A story of friendship, love, loss, and finding out who you really are. Susan Meissner’s latest novel The Last Year of the War follows two American girls who are from German and Japanese descent respectively, and find themselves an enemy of the country they love as WWII breaks out around them. It covers a dark and heartbreaking part of American history that many would like to pretend didn’t happen. And perhaps this is the most important reason this story needs to be told. Beautiful and gripping!

Reflection

I must confess that this is a part of American history I didn’t know much about. Not our role in WWII or the fallout in terms of international relations, that part I knew. I didn’t know much about how we treated Americans on our own soil at the time that had immigrated from Germany and Japan but living here for many years. It’s such a sad part of our history, and it honestly doesn’t feel so long ago if I think about it. Less than 100 years ago, actually. There are probably still Americans alive who were treated this way, so that resonated and I was grateful to learn more about this.

The writing in this historical fiction novel was fantastic, I actually had to double check that it was fiction and not narrative non-fiction! A very authentic story with tons of details about the intricacy of war and life for German- and Japanese-Americans in the 1940s.

The book begins in 2010 as Elise is traveling to find her friend Mariko. They met at an internment camp in Texas, and though they know each other for only one year, they form a lifelong friendship. But the two girls lost touch after leaving. Elise and her family are sent to Germany, and Mariko and her family are sent to Japan. Their friendship was such a realistic and wonderful part of this book. Though the book centers on Elise and her life, with much of it occurring after she and Mariko are separated, their friendship is an always-present backdrop to Elise’s life.

I found this to be an incredibly important novel, because it really helped me gain insight into what people may have experienced at that time, for no other reason than where they were born or even where their parents were born. Elise is condemned in America for her German heritage, but things are not necessarily easier in Germany where she is viewed as an American.

This is a rare book that will appeal to so many different audiences. Fans of historical fiction will obviously love it, but I also think many fans of women’s fiction and YA will enjoy it. Elise and Mariko are quite progressive for young girls in the 1940s, and they are fantastic characters. There is even a bit of romance that will make a lot of readers happy!

Thank you to Berkley for my copy. Opinions are my own.

This book is fantastic. I love Susan Meissner's writing so much. Historical Fiction educates as well and entertains and Meissner is a master of both. Internment camps are a harrowing part of history but also quite present in 2019.
A quite rewarding story of friendship, love, family and what it means to be an immigrant child/family.
I highly recommend this book and any books written by this wonderful author.

2.5 stars rounded up
I wanted to read this because of the importance of the subject matter. The internment of innocent people, many of whom were America citizens during WWII and the affect of that on families, a sad and shameful part of our history that is not often talked about. Up front, I have to say that overall I was disappointed. It just doesn’t measure up to other books that I’ve read dealing with the internment camps - Snow Falling on Cedars and When the Emperor Was Divine. Something was lacking for me at first . Maybe it was that the writing is too straight forward and lacked a way of pulling me in emotionally. The writing got better half way in and I was emotionally drawn in, but then the story turned into a soap opera of sorts in my view and I lost that emotional connection. There are some redeeming things about this that deserve to be noted.

Elise Sontag is a young German American girl and she and family are held in an internment camp along with other families - German as well as Japanese and a smaller number of Italians. The feeling of loss, of displacement, of ambivalence for some of the people is depicted well. It was heartbreaking to see what happened to so many families, uprooted from their homes. For Elise’s family, things got even worse when they were sent to Germany in the midst of the war. Here, especially for Elise we see that loss of self, of feeling that she didn’t belong even though she was with family. We also don’t see often the impact of the war on Germans who were not Nazi supporters. The telling of this was not perfect, but there were some things to reflect on concerning this time in history, so 2.5 stars rounded up.

This was a Traveling Sisters group read.

I received an advanced copy of this book from Berkley through NetGalley.

A solid 3 stars for me. "The Last Year of the War" follows Elise Sontag as her family is plucked from their home in Iowa and sent to an internment camp in Texas during WWII. Her father was a German immigrant, having lived in the US for over a decade and never seemed to get around to apply for citizenship. Their internment camp was made up of mostly Japanese Americans and Elise quickly befriended a young japanese girl, Mariko. The quickly developed a deep friendship before both being repatriated back to their homelands of Germany and Japan.

Elise is thrust into a war torn Germany in the last, most brutal year of the war for that country. The family is tossed between the stress of rations, bombings, and Nazi soldiers on an hourly basis. The whole time Elise clings to the hope that Mariko hasn't forgotten here and the two can reunite in their true home, America, when the war is over.

I enjoyed this story, but I just don't think it will stay with me in a profound way. Some of Elise's decisions post war were a bit silly and frivolous to me and I just didn't think it seemed very interesting. I think I would've really enjoyed an alternating storyline following the two girls after they separated from each other; going back and forth between Germany and Japan in the last year of war.

Early in 2018, I picked up a copy of Susan Meissner's breath-taking novel As Bright As Heaven, the story of one family's desperate struggle to survive the influenza epidemic of 1919. It was one of my favorite books of the year, and I've been powering through Ms. Meissner's other novels ever since. Now though, she's come out with something new, and I absolutely cannot wait for the world to fall i love with this devastatingly beautiful piece of writing.The Last Year of the War is the story of Elise Santag, a fourteen-year-old girl, born to German immigrants. She and her family live in Iowa, and Elise has never thought of herself as anything but an American. Sure, her parents were born in Germany, but Elise and her younger brother were both born in America, and know little to nothing about the lives her parents lived in Europe. But when America enters the Second World War, Elise and her family are rounded up and shipped off to an internment camp in Texas. The government believes Mr. Santag is a Nazi sympathizer, and nothing anyone says can change the minds of the people in power.Life in the camp is unlike anything Elise has ever imagined. She and her family are forced to live in something resembling a horse stall, and they're constantly being watched by camp officials. Elise's parents urge her to keep her spirits up, to do whatever she can to live something like a normal life, but Elise isn't sure she can do that. She longs for her home, her friends, and most of all, her freedom.The only bright spot in Elise's new life is her budding friendship with Mariko Inoue, a teenager of Japanese descent whose family is also living in the camp. Together, Elise and Mariko do everything they can to keep their hopes and dreams alive amidst the horrors of camp life. They're not sure what life after the war will look like, but they vow to experience it together, even if their parents might not approve.Unfortunately, Elise and her family are sent back to Germany while Mariko accompanies her own family back to Japan. Neither girl understands the exact circumstances under which they are forced to leave America, but Elise vows to return as soon as she turns eighteen. She hopes to one day be reunited with Mariko, but a series of unforeseen circumstances keep the friends apart for more than fifty years.The Last Year of the War is a lovely homage to the power of true friendship. The author takes an unflinching look at one of the darkest parts of American history, and she manages to imbue her prose with all the pain, hopelessness, and broken dreams those who lived through the war experienced. At the same time, our heroine possesses a core of inner strength that gives this difficult story a sense of hope we don't often see in historical novels set during this time. I imagine this was a difficult balance to strike, but Ms. Meissner makes it look almost effortless.If you're looking for an historical romance, this may not be the book for you. Elise does eventually marry and have children, but her relationship with her husband is not the main focus of this story. Instead, the author concentrates on the unbreakable bond between Elise and Mariko, and the ways their friendship shapes both of their lives.The story deals with some heavy subject matter and as a result, is not at all an easy read. Some readers may find it helpful to step away from the novel for a while in order to better take stock of events, but I urge everyone to at least give the book a try. It's a timely and important story with unforgettable characters and a message of beauty and hope that the world desperately needs to hear.Buy it at: Amazon/Apple Books/Barnes & Noble/KoboVisit our Amazon Storefront

I have only read two novels by Susan Meissner but she is an author that I am constantly following. She has written a number of books with content that is right up my alley, so when this book came up for review, I jumped at another chance to read one of her lovely books!

The subject matter sounded interesting and unique which in of itself would appeal to me but I was also interested in how it was going to unfold. A lot of times war time books are often turned into historical fiction, heavy on the romance. This book sounded like it was going to be more about friendship than romance.

Frankly I wanted something ‘meatier’ and more than just another WWII novel. Now I love a good war time romance, but something like this sounded new and fresh so it was easily a ‘yes’ for me when the book came up for review so many months ago! Not to mention the cover art screams read me!

Summary

Elise Sontag is a typical Iowa fourteen-year-old in 1943–aware of the war but distanced from its reach. Then her father, a legal U.S. resident for nearly two decades, is suddenly arrested on suspicion of being a Nazi sympathizer. The family is sent to an internment camp in Texas, where, behind the armed guards and barbed wire, Elise feels stripped of everything beloved and familiar, including her own identity.

The only thing that makes the camp bearable is meeting fellow internee Mariko Inoue, a Japanese-American teen from Los Angeles, whose friendship empowers Elise to believe the life she knew before the war will again be hers. Together in the desert wilderness, Elise and Mariko hold tight the dream of being young American women with a future beyond the fences (summary from Goodreads).

Review

As a historian, I love all things history—-especially when authors pick up on an untold history. Meissner hits the nail on the head with this one! She couldn’t have picked a better topic! Japanese American Internment Camps are something that I don’t know a whole lot about and I can’t think of a single book that looks at this time in history. It was absolutely captivating!

The historical research done by the author is commendable and will offer readers a new perspective on WWII. This book was a deep and emotional novel and I think shows incredible emotional depth. I could visualize the camps and the characters let off the pages. I loved this book the more that I got into it.

It did start a little on the slow side for me but as I got into the story and characters more, I felt that it dd pick up quite a bit. There is a lot of historical info for the reader to process, but for someone like me—it wasn’t boring. Others might feel that it’s heavy on the history side and perhaps it is, but for me I love historical details and authenticity which Meissner certainly brought to this one.

I think this book is going to be a huge hit. Meissner writes about a topic that is new and refreshing and not just ‘another WWII novel’. It’s memorable, emotional, and elegant. You do NOT want to miss out on this one! Because I loved this book so much, I am giving away a copy over on my Instagram account. Winners will be selected from there so be sure to follow me and come enter my US only giveaway for a hard back copy of this lovely book!

An unexpectedly beautiful historical fiction novel set mainly during the final years of World War II and that focuses a spotlight on a more shameful and less talked about piece of United States history from the perspective of a teenage girl who was born in the US to German immigrant parents. When they are sent to an internment camp in Texas, Elise struggles to find her place as a typical American at the internment camp that is home to not only German detainees, but also a large contingent of Japanese detainees. When Elise meets Mariko, a Japanese-American teen, she finds someone who is navigating the same issues and they are instantly inseparable until both families are repatriated. Elise and Mariko had dreams and plans, and being separated wasn’t going to change them. Elise is determined to make it through the horrors of war-torn Germany and return to the country of her birth and find her best friend.
This was an extremely well-researched novel, and I enjoyed how the author took the reader on Elise’s journey. The details, descriptions, and emotions were, I think, even more effective as experienced from Elise’s point of view. A teenager already has so many issues while searching for their identity; I can’t imagine dealing with the additional ones Elise faced with the war and her family’s ethnicity and the path they were forced to take.
This was my first time reading a novel by Susan Meissner. I enjoyed the story, her writing style, and the way she developed her characters in the story. It was also interesting to learn more about parts of history that aren’t as well-known. If you enjoy historical fiction, I definitely recommend picking up this novel.
#TallPoppyWriters #BloomReads #TheLastYearoftheWar

I am a WWII fan. I love the era, I love the heroes, and I love learning about life in the USA during the way. With The Last Year of the War I learn about the internment camps and then I got the bonus of learning about life in Germany as a US citizen while the war was still going on.

Elise Sontag is a wonderful character. Even as a child she had such great insight into what was going on in the world. She saw more than she should have, lived a tougher life that she deserved, and still managed to thrive in a time when nothing was easy. When her life was uprooted she stayed strong for a mother who was not able to, cared for her brother, and did her best to keep life happy and easy for her family. She quickly made friends with a Japanese-American, Mariko Inoue, which was unique since most children in the internment camp stayed with “their own kinds”. I found it interested how much the girls had in common, how much they enjoyed each other’s company, all while having such a different upbringing. It showed how much a teenage girl has in common with other teenage girls, no matter what their backgrounds are.

The Last Year of the War is an amazing historical fiction book. It is the perfect WWII story, with the telling of life in internment camps, life in Germany during the war, and how life after the war was over was still affected by what happened during the war. It is powerful, it is emotional, and it is an incredible journey.

A beautiful story of frienship, war, lost and finding wings to fly free. I love historical fiction and learning new things. I knew about the internment camps in the U.S. What I did not know was that Germans were sent there along with people sent to the U.S.from other countries. This story was well researched and beautifully written. Thank you Netgalley for the advance reader copy.

A heartbreaking tale about the atrocities of war, and one girl who never allowed the cruelty of war to break her spirit!

It never ceases to amaze me how tragic, horrifying, and devastating war is! This was my very first book from Susan Meissner, but will definitely not be my last! This book completely captivated me, I was fully invested in the lives of all these characters from first page to last. I did have prior knowledge of the Japanese internment camps during WWII, however I did not realize that we also sent Germans to these camps. I also did not realize that we sent German people living in America back to Germany in the midst of war, that is truly horrifying! This is really a part of our history that we as Americans seem to avoid acknowledging. It certainly does not appear to be in any history book I’ve ever seen? OK I just asked my kids and they do teach it now, however back in the day when I was in school this was not ever brought up, so that’s something. It is definitely a dark time in our country‘s history. This is one of the reasons why I love books so much, they always have something to teach you. More times than not they give you a little nugget of knowledge to walk away with that you didn’t already possess.

Elise is an American citizen, born in America and has lived in America her entire life. her parents are legal residence of the United States, however her father is falsely thought to be a Nazi sympathizer and ultimately the family is sent to an internment camp in Texas. While at the internment camp Elise befriends a Japanese American girl, Mariko. The girls form a tight bond and it is this friendship and the hopes and dreams that come from it that will help Elise through the toughest and darkest of days. When Elise‘s family is sent back to Germany to endure the last year of the war. It is the hope that she will one day be reunited with her friend in America that Elise clings to like a lifeline. And over 70 years later Elise still clings to the bond that ultimately leads to the friends reunion.

Elise really completely stole my heart in this book. She was a brave, smart, resourceful young lady, with a strong spirit. Her story was so disturbing and devastating, it definitely broke my spirit at times. I really loved the friendship between Elise and Mariko, but I have to say my one complaint about the book is that we did not see what happened to Mariko after the internment camp. Maybe this is in a future book? I guess I felt so much was made out of this friendship and then it just wasn’t there anymore? It was almost as though Elise was hanging onto a ghost. However this did not hinder my enjoyment of this book. Although it is hard to say I enjoyed a book that was so real and raw and at times depressing. War is brutal and this book really brought that to life.

A riveting story about an exceptional girl Who grows into a remarkable woman, who I will not soon forget! Absolutely recommend!

*** many thanks to Berkley for my copy of this book ***

The Last Year of the War
The Last Year of the War by Susan Meissner
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Susan' Meissner's most recent novel The Last Year of the War is a heart-wrenching story told by the main character Elise Dove who is nearing the end of her life. Her story depicts the little known story of German-Americans who were place in internment camps during World War II. Elise's story is unique as she becomes best friends with a Japanese-American girl who is also in the internment camp. The impeccably researched story tells Elise's life as she leaves the internment camp and then lives the remainder of her life. A twist in this story is that the main character has recently been diagnosed with Alzheimer's and she has given a name to the disease which she describes as thief stealing her memories.

The Last Year of the War stands out among the many novels set during World War II due to the unique vantage point from which the story is told. We often think of the internment camps as focusing solely on Japanese-Americans. Meissner brings another aspect of these camps and the horrendous civil rights abuses of this time period to the forefront.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received the book The Last Year of the War via NetGalley. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book in return for an honest review.

This is historical fiction at its finest. The writing flowed without disconnect, the story was moving and I learned a bit along the way. The ending I didn’t much like, but after pondering it for a day, it’s reality. And reality isn’t always pleasant or comfortable.

The story begins with our introduction to our narrator, Elise, a woman who knows she is nearing the end of her life. Elise is a plucky old lady, and I liked her instantly. There is someone from her past, Mariko Inoue, that Elise would like to see before it is too late. Elise and Mariko met as 14 year old teenagers when their families were sent to an internment camp in Crystal City, Texas. For some reason, I thought the book would be much more about the friendship between these two. It’s not, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing, but if you are reading the book with that assumption, you might be disappointed. It is much more Elise’s story alone.

Back to the story. Elise’s parents emigrated to the U. S. two decades earlier from Germany and are legal residents, but they never finalized their citizenship status. When World War II breaks out and Elise’s father is branded a Nazi sympathizer, Elise’s world will never be the same. In Crystal City, Elise finds friendship with Mariko, a U. S. citizen born to Japanese emigrants. Elise and Mariko believe that life will return to normal, and plan their futures together. But during the last year of the war, each family is repatriated and the young women lose touch with each other. Elise then tells us what happened to her family once they reach Germany. I will say that there was a big plot twist that I didn’t see coming.

If you like historical fiction, or WWII stories in general, this book is for you. The book’s themes touch on coming of age, friendship, love and family, amidst the adversities of WWII.

This book is marvelous but be prepared to cry. Susan Meissner has written about a period of time that is too often forgotten as the years roll by. Following the bombing at Pearl Harbor and the atrocity of the Holocaust, those who immigrated to America from Japan, Germany or Italy were relocated to camps. A sad time that is seen through the eyes of two girls, Elise and Mariko who, despite different nationalities, become best friends.
I absolutely adored As Bright as Heaven, Meissner's previous book but found this one even better. (How is that even possible???) There is so much sorrow and loss in this book but always that sliver of hope that things will revert back to normal.
What, exactly, is normal during a time like that?
Is it possible to be friends when it seems as though the world is saying you shouldn't be simply because of your nationality?
What are the chances that the two girls will hold fast to a friendship that saw them through a dark time in their young lives? What toll have the passing years made upon each that will impact them?
This book demands to be read, savored and taken to heart. History needs to be known in order not to have the same mistakes made again.
Bravo, Susan Meissner, for writing such an exceptionally beautiful novel!
I received an Advance Review Copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

The Last Year of the War is an amazing story which taught me a bit about US history that I knew little or nothing about. I knew of the Japanese people being moved to internment camps during the war but was unaware that Germans were as well. Susan takes that bit of history and weaves a beautiful tale of two girls from different backgrounds, who become life-long friends while living in the camp.

Circumstances pulled them in different directions but the friendship bond remained even though they didn't see or hear from each other for years. Life was hard for Elise and Mariko as they grew into womanhood, surviving the war the best way that they could.

This is a wonderful story—a story that was kind of hard to read sometimes as their lives got hard. This tale drew me in from the very start as I fell in love with these two girls and as I watched their friendship and lives unfold.

Elise is an American with German parents. Mariko is an American with Japanese parents. These two girls develop a friendship in a most unlikely place, an internment camp in Texas. Both Mariko and Elise had to put their lives on hold and basically lose everything to go into the camp. Their friendship is about the only highlight in their lives. Then Elise and her family are exchanged for POWs. They are shipped back to war torn Germany. Mariko’s family is shipped back to Japan. Their lives change forever and they lose touch for many, many years.

The path Elise’s life took, through no decisions of her own, is really amazing. She is accustomed to the life of a young American girl and then she is shipped to Germany. She has to adjust to no food, bombing raids, and terror in her everyday life. She is torn away from her only friend, and Elise has no idea if Mariko is alive or dead. Then her life changes again when she meets a young GI.

This book takes you on a ride you won’t soon forget. There is so much I want to tell y’all about this book. This is a well written, well researched, historical tale about friendship, tragedy and human spirit. There are actually parts of this book I would love to quote. A fantastic read is an understatement.

I received this novel from Berkley Publishing via Netgalley for a honest review.

The Last Year of the War by Susan Meissner takes readers back to 1943. Elise Sontag was living in Davenport, Iowa with her father, mother and little brother, Max when World War II began. Her parents were born in Germany, but they emigrated to the United States in the 1920s. Then one day the FBI come to their home and arrested her father stating he was a risk to national security since he is a German sympathizer and the family assets were frozen. To keep the family together, Otto Sontag requests that the family be sent to an internment camp. They arrive in Crystal City, Texas were everything they need is inside the camp which is surrounded by armed guards, a tall fence and barbed wire. The Japanese-Americans outnumber the other internees of German and Italian descent. Elise becomes friends with Mariko Inoue from Los Angeles. They have much in common and dream of the future when they can be free to live their lives. Having a friend makes life bearable at the camp. But then something unexpected happens and the two girls are separated. Learn what happens to Elise and Mariko in The Last Year of the War.

The Last Year of the War has an interesting premise about families interned in a camp during World War II. I like that we get to experience it from a young girl’s perspective. Elise and Mariko were both born in the United States. They enjoy the latest music, going to the movies, chatting with their girlfriends and eating Twinkies. Suddenly, their lives are forever changed. They are taken away from their homes, their friends and extended family and thrust into a new world. They live in small apartments without showering facilities, but there are shops, vegetable gardens, different types of schools, a pool and other amenities. They have everything they need except the freedom to leave. I found it intriguing to learn the details of internment camps (information not included in history class). We get to see how people’s lives changed overnight and how they had no control over their future. I found The Last Year of the War to be well-written with developed characters. I did find the pace to be on the slow side. The story alternates between 2010 and the past. Just when you get involved in the past, we jump back to the present (and vice versa). It was a little disconcerting. I would then have to remember where we left off in the past and what had happened. When I finished the story, though, I could see why the author laid it out in this manner. The author captured the time period especially with her descriptions of the devastation in Germany. I can tell that she did her research for this novel (very evident). I especially appreciated the information she included at the end of the book (author’s note). I wish there had been more emotion in the story. That is the one thing it lacked. The Last Year of the War is a good book, but it is not my favorite by this author (Lady in Waiting and The Shape of Mercy are two of my favorites). I am giving The Last Year of the War 4 out of 5 stars. Those readers who love historical fiction will find The Last Year of the War to be a compelling novel. The Last Year of the War is a story of hope, friendship, promises and staying true to ourselves.

Elise Sontag is a German American teenager living in Iowa during World War 2. Her parents have lived in the US for twenty years but are not legal citizens. While the war in Europe is escalating, her father is arrested and charged with being a Nazi sympathizer. Rather than being seperated, the entire family is interned at a government camp in Crystal City, Texas.

Life at the camp becomes bearable when Elise befriends Mariko Inoue, a Japanese American girl from California. They become close while spending all their free time together. Together they plan for a future in New York City with a fresh start and new careers. These plans get put on hold when Elise’s family is sent to back to Germany in a prisoner exchange.

The Last Year Of The War by Susan Meissner is an emotional journey of a young girl growing up during wartime. This story is touching as Elise makes one last effort to rekindle a friendship broken by time. I really enjoyed this novel.

Last year, I read and thoroughly enjoyed Meissner’s book, As Bright As Heaven, so I had some pretty high hopes for this one! And while I did enjoy this one, it reminded me too much of a book that I read last year by Monica Hesse, The War Outside, which shares the Crystal City setting and a friendship of young detainees from opposite sides of the alien enemy camp. The two authors clearly used a lot of the same research material, as there are several identical incidents that take place in both books.

But Hesse’s novel is aimed at the YA audience, while Meissner’s book is targeted for adult readers. The two books differ in perspective as well, with the YA book alternating perspectives of the two girls and Meissner’s being largely from only Elise’s perspective and at a bit of a remove with it opening in 2010 and the distance of perspective as she desperately recalls her life in the aftermath of an Alzheimer’s diagnosis. Born in Davenport, Iowa, Elise’s world is shaken when her German-born father is arrested and eventually the whole family is relocated to the interment camp in Texas. She strikes up an unlikely friendship with Mariko, a Japanese-American girl from Los Angeles. Both girls end up re-patriated – but Elise is taken to Germany in the titular last year of the war. Perhaps because of the more distant perspective, Elise’s life takes on a much more telling than showing feel to it overall and this makes it harder to connect more emotionally to her. Elise’s naivety, despite her tumultuous surrounds can also be frustrating at times.

The last section of the novel, detailing her return to America, marriage and entrance into a Hollywood family almost feels like the plot of a different novel altogether. The friendship that is built as the backbone of the book isn’t quite strong enough to prop up this storyline. I really wanted to like this one more, but it was just too predictable to me and the pacing dragged in places. Maybe had I not read and enjoyed The War Outside so much, I would have been more impressed with this one. But, I never felt connected to the characters. I think that WWII has become a tougher backdrop for fiction to feel really fresh, and while I did feel that the section set in Germany was more unique, Elise’s sheltered nature detracted from the book too much for me. Still, I am looking forward to seeing what Meissner will write next!

If historical fiction is your jam, or you want to know more about the WWII US internment camps, or you’ve known someone who has struggled with Alzheimer’s, this book will deliver. Meissner's elegant prose and historical details offer insight into the fear, pain, and hatred American-born children of immigrant parents experienced during WWII. You’ll ask yourself what makes you an American and who determines your identity? This book offers a little known perspective from the war and it is harrowing, heartbreaking and entirely human. Elise Sontag, a German-American teenager in Iowa in 1943 struggles with her family's internment at a TX camp because her father is a suspected Nazi sympathizer (despite being an American citizen for decades.) She bonds immediately with a Japanese-American girl at the camp but then life cartwheels again when both girls' families are exchanged for American prisoners behind enemy lines back to their parents' native countries. Life in war torn Germany is harrowing, devastating, and everything they never imagined.
Highly recommend this title!
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There's an old saying, "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." This quote, written over one hundred years ago, is attributed to philosopher George Santayana. When I read the gripping historical novel, The Last Year of the War, by Susan Meissner, I couldn't help but think how timely her story was.

Written from the viewpoint of a fourteen-year old girl forced to live in an internment camp, this book brings to light the mistreatment of some German-Americans during WWII. With strong historical details, and heartbreaking characters, this novel seized my attention, and did not let go. I only wish the book was a little longer.

What I Liked:

Settings:
The settings of the internment camp, Germany in the midst of WWII, and post-war California are full of details that put me in the character's shoes. The author does an excellent job of using all the senses (sounds, taste, smell, touch) that bring a moment to life. You can tell that she did extensive research on each setting.

Characters:
Elise:

I loved the journey that Elise takes throughout this book. Starting as a teen where she has no control, we see her evolve to a point where she gets to decide for herself what will make her happy. I liked that she realized that she was relying on others to rescue her, and determined that she could rescue herself.

Elise's Parents:
I liked that both of Elise's parents, Otto and Freda were fully formed characters. When they were repatriated back to Germany, Otto and Freda were mortified for their children and racked with guilt. Yet Otto looked forward to returning to his birthplace.

Female Friendship:
I loved the bonds that formed between Elise and Mariko, her fellow American-born internee. These are two girls who saw each other as just American teenagers, not German or Japanese. They shared dreams about the future, and helped each other when their families went through tensions.

Relevance to Current Events:
While I don't want to get too political in a book review, I couldn't help but draw parallels between what happened in the book and what is happening to some immigrant families in the United States today. I was appalled that Elise, an American citizen who doesn't speak German, could be forced to leave the U.S. Similar situations are occurring right now.

Message:
The message of the book, that everyone is trying to find where "home" is, resonates with me. Some people, like Elise's father, identify with a specific physical location, such as his childhood vision of Germany. Other people are more connected to specific people. Elise feels she could call anywhere home if Mariko were there. Perhaps it is the struggle of youth to figure that out for oneself?

What I Was Mixed About:
We never do find out the true reasons why a certain character wants to marry Elise. I wish the author would have been more clear about this person's motivations, as they really affected Elise's self-confidence (please excuse my own vagueness, as I don't want to put spoilers in this review).

I also wanted to have more Mariko in the book. She had an equally compelling story that I think should have been explored more. I do understand though. Elise, and what happens to her, is the main focus of the book.