Witness to the Storm - A Jewish Journey from Nazi Berlin to the 82nd Airborne 1920–1945

Werner T. Angress

Summary

“An extraordinary memoir” of fleeing the Nazis—and then returning to fight them (Konrad H. Jarausch, author of Broken Lives: How Ordinary Germans Experienced the Twentieth Century). On June 6, 1944, Werner T. Angress parachuted down from a C-47 into German-occupied France with the 82nd Airborne Division. Nine days later, he was captured behind enemy lines and became a prisoner of war. Eventually, he was freed by US forces, rejoined the fight, crossed Europe as a battlefield interrogator, and participated in the liberation of a concentration camp. He was an American soldier—but less than ten years before he had been an enthusiastically patriotic German-Jewish boy.   Rejected and threatened by the Nazi regime, the Angress family fled to Amsterdam to escape persecution and death, and young Angress then found his way to the United States. In Witness to the Storm, Angress weaves the spellbinding story of his life, including his escape from Germany, his new life in the United States, and his experiences in World War II. A testament to the power of perseverance and forgiveness, Witness to the Storm is the compelling tale of one man’s struggle to rescue the country that had betrayed him.

Available since: 05/01/2019.

Print length: 355 pages.

Other books that might interest you

Slaying the Badger - Greg LeMond...

Richard Moore

Bernard Hinault is "Le Blaireau," the Badger. Tough as old boots, he is the old warrior of the French peloton, as revered as he is feared for his ferocious attacks. He has won five Tours de France, marking his name into the history books as a member of cycling's most exclusive club.Yet as the 1986 Tour de France ascends into the mountains, a boyish and friendly young American named Greg LeMond threatens the Badger—and France's entire cycling heritage.The stakes are high. Winning for Hinault means capping his long cycling career by becoming the first man to win the Tour six times. For LeMond, a win will bring America its first Tour de France victory. So why does their rivalry shock the world?LeMond and Hinault ride for the same team.Asked by a reporter why he attacked his own teammate, the Badger replies, "Because I felt like it." and "If he doesn't buckle, that means he's a champion and deserves to win the race. I did it for his own good."LeMond becomes paranoid, taking other riders' feed bags in the feed zone and blaming crashes on sabotage. Through it all, with the help of his American teammate Andy Hampsten, LeMond becomes the first American to win the Tour de France.

Show book

Parliament's Generals - Supreme...

Malcolm Wanklyn

The author of The Warrior Generals examines the machinations of the Parlimentarian military leadership during the English Civil War.   Waller, Essex, Fairfax, Manchester, and Cromwell are among the most famous military men who fought for Parliament during the English Civil War. While their performance as generals has been explored in numerous books on the campaigns, comparatively little has been written by military historians about the political aspects of high command, namely the ever-changing and often fractious relationship with the English Parliament and its executive committees. With this book, Malcolm Wanklyn sheds light on the qualities these men employed in their attempts to achieve their military and political aspirations.   In a series of insightful chapters, he follows their careers through the course of the conflict, focusing on their successes and failures in battle and the consequences for their reputations and influence. The author examines dissatisfaction with the leadership of Essex, Manchester, and Waller in the inconclusive early campaigns, as well as the contrasting strengths of Fairfax and Cromwell. This reassessment demonstrates how these commanders managed promotions, outmaneuvered their fellow generals, and controlled their subordinates.

Show book

The Sign of Jonas

Thomas Merton

Begun five years after he entered the Abbey of Our Lady of Gethsemani, The Sign of Jonas is an extraordinary view of Merton's life in a Trappist monastery, and it serves also as a spiritual log recording the deep meaning and increasing sureness he felt in his vocation: the growth of a mind that finds in its contracted physical world new intellectual and spiritual dimensions.

Show book

Why I Still Believe - A Former...

Mary Jo Sharp

For anyone who feels caught in the tension between the beauty of God's story and the ugliness of human hypocrisy, Why I Still Believe offers a stirring story of hope.
Why would anyone be a Christian when there is so much hypocrisy in the church? Mary Jo Sharp shares her journey as a skeptical believer who still holds to a beautiful faith despite wounding experiences in the Christian community.
At a time when de-conversion stories have become all too common, this is an earnest response - the compelling conversion of an unlikely believer whose questions ultimately led her to irresistible hope. Sharp addresses her own struggle with the reality that God's people repeatedly give God's story a bad name and takes a careful look at how the current church often inadvertently produces atheists despite its life-giving message.
For those who feel the ever-present tension between the beauty of salvation and the dark side of human nature, Why I Still Believe is a candid and approachable case for believing in God when you really want to walk away. With fresh and thoughtful insights, this spiritual narrative presents relevant answers to haunting questions like:Isn't there too much pain and suffering to believe?Is it okay to have doubt?What if Jesus' story is a copy of another story?Is there any evidence for Jesus' resurrection?Does atheism explain the human experience better than Christianity can? How can the truth of Christianity matter when the behaviors of Christians are reprehensible?
At once logical and loving, Sharp reframes the gospel as it truly is: the good news of redemption. With firmly grounded truths, Why I Still Believe is an affirming reminder that the hypocrisy of Christians can never negate the transforming grace and truth of Christ.
Further resources and discussion questions are available in the audiobook companion PDF download.

Show book

On the Edge of Nowhere

James Huntington, Lawrence Elliot

His father is a white trapper, his mother an Athabascan Indian who walks a thousand miles in winter to reunite with her family. Thus, Jimmy Huntington learns early how to survive on the land.Huntington is only seven when his mother dies, and he must care for his younger siblings. A courageous and inspiring man, Huntington hunts wolves, fights bears, survives close calls too numerous to mention, and becomes a championship sled-dog racer.

Show book

Insane Roots - The Adventures of...

Tiffany Rochelle

An artist revisits her childhood spent with a con-artist mother who lived under many aliases and examines how she’s come to terms with it. Growing up, Tiffany Rochelle had no reason to believe her mother was not who she claimed to be, but that all changed when she was nine. She learned her mother had been living under a false identity since before she was born, and that the name her mother had used on her birth certificate wasn’t real. From that point, Tiffany’s life was never the same. By the time she was twenty-five, her mother had used twenty-seven known aliases and had created just as many lives to go along with them. As she got older and “found” herself in the world of art, Tiffany realized that even if she could have chosen her mother, she would have chosen no differently. Tiffany knew that she would not have achieved success as an artist were it not for her mother’s insane roots. Tiffany Rochelle’s story shows how true the saying “You can’t choose your family” is and why you should be grateful for them.

Show book