The Last Daughter of Prussia
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5.0 • 2 Ratings
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
Toward the end of World War II, as Germany’s hold on East Prussia grows increasingly tenuous, a childhood friendship between Manya Von Falken, the daughter of an aristrocratic family, and Joshi Karas, a Romani doctor, blossoms into unlikely love. But the young lovers are torn apart.
Captured by the Nazis and sent to a concentration camp, Joshi fights for survival, while Manya and her family flee and embark on “The Great Trek” out of East Prussia. Based on true stories passed down to author Marina Gottlieb Sarles from her grandparents, survivors of the trek, The Last Daughter of Prussia also tells the story of the brave Trakehner horses who led their owners across a dangerous frozen lagoon, the only open escape route.
Will Joshi and Manya find one another? Gottlieb Sarles creates a tapestry of characters from every corner of East Prussia, shedding light on an untold tragic moment in history.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In Sarles's novel, set during WWII, Manya von Falken is a young East Prussian aristocrat in love with Joshi Karas, a Romani doctor. As the Russians are steadily encroaching into East Prussia and battling the Germans, the two young lovers get caught in the middle. Joshi is arrested by the Germans and taken to Stutthof, a forced labor camp, where he witnesses Nazi inhumanity firsthand and learns to do whatever he needs to survive. Manya and her family flee, but the journey to safety may end up costing her everything, including Joshi. While the Russians in this novel are little more than caricatures, the sentiments and terror of the protagonists are well rendered, keenly felt, and quite vivid. Sarles adapted her novel from the real-life experience of her grandparents, and readers will appreciate the characters' quiet heroism and be intrigued by this affecting tale of WWII.
