern Front: A Novel Based on the True Story of a Teenage SS Volunteer

Stroe, Alan

ISBN 10: 1511788526 / ISBN 13: 9781511788526

Published by CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2015

About this Item

In.

Seller Inventory # ria9781511788526_new

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Crossing the Eastern Front: A Novel Based on the True Story of a Teenage SS Volunteer
• Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
• Publication Date: 2015
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1511788526
• ISBN 13: 9781511788526
• Binding: Soft cover
• Condition: New

About this title

Synopsis

Kidnapped at gunpoint by a German unit from his village in the heart of Transylvania, a devout teenager is starving to death in a POW camp. The only way out is to join a Romanian Waffen-SS unit. As the Anglo-American and Soviet fronts grip Nazi Germany in an ever-tightening vise, the last months of war find him on the losing side, wearing its most hated uniform.

From the Back Cover

Set against the backdrop of World War II, Crossing the Eastern Front is the evocative, coming-of-age story of Yoan, a teenager from the idyllic hillsides of Transylvania whose world is turned upside down when the Eastern front rolls over his village.

As a kidnapped, half-starved civilian prisoner whose best chance at survival involves joining the losing army, Yoan's untested innocence is put to the trial. His strange new world is colored by a vast array of characters, ranging from the noble-spirited to the morally reprehensible--those in whom war has broughtout the best, and those in whom it has brought out the very worst. As the fast-paced narrative progresses, pitting Yoan against one tribulation after another, one cannot help but wonder: will witnessing the atrocities of war and drinking deep of its cold, haunting terrors corrupt him?

And yet despite the bleakness of his circumstances, Yoan's story is a story of hope. Of moral integrity and goodness in the face of destruction, evil, and death. Reminiscent of Dostoevskian heroes, his child-like faith perseveres to the end in the midst of adversity. This is also the story of the plight of a people caught on the wrong-footing of history. The book adds to the ever-fascinating tapestry of World War II chronicles a revealing glimpse into Romania's involvement in the war, shedding light on the internal and external forces that pulled a peaceful people into history's bloodiest fray. Crossing the Eastern Front is a brisk, vivid, and touching narrative--a must read for history buffs and students of human nature alike.

--Clara Kristiansen