A son whose father fought Nazis with his brain instead of a gun, and suggestions for children on your holiday gift list brighten our newly white landscape today.
“My Father Against the Nazis”: by Steven E. Mayer (Calumet Editions, $21.99)
There are many books about German Jews fleeing their country as Hitler gained power. But what happened to those who stayed until their last chance to leave?
(Jane Lake Birt / Calumet Editions)
Steven Mayer tells the story of his parents, Paul and Margo, as they grew up, fell in love and married. They finally left Nazi Germany in 1939, eventually making their way to the U.S. In his book, aptly subtitled “Part memoir, part history, part biography, part prophecy,” Mayer’s focus is mostly on his father, with whom he had a difficult relationship.
Paul Mayer was obviously a brilliant man whose future was taken from him by the Nazis. Just when he had received a law degree that would have allowed him to sit on the highest courts, Hitler’s rules against the Jews slowly took effect. It’s heartbreaking to read of how the anti-Jewish laws slowly tightened. Paul would tell of returning his academic robes still in the box because he wasn’t permitted to practice law.
It is hard to read of educated, well-to-do Jews, whose families had lived in Germany for centuries, thinking the Nazis wouldn’t take away their rights. They thought it was Jews from the East who would be targeted. But the Nazis didn’t care. Their laws applied to all who were Jewish.
Taking inspiration from John Dos Passos’ trilogy, Mayer provides a “newsreel,” styled like headlines, to help the reader understand the political events of the period he’s writing about through five generations from the early 1900s to the present day. If you follow his excellent timelines you will have the history of war and politics in the 20th century.
Steven Mayer was 16 in 1959 when he performed in “The Diary of Anne Frank” in the Twin Cities, wearing his father’s coat from his parents’ escape from Germany. When he asked about his paternal grandparents’ fate in a death camp, his father was so overcome with emotion that he revealed depths of trauma that would take decades for Steven to understand.
After the war, when Paul was a U.S. citizen, he was able to help the Jewish cause by becoming part of the intelligence group called “the Ritchie Boys” who helped interrogate Nazi prisoners. This secret U.S. military intelligence unit, composed mostly of Jewish refugees, was trained at Camp Ritchie, Md. Later in life Paul sought justice by working for reparations for Jews who had lost everything under the Third Reich.
“He understood that defeating fascism is not a one-time victory; it is generational work,” Mayer writes of his father.
Mayer, who wrote this book in his Amsterdam canal house, the same city where his parents debated whether to flee Germany, is a consulting psychologist and founder of Minneapolis-based Rainbow Research, dedicated to healing society. His previous book is “How to Save the World: Evaluating Your Choices.”
Mayer will discuss “My Father Against the Nazis” at 6 p.m. Tuesday at Inkwell Booksellers Company, 426 E. Hennepin Ave., Mpls.
Teaser quote: A huge part of Paul’s story is the context of growing up in Germany in the first half of the twentieth century, one of the most tumultuous and consequential fifty-year periods in Western Civilization.
For the little ones
“All the Stars in the Sky”: by Art Coulson, pictures by Winona Nelson (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, $19.99)
(Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers)
What does it mean to be “important”? In this intelligent and thoughtful story, Clay wants to be named by his teacher the most important person in the school, but his wise grandma says no one person is more important than his family and community. So begins this story of individualism and responsibility. Told from an indigenous writer’s perspective, it discusses one’s place in the world and how we all light up the sky together.
Coulson’s many books and short stories for children include “Chasing Bigfoot.” After a career in journalism he served as first executive director of the Wilma Mankiller Foundation in the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma. He divides his time between Minneapolis and the North Woods of Wisconsin. Winona Nelson is a fine artist and illustrator of comics and children’s books. A member of the Ojibwe of Minnesota, she lives in Pennsylvania.
“Read Me a Story: Later I’ll Read You One!”: by Donna Lagorio Montgomery (St. Johns Publishing, $16.95)
(St. Johns Publishing)
Donna Montgomery has written books on a variety of subjects, including “Surviving Motherhood.” In her first illustrated children’s book, she says she wants to let children know the feeling of having a nice family and to give them an idea of happiness.
Her topics range from loving grandparents to how kids entertain themselves when Mom is distracted. We meet the neighborhood woman who gathers kids for walks, and smile at the way Mom embarrasses her child by popping up to take pictures during a school event.
This is a sweet story collection, filled with colorful sketches by the author, aimed at the little ones who still need someone to read to them.
“Go Away, Rock Snot!”: by Story Scouts of Grand Marais (Minnesota Children’s Press, $14.99)
Yes, there is such a thing as Rock Snot. And leave it to the Story Scouts to tell us about it in this paperback published by Anne Brataas, former Pioneer Press science writer and founder of Minnesota Children’s Press. It was co-created by 38 Story Scouts, ages 5 to 10.
(Minnesota Children’s Press)
We learn that Rock Snot is a recently discovered invasive species in northern Minnesota waters, a kind of algae that creates on rocks “gloppy, gross things” called didymo or Rock Snot. It pollutes streams by making thick mats that smother things like insect larvae that fish such as trout love to eat and need to survive.
The book explains the problem, the kids’ science solution (be sure it’s not stuck on boats or anything that goes in the water), and an imaginary solution. There is also an index of science terms and concepts. Color photos and drawings are sure to capture young readers attention.
If you have curious children on your holiday gift list, this is the book for them. It also has impeccable credentials, with collaborating mentors from the Science Museum of Minnesota, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and the University of Minnesota-Duluth.
The mission of Minnesota Children’s Press is to mentor rural students’ writing and illustration skills. Story Scouts is its publishing club for work by young people.
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