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Christoph Fischer
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The Luck of the Weissensteiners (The Three Nations Trilogy Book 1) (English Edition) Formato Kindle

Edizione Inglese di Christoph Fischer (Autore) Formato: Formato Kindle
3,9 su 5 stelle 1.044
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"...an eye opening and heart-warming story of survival..."

"the essence of human nature" in the beautiful historic setting of Bratislava in 1933

“Left me breathless and in awe” – "should be mandatory reading in history class"

Watch the trailer: http://studio.stupeflix.com/v/OtmyZh4Dmc/

Voted No. 21 in http://www.readfree.ly/the-50-self-published-books-worth-reading-2013-14/


In the sleepy town of Bratislava in 1933 a romantic girl falls for a bookseller from Berlin. Greta Weissensteiner, daughter of a Jewish weaver, slowly settles into life with the Winkelmeier clan. The political climate and slow disintegration of the multi-cultural society in Czechoslovakia becomes more complex and affects relations between the couple and their families.
The story follows their lot through the war with its torment, destruction and its unpredictability - and the equally hard times after.

From the moment that Greta Weissensteiner enters the bookstore where Wilhelm Winkelmeier works, and entrances him with her good looks and serious ways, I was hooked. But this is no ordinary romance; in tact it is not a romance at all, but a powerful, often sad, Holocaust story. What makes The Luck of the Weissensteiners so extraordinary is the chance Christoph Fischer gives his readers to consider the many different people who were never in concentration camps, never in the military, yet who nonetheless had their own indelible Holocaust experiences. Set in the fascinating area of Bratislava, this is a wide-ranging, historically accurate exploration of the connections between social location, personal integrity and, as the title says, luck. I cared about every one of this novel's characters and continued to think about them long after I'd finished reading.

-- Andrea Steiner, University of California Santa Cruz

The Luck of the Weissensteiners is an epic saga set in wartime Eastern Europe. It follows the lives of two families - one Jewish, one Catholic - and their entwined survival amidst the backdrop of the second world war; first the fascist then the communist invasion and occupation of Slovakia, and the horror of the consequences of war. The reader is transported to a world of deception, fear, distrust and betrayal, alongside enduring love and family drama. Weissensteiners is a magnificent tale of human survival.
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  1. Libro 1 di 3
    The Three Nations Trilogy
  2. Lunghezza stampa
    382 pagine
  3. Lingua
    Inglese
  4. Memo
    Su Kindle Scribe
  5. Data di pubblicazione
    28 dicembre 2013
  6. Dimensioni file
    2068 KB
  7. Scorri Pagina
    Abilitato
  8. Word Wise
    Abilitato
  9. Miglioramenti tipografici
    Abilitato
  10. Visualizza tutti i dettagli
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Descrizione prodotto

L'autore

Christoph Fischer was born in Germany in 1970 as the son of a Sudeten-German father and a Bavarian mother. Not a full local in the eyes and ears of his peers he developed an ambiguous sense of belonging and home in Bavaria. He moved to Hamburg in pursuit of his studies and to lead a life of literary indulgence. After a few years he moved on to the UK where he is still resident today. ‘The Luck of The Weissensteiners’ is his first published work. He has written several other novels which are in the later stages of editing and finalisation.

Dettagli prodotto

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00AFQC4QC
  • Lingua ‏ : ‎ Inglese
  • Dimensioni file ‏ : ‎ 2068 KB
  • Da testo a voce ‏ : ‎ Abilitato
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supportato
  • Miglioramenti tipografici ‏ : ‎ Abilitato
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Abilitato
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Abilitato
  • Memo ‏ : ‎ Su Kindle Scribe
  • Lunghezza stampa ‏ : ‎ 382 pagine
  • Recensioni dei clienti:
    3,9 su 5 stelle 1.044

Informazioni sull'autore

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Christoph Fischer

Christoph Fischer

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Recensioni clienti

3,9 su 5 stelle
3,9 su 5
1.044 valutazioni globali

Recensioni migliori da Italia

Sophia Gampton
5,0 su 5 stelle Insightful!
Recensito in Italia il 19 ottobre 2013
This novel is beautifully written, interesting and insightful. Focusing on the lives of two families with very different backgrounds, the author leads the reader on a journey about love and loyalty during the terrible events of the second world war in Europe.

Greta, a Jewish girl, falls in love with the handsome young German who works in her local bookstore. She falls pregnant and they marry with the conflict of war bringing complications to their relationship and the future of their children. Wilhelm takes their son to Germany and divorces her as Greta gives birth to their second son.

The novel is filled with tension as the reader is introduced to an array of characters, each of whose life is affected by the haunting events playing out around them.

The description in this book is amazing in its detail and the author has clearly researched the period and events thoroughly. I really felt I was increasing my knowledge about the war, without going over old ground, as well as reading an enjoyable tale.

I look forward to reading the second book in this wonderful trilogy.
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ElleLainey
5,0 su 5 stelle An amazing, honest, heart breaking story
Recensito in Italia il 18 novembre 2013
**I was given this book in return for an honest review.**

THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS

<spoiler> I'm not usually one for sad stories, or historical fiction. I'm even, not really one for family sagas. However, I enjoyed this book. At the beginning of the book I felt sorry for Greta, who is stuck with Wilhelm after he got her pregnant. She's Jewish and he's a German, but when they meet, a love of literature brings them together and he assures her that her nationality means nothing to him, even though it would to some others. After getting pregnant, Wilhelm promises to stick by her and they get married. Overtime, Greta continues to love him, but he doesn't love anything other than her looks. He used to love her intelligence, but not anymore. They bonded over books and literature and as soon as she got pregnant, that was taken from her. As was her family.

I find Wilhelm a total cad and a scoundrel. I hate his family and how they treat Greta and I feel sorry for Greta's family that they're losing her to such morons. To be honest, I was immediately quite worried about Karl's upbringing as well. I think what happens to Greta, concerning Wilhelm and Karl, is so sad but it's nice to see that she copes well with the vast change that's thrust upon her.

Normally, I don't like long breaks in the story, or long history/background lessons during a story, but here it really works. It's not a lecture or boring, it's intriguing and captivating. I studied Germany and the war in high school and again in an OU course, Humanities, and never knew most of what Fischer is telling me through this story. I never knew that large factions of Jewish people say it coming, that the writing was on the wall from as early as 1938. It's a real eye opener, and it really gives a strong sense of anticipation, foreboding and `luck' to the story.

I do love the characters in this book. I love Johan and although Johanna is a bit of a nightmare and a cow, you do get rare moments of light. When she does something, it's always for the `greater good' of her family, even if someone gets hurt or she has to feel remorse later. That's her payment. I also like that you get to see both sides of the argument, and how easily a person who had once had no problem with Jews could have their mind changed. Wilhelm showed this well, and Johanna is constantly battling conflicting feelings against the Jewish people. I know someone, a German, who was conscripted into the army back then, even though he, like Egon and Gunter, had no issues with the Jews, and how, like Gunter, it wasn't possible to say no without some ill effect.

I also like how Egon and Gunter are considered inferior and weak by their families but its their intellect that gains them pride and praise in the army. It's nice to see them getting some attention and approval after being practically abandoned and neglected by their families. I especially love little Wilma. She's so fragile and you just want to wrap her up and protect her from life. I think it's sweet that the steward was attracted to her, but even better was the just desserts he got from the girls. The rat incident was hilarious. I particularly enjoy Edith and Esther, they're so much fun.

I enjoy the characters that we meet in the camps, Freddie and even the old German women who are complete cows. They are real and honest and brutal sometimes, but believable. I especially loved Joschka. He was so sweet and lonely. You tend to forget that non Jewish people got caught up in the camps and that, besides hating Jews, the Nazis hated anyone who was different, whether that be religiously, politically, geographically or through sexual orientation. Edith, Esther and Joschka were both in danger for their sexuality, and it's heartbreaking to hear Joschka's story.

For me, the real luck of the Weissensteiners, was that Greta married Wilhelm. Although I hate him and he was a total ... I can't even find a word to describe him but he was cruel, and I'm glad no-one had to suffer him much, it was their marriage that saved the Weissensteiner family. Without that, they might never have had so much success. Wilhelm took Greta to the farm, leaving Jonah one less mouth to feed, and Johanna would allow `care' packages to go back from the farm to the Weissensteiners. Without Johanna, things would have been a lot worse for the family. Jonah could never have safely attended the Countess' ball, without knowing that he had Johanna's barn to sleep in so that he didn't get caught out after curfew. And without the Countess, nothing would have gone right, as she continued to keep their family name off the list of Jews. Although Egon was saved by his army officer, who recognised his talent, the rest of the family could still have been taken as Jews, with minimal damage or risk to exposing Egon. Only the Countess saved them.

And I think that's the real moral of the story, that the Weissensteiners, though Jewish, were saved by the people who loved them. Johanna, a German with conflicting views on Jews, and a Hungarian Countess who felt overly privileged and loved art. Without these friends, the family would surely have been found out at some point. I think the fact that they were sheltered and saved by these people is a true testament to how people are people, humans are humans and it doesn't matter about the colour of their skin, their accent, or their religious beliefs. Family are family. Friends are friends no matter what.

I really loved the Epilogue, and getting to find out how the story really ended. It's so sad that it took so many years for Greta and her family to find out the truth of what had happened to Alma, Jonah, the Countess and Egon. But that was how it really was. Some families still never know what happened to their relatives, even now, and it's gut wrenching. Needless to say that I cried at the end. I held out hope enough to stop myself until it was over. I find it completely perfect that Ernst found his family, even the lost ones, and got a conclusion to the story. We never found out what happened to Roswinth, who ran into the woods when the Soviets came, Gunter who was lost in the war, and Sarah, who was deported. Sadly, I think they died. But the sad truth is, that far too many people died, of any nationality and any proclivity. <spoiler>

I really look forward to reading more from this author.
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B Nelson
5,0 su 5 stelle I love this smart book!
Recensito in Italia il 24 ottobre 2013
History can either slow a book or enrich it. Christoph Fischer found the secret formula. This historical novel blends the right bit of romance, slice-of-life reality and historic facts to paint a story that is difficult to put down and impossible to let go of. The characters are all people I know, who I can never forget. Their drama and survival during the most horrendous period of the last century is crafted with such care and perfect detail that you might believe it is a story of your own family. The Luck of the Weissensteiners is one of those rare books that not only tackles topics such as trust and betrayal, but also gives you fresh perspective into the depths of those topics. Two families, one Catholic and one Jewish, cross the WWII era with all the tension and trouble that that imagines, yet out of the sadness and shame we are left with hope and a belief in luck. This wonderful book is highly recommended.
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Mr. Kibbles
5,0 su 5 stelle A truly beautiful historic suspense
Recensito in Italia il 19 ottobre 2013
An astounding and epic story about the harrowing experiences of a Jewish family during World War Two. It starts like a nostalgic romance story but soon, as growing anti-Semitism begins to rear its ugly head, the story becomes an epic struggle for survival. Christoph Fischer's wonderfully descriptive writing style gives an authentic feel of the era. I found myself feeling real concern for the superbly drawn characters as they desperately try to avoid being detected by the Nazis. The Luck of the Weissensteiners (The Three Nations Trilogy) is a truly beautiful historic suspense that I would recommend to just about anyone.
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Le recensioni migliori da altri paesi

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kwadzana
5,0 su 5 stelle A true classic for generations to follow
Recensito negli Stati Uniti il 22 ottobre 2013
Acquisto verificato
If you wait for 110 to 140 years, this book will be free. But then you would be missing out on one of the most brilliant authors I've been lucky enough to stumble upon since I started reading many years ago. The Luck of the Weissensteiners will undoubtedly become public domain and remain a timeless classic for centuries. Many books will fade over time but the works of Christoph Fischer will live alongside those of Austen, Defoe, Hawthorne and Dickens. The Luck of the Weissensteiners is a true historical fiction classic.

The story follows the lives of two families; one Jewish and one a mix of Lutheran and Catholic that are connected by fate from the period leading up to World War II and on to the end of the war.

I often read reviews where the reviewer describes the book as a page turner. The Luck of the Weissensteiners by Christoph Fischer went beyond that for me. I used the Kindle text-to-speech feature to continue reading while cooking and eating dinner and then went back and re-read the sections I had listened to so I didn't miss anything. I came to know the characters and to care about them and I wanted to know how things turned out for them. I wanted so much for Greta to be happy. I loved her inner strength, her innate sense of right and wrong, and her open-mindedness. Most of all I loved her ability to see good where there is almost none. This is character development at its best and there are several more characters as interesting as Greta.

Although there is great detail and historical fact in the story, there is never an instance where the author gets involved in unimportant details. Every sentence and every description of characters and events supports the storyline. I think this is the mark of a great author.

One of the things that have made this book special for me is that my father was part of a US Army division that liberated the little known concentration camp at Ebensee, Austria. He was a medic with the US Army and also the platoon photographer. So I grew up knowing the extremely graphic pictures of the proof of the holocaust were in my father's top drawer. The photos were finally donated to the Holocaust Museum in St. Petersburg Florida along with a two-hour interview my dad did. So I grew up knowing that we should always speak out against prejudice before it has a chance to fester.

As I began reading The Luck of the Weissensteiners, it wasn't long before I started feeling uneasy, like something was wrong. It wasn't anything too obvious; just a dark cloud that drifted overhead without anyone really noticing it. Little by little, the darkness increased and the uneasiness slowly turned to fear. It was of course, Hitler's cloud of genocide.

I think the thing that makes this book unique and fascinating for me is that as I read it, it seemed that almost no one on either side really had any pre-conceived notions about their own political thinking regarding Hitler's twisted view of humanity. And yet many were swept up in it, almost like a disease had spread throughout Europe. Hitler's horror seemed to take on a life of its own. That is what is so terrifying and you feel that horror growing as you read this book.

But the story is not all doom and gloom. As inhuman as the Nazi sympathizers were, there were also many kind and brave characters that come to life in this timeless classic. I highly recommend this book to everyone. Everyone should know what it felt like to live through one of the darkest periods of the human race. Another reviewer wrote that you need to read this book slowly. I completely agree. It's like a fine wine. It should be sipped slowly so you can taste it.
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Selena Robins
5,0 su 5 stelle I'd love to give this book MORE than 5 Stars.
Recensito in Canada il 17 agosto 2013
Acquisto verificato
THE LUCK OF THE WEISSENSTEINERS is an extremely well written novel about two families during the horrific events of World War II.

Christoph Fischer hooked me in with wanting to read how the romance between a German bookseller and a young, Jewish woman would develop, during a time in history when the possibility of such a union would be an extreme conflict and life threatening challenge.

I fell in love with Greta and Wilhelm, with the way their character's are portrayed and with their story. I also love this author's style of writing. His storytelling voice is descriptive, utilizing all the senses, mesmerizing and strong.

It is obvious that Mr. Fischer did a lot of research for this book and kudos to him for using the research in a way that gives the reader the realism of World War II, at the same time is able to weave his knowledge into a fictional account, without having it sound like a history book. He writes the historical facts and cultural differences into a great work of fiction that literally has the reader feel like they are part of that era.

This book is filled with a lot of emotion and it will touch every reader who absorbs the full impact of Mr. Fischer’s excellent way of crafting a story. My emotions ran from anger on behalf of the characters and heartbreak, as well as providing smiles at some light hearted, comical moments. This is what I consider a well rounded story, when it can encapsulate all these emotions, giving me an overall thrilling read.

I highly recommend this book, and especially to readers in a book club as it opens the door for a lot of discussion.
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Simon
5,0 su 5 stelle Luck of the Weissensteiners
Recensito nel Regno Unito il 13 settembre 2013
Acquisto verificato
The Luck of the Weissensteiners by Christoph Fischer is nothing short of pure genius. I fell in love with the writing the moment I flipped the first page. The author's exquisite sense of style combines intricate historical facts with dramatic family turmoil that shocked the whole world when first revealed back in 1945. This beautifully crafted novel is filled with desperation and sheer determination to survive against insurmountable odds.
Greta Weissensteiner falls in love with the young man who sneaks books from his library and uses them to see her. Wilhelm Winkelmeier does not care she is a Jew and marries her. They live on his parents' farm where Greta is subjected to harsh living conditions and has to forget her love of books to take care of their son, Karl. Slowly, she wins the respect of Wilhelm's parents, but a storm is racing across the horizon in the shape of Nazi hatred of all things Jewish.
Then the unthinkable happens - the world turns a blind eye as Germany invades Austria and then Sudetenland bordering their home country of Czechoslovakia. It is only a matter of time before the terror begins.
The Weissensteiners have always believed in their own brand of luck that has kept them in good stead, but once the Jewish question is implemented that luck is needed time and again. And yet their luck seems to protect them, but at what cost.
This wonderful novel handles a difficult subject matter with style and grace, showing a close-knit family fighting injustice and never losing their dignity in the face of bigotry and hatred.
I must admit I was often brought to tears with several scenes so poignant and tender. This book deserves to be in every library as a reminder of man's inhumanity to man and how easily society can ignore such cruelty.
This FIVE STAR masterpiece should be read by every teenager as part of their school curriculum. I LOVE IT.
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Susanne Weigl
5,0 su 5 stelle Ergreifende Familiengeschichte aus den 30er und 40er Jahren
Recensito in Germania il 26 marzo 2013
Acquisto verificato
The Luck of the Weissensteiners erzählt die Lebensgeschichte zweier Schwestern, die das "Dritte Reich" als jüdische Deutsche in der Tschechoslowakei erleben. Das Buch zieht den Leser vor allem durch die psychologische Charakterzeichnung der Personen und die dramatische Zuspitzung der familiären und historischen Ereignisse in Bann.
Vilma und Greta Weissensteiner glauben sich einigermaßen sicher, als die lesehungrige Greta einen deutschen Buchhändler heiratet, doch im Zuge der zunehmenden Judenverfolgung distanziert sich die neue Familie von der jungen Frau. Mit der Scheidung verliert Greta ihren älteren Sohn und kehrt zur Weberei ihres Vaters zurück. Den Boykott jüdischer Geschäfte übersteht die Familie anfangs mit Hilfe verschiedener Freunde, doch bald wird die Situation für sie zu gefährlich. Mit ihrem alten Vater, ihrem zweiten Sohn und ihrer labilen Schwester muß Greta die Weberei verlassen und einer ungewissen Zukunft im Chaos des endenden Zweiten Weltkriegs entgegengehen.
Das Buch besticht durch sein ungewöhnliches und liebevoll beschriebenes Personal. Mir gefiel besonders die Figur der Schwester Vilma.
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Book Addict
4,0 su 5 stelle A Jolt to my Ethnocentricity
Recensito negli Stati Uniti il 28 agosto 2013
Acquisto verificato
History of the twentieth century was one of my major areas of study in college. However, the history I studied presented an ethnocentric view of World War II. Of course, I know about Hitler's rise to power, and the major steps he took in Europe prior to our entry into the war. I understood the political and social ramifications. I understood the uneasy alliance of Germany, Italy, and Japan. But I only knew of these histories from the perspective of the first, isolationist United States, and then, as the full-speed ahead entry into the war heroes who saved the world from the evil Axis powers.

Reading Christoph Fischer's The Luck of the Weissensteiners presented another view of that period through the camera lens of people living in Eastern Europe. The book shows people from all the different perspectives before, during, and after the war. It's an eye-opening read to learn that the United States wasn't the center of this war. In the lives of these ordinary folks, the United States played an almost peripheral role.

The Luck of the Weissensteiners exposes how the Eastern Europeans reacted with a wide range of attitudes and actions as the war tore apart families and friends and allowed no trust to exist in all the varied relationships. There may have been a world war taking place on the larger stage, but for the characters in Fischer's novel, it is a civil war being fought, and the lines are blurred and often changing, depending on who's in charge.

Jews and Gentiles fall in love and marry, which creates a problem when Hitler's master plan begins to take effect, even in countries where he's not invaded. . .yet. The propaganda used to smear the very genes of Jews causes one husband to question the moral integrity of his wife. He buys the line of inherently weak genes so much he even takes their son away - a son who is Aryan in looks, leaving behind his Jewish wife and their unborn child. The atmosphere of fear changes people, oftentimes not for the better.

Through it, all one family stands strong.

This book's retelling of the history of this period in Europe is personalized through the characters that represent a cross section of the lives impacted by the atrocities of war. Jews, Gentiles, Germans, Slovakians, lesbians, and traitors all point to one direction. War never makes much sense when the individual lives of its victims are examined. Neither side wins when people are persecuted for their religion, political beliefs, nationality, or sexual orientations.

It's a sad commentary on the human condition when a people are forced to hide their identities behind forged passports and then forced to throw away the forgeries to appease the winning side. When it comes down to it in the aftermath of the war and the liberation of Europe, all individuals are suspect, and mankind is taken down a notch.

Christoph Fischer has written an important book for its historical perspective. He personified the vagaries of war through the fictional characters. At times, it reads like a history book, but before it bogs down into a lesson in civics, he comes back to the individuals experiencing the actual effects of the persecution.

As always, we study and examine the past so we don't forget it. As long as genocide exists in the world, we must do as Fischer has done in his novel - remind us, and remind us again, that our faith, our color, our language, and our life choices should matter not a wit. In the end, it's our integrity and how we treat others that matters the most.

Thank you, Christoph, for writing this important book to remind us never to repeat the mistakes of the past.
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