Wonderful read. Couldn’t put this down, writing was excellent, nice straightforward descriptions that read easily. The characters were interesting, I found myself very vested in them and what was happening to them and the story itself was gripping

There is an incredible story told here. As a work of historical fiction, partially based on true events, author Michael Reit has created an important work with his debut novel. The story and the characters are fascinating. I really loved the look in to the resistance work, as it is one aspect of WWII I have not previously explored as much as I'd liked. As tragic as the real life (and fictional) events were, the true beauty of the human spirit is revealed in the selfless acts of many heroic people hidden from public view. We need to raise up, glorify the common man whose stories deserve to be told. We need to know that there are people all over the world, that fight the good fight, even in the darkest days.

I received a copy from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Hard to believe this was a debut novel! I read a ton of WW2 historical fiction yet this story was able to bring new perspectives and historical details concerning the Holocaust that I have yet to read about in other books. The story was crafted in a unique way in which it focused intently on a certain time/experience of the MC Jacob’s life during the Holocaust then skipped a chunk of time to the next experience in Jacob’s life. The author noted at the end that although Jacob was a fictional character, these historical events were true accounts of what happened to other people during the Holocaust.

The plot was executed well and the writing drew me in. Sadly I can’t say the same for the audio performance. I found the narrator too theatrical and upbeat for the tone of the story, which is why i rated it 4 instead of 5 stars. Towards the end of the audiobook, I was pretty tired of the narrator’s voice and wished I’d requested the ebook instead.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an advanced audio copy in exchange for an honest review.

wonderful narration, wonderful story, intense and well written, really makes you feel you are there. Heartwrenching and moving story.

A WWII story showcasing two Jewish friends, Ethan and Jacob, who experience the war and the Nazi occupation of Germany and Poland. This engrossing storyline kept my attention and stirred my emotions from beginning to end. There are some time jumps in order to encompass a large amount of time, but the author does this wonderfully and you do not feel cheated of detail. The material is heartbreaking and very thorough, incorporating fact and fiction to give the reader a vivid picture of the actual events. There were intense moments and I had a nail-biting experience cheering for these people. I listened to the audiobook and the narrator was fantastic! Each character had a unique voice that set them apart from the rest. It was almost like having a full cast yet it was just one voice. I would highly recommend this book to other readers.

In 1938 Jacob Kagans, his best friend Ethan and their respective parents escape from Berlin as Jewish families begin to disappear from their homes. They find themselves in a Dutch refugee camp, Westerbork.

As The Netherlands fall to the Nazi regime they find their new home transformed into a transit camp, whilst Jakob and Ethan are given roles in the Ordedienst.

The story evolves into a tale of family, friendship, loyalty and an unwavering desire to survive, all while enduring and witnessing some of the worst atrocities in history.

This was a superb audiobook. It had me hooked from the outset.

It is truly astonishing that the events depicted occurred in such recent history.

Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to listen to an ARC.

** ARC provided by Netgalley via the publisher in exchange for an honest review. ***

I really enjoyed this book, I listened as an audiobook and the narrator was really good.

This book is told from the perspective of German Jew Jacob and covers the period of the Second World War. The novel is split into different sections and featured details of the German and particularly the Polish resistance. I really liked hearing that some of the stories in this book are based on real peoples experiences and amazing stories. I'm impressed with this debut novel and will definitely be looking out for more from Michael Reit in the future.

Wow. This was absolutely amazing. I am floored that this is the authors debut novel. It was incredibly well researched and I loved the authors notes at the end, about the real people and places in this story.

I have read a lot of WWII fiction about The Holocaust but this one was unique. Most books I’ve read had some type of romantic element to it, but this one really didn’t. There was definitely love but not the typical or expected kind. I also learned about Westerbork, a Dutch refugee camp turned into a transit camp meant to create false hope for prisoners passing through. The narrator did an amazing job reading this. It was a bit theatrical at first but once I got used to it, it really added to the story. I felt like I was right there with Jacob the whole time. I listened to this entire story in less than 2 days. It was really that good. The story is told over the span of many years but it split up in a way that is easy to follow. The reader journeys from Berlin, Germany at the beginning of the war, to the Netherlands, and eventually to Poland and the death camp of Auschwitz-Birkenau. This was an incredibly powerful read and left me in tears at some points. I can wait to read more from Michael Reit in the future!

Beyond the Tracks is a well-written and researched WWII story. It is based on true events and people, although the author explains that many characters and events were fictionalized for the story. Make sure your read or listen to his notes at the end of the story where he discusses his research, findings and how this book came about.

It's 1938 Berlin and Jacob Kagan, his mother, and father fear they don't have much time. When the Kagan Pharmacy is taken from them they know it is time to leave. They decide to try and get to the Netherlands where they know people. Being lucky to get a train ticket they head West, only to end up in a refugee camp called Westerbork. Living there for several years, they are surviving, working and doing well, until Germany invades and takes control of the camp. It now becomes a transit camp where Europeans, mostly Jewish, are brought to register before heading east to Auschwitz.

I became immersed in this book from the first page. It is realistic, sad, horrific and hopeful. The story is divided into three sections. The first is the escape and settling at Westerbork, then the trip to Auschwitz and finally his work with the Polish Home Army. This is a linear story, but there are gaps in Jacob's story (years covered in a few sentences). This did not cause any problem with the story or my ability to understand the things Jacob had done and how he had survived. The characters in Beyond the Tracks were very credible. Some of the characters were more endearing than others and some were outright cruel, but all made me think about them and their circumstances. Reading about these unsung heroes always gives me faith in humanity, while also reading about how cruel others can be. Michael Reit is presently researching more about the Polish Home Army and I look forward to seeing his next book. I did not know that this resistance group existed, nor that they actually facilitated escapes from Auschwitz. Michael Reit does a wonderful job of weaving real events and characters into this fictionalized story. The audiobook was narrated by Mike Paul. It was quite a theatrical performance and his tone and emotion were wonderful. I could feel the fear and felt that I was with the characters. My one complaint was in order to give the characters individual voices, some of his accents were a bit British sounding. I definitely recommend this book to those who enjoy Historical Fiction, especially WWII.

I received this as an Audio ARC through Netgalley. Beyond The Tracks was an emotional story of Jacob, Ethan and their families escaping Berlin after Kristallnatch. They are are fortunate to make it to the Netherlands, only than for a few years later for the Germans to invade and turn their refugee camp into transit camp. I was in tears once I realized that people had escaped the Nazis to only be taken over buy them years later. While this is a work of fiction, Michael Reit has woven in some remarkable true stories. I don't want to spoil anything for anyone reading this review, but you will be shocked.

Starting in Berlin 1938, Jacob Kagan and his parents and friends are conscious of the rise of Nazi power and decide to leave for the relative safety of Holland. Their relief is short lived as the refugee camp is transformed in a transit camp to house those being transported to Concentration camps.

I wouldn't normally read 'historical fiction' but having been deeply moved by Heather Morris's trilogy of Concentration camp 'inspired by memoirs' books felt this would be an interesting choice for my first audiobook.

This one felt like historical fiction, rather than 'inspired by memoir', it didn't have that fragile life affirming balance of despair and hope, and it failed to really capture my emotions.

In the second half it really picks up dramatically, as the Resistance get involved, adding some real tension, as well as as aspect I've not encountered in the other Holocaust novels I've read.

I occasionally found the character voices irritating and distracting, particularly Herman, a pharmacist and father of Jacob. Herman sounded like Ray Winstone while his son sounded more like Hugh Grant. Also Jan, the Dutch farmer with the vaguely Somerset accent.

I really don't understand why the author left it so late to introduce the Resistance element, not only is it the most dramatic and tense part, it is also (if you listen to the author's notes) the section involving real people from history, Jacob and family being fictional creations.

I would rate it as 3.5*, rounded up to 4*, 3* for the first 60% and 4*+ for the section involving the Resistance.

Thanks to Netgalley and Michael Reit, IBPA

𝘏𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘸𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘮𝘦𝘴𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘻𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘱𝘶𝘵 𝘥𝘰𝘸𝘯!

I have read many books about WWII, and each one of them have left an impact, this book was no exception. Based on true events this beautiful, heartbreaking and inspiring story captured me completely.
Beautifully written, a fantastic read!

Thank you NetGalley, Michael Reit and Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA) for this ALC.

𝘙𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘪𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦: 𝘏𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘍𝘪𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘞𝘞𝘐𝘐, 𝘏𝘰𝘭𝘰𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘵, 𝘐𝘯𝘴𝘱𝘪𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴.

https://www.instagram.com/booksandcoffeemx/

Audiobook Review: Beyond the Tracks by Michael Reit
Mike Paul (Narrator)
Published by the Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), June 1, 2021

★★★★☆ (4.0 Stars)

Audiobook narration: Commendable effort by Mike Paul, although his "Queen's English" does appear out of place in this WW2-era, continental novel replete with German, Dutch and Polish characters.

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Author Michael Reit's "Beyond the Tracks" is a well-researched Holocaust fiction from the perspective of protagonist Jacob Kagan, a German Jew, son of a established Berlin pharmacist, which takes the reader back to the horrors of "Kristallnacht" (or the Night of Broken Glass in November, 1938, viewed as a prelude to Hitler's "Final Solution"), followed by a daring escape to the Netherlands by the Kagan family where they are settled by the Dutch at Kamp Westerbork, initially a refugee camp turned, after the Nazi occupation, to a train transit staging encampment for Jews enroute to Polish concentration camps.

At Westerbork, Jacob becomes a "kapo", a Nazi prisoner functionary and enforcer, until inevitably, in the poetic words of Martin Niemöller, "...they came for him...".

Ex-Nazi kapo Jacob gets condemned and loaded like cargo onboard the holocaust express, and beyond all odds, escapes from the train, and joins the Polish resistance, "Armia Krajowahe".

"Beyond the Tracks", he finds his way to Auschwitz-Birkenau...

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Engaging unputdownable with credible references to historical events, spiced with an intriguing fictional depiction of an actual infiltration and escape from Auschwitz, according to the author.

Review based on an audiobook ARC from the Independent Book Publishers Association, the Book Whisperer and NetGalley.

This was a well written book and the narrator was one of the best I have ever heard! Following Jacob and Ethan's journey from Berlin to the Netherlands to Poland was both sad and hopeful. It's still so hard to believe how cruel the Germans were to the Jewish people. I highly recommend this audio book!

I listened to this book as an audio. I note that at the start because that may be why this book didn’t deliver for me. It’s not like I have not read or listened to stories of this era and about the holocaust. I’ve read numerous fictional and nonfiction books over the years on this subject matter. This book just didn’t captivate me. I stayed with it loyally so I did give it a good try. I finally was just wanting to get it finished.

My problem with the narration is that while the speaker has a nice voice, he is very British. No offense, but listening to him narrate German, Polish, and Dutch characters using various British dialects was off-putting. I mean, the character is German and I’m hearing a cockney or a Liverpool accent. It was somewhat comical, but the story was so serious. At one point it sounded like a Dickens story, which would be best for this narrator.

Another concern I had with the book, which is strictly with the author and not the narrator, is in a later chapter when the author has a character mention that a friend may still be alive in Auschwitz if the friend “was smart”. I’ve read enough to know that this type of characterization can be sensitive for those who survived and those who lost their family members. I believe it was the former inmate and psychologist, Bruno Bettelheim or his fellow survivor, Viktor Frankl who discussed this characterization. The point being that savviness, intelligence, cooperation, etc., had little to do with surviving. To say that someone survived because of being “smart” implies that those who did not survive were defective in their strength, intelligence, or desire to live. The nazi concentration camps were death camps and death could occur on the whim of a soldier or officer if not from disease and malnutrition. That lack of predictability added to the daily torture of these people. It’s not a major criticism in terms of the story, but it is something that bothered me when it appeared in this book and I would have hoped the author would have given it greater consideration.

As for the story, if I didn’t generally like it I would have just stopped listening, still it was overall rather weak. The characters were rather wooden, and I never found myself attached to any of them. They just weren’t too believable and when the writer had no further use for them, they just disappeared even for characters that were supposed to be emotionally close to the protagonist. I don't want to give away any plotline, but it seriously went that way. The hero risked his life to look for one person he cared about but he decided that the other person must not have lived so he gave no thought to check on that person. And that's how the author handled it.

But again, is my overall disappointment because of the writing or the narration? I can’t separate them so I give this a 3-star review with the caveat that I might add or subtract a star if I had instead read it. To be honest, though, I'm probably being generous with the rating and it more likely deserves a 2-star.

My review can be found on Amazon, https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/3200075570?pf_rd_r=W78EMSDQD239XA3J5D2F&pf_rd_p=5ae2c7f8-e0c6-4f35-9071-dc3240e894a8&pd_rd_r=da32c6a5-353a-4128-b149-a180066d1d3f&pd_rd_w=fmsH2&pd_rd_wg=qHXEk&ref_=pd_gw_unk

My thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for the chance to listen and review this excellent debut novel by Michael Reit.

Jacob Kagan and his best friend Ethan watch their world crumble around them as his fathers pharmacy is taken over by Nazis and their lives destroyed. They decide to run to the Netherlands and find themselves in a refugee camp, which later becomes a transit camp. Jacob finds a way to become a valued worker in the camp to try to prevent those he loves from being sent away.

Book is based on some true facts, thoroughly researched, well narrated, well constructed story, and delivers the true power of love and friendship and how far one will go for it. I look forward to more from this author.

Beyond The Tracks by Michael Reit
Narrated by Mike Paul
Genre - Historical Fiction
Format - Audiobook
Rating - 5 out of 5 stars
Narration Rating - 2 out of 5 stars

I loved this book but the narration left me feeling a little let down. The narrator was very dry and had only three voices. One for the Nazi’s, one for the Jews, and one for the women. I like when all the voices are just a tad different.

Now with that nastiness done I loved the actually book and storyline. The author brought to light a whole new side of things about the war and especially people who fled Germany before the war even started. In the beginning the main characters have fled Germany years before the war started and are living in a refugee camp. All that changes though.

The Nazi’s get a hold of the refugee camp and turn it into a prisoner camp. While this camp is not a “death” camp they are shipping people to the death camps from it. At first the main character is lucky and is picked as a informal police officer and life is good but as the story goes on and the camp starts to empty the character is eventually sent to Auschwitz but by a miracle escapes the train and joins a resistance movement. While this did happen and the people that he hooks up with are true we have to remember that it is a fiction book.

Be sure to read the author’s note as it explains what is fact and fiction in more detail. Will the main characters survive the war and go on to live happier lives? Well I guess you will have to read/listen to find out. I would suggest reading it rather than listening to the audiobook. I sure would have enjoyed that more than the audiobook!

Michael Reit did a great job at creating a fictional story around a real-life event and people. What I enjoyed most is that he used the Holocaust as a backdrop and really focused on the characters. He kept it simple by providing only the backstory necessary for the story and used the first person narrative which was powerful and full of emotion.The details he did include about the Holocaust were those that affected the characters, keeping the story very focused.

Mike Paul was an excellent narrator.

Highly recommend.

Thank you NetGalley and Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), Members' Audiobooks for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Beyond the tracks is about life for Jewish families during World War 2. Jacob Kagan is only 21 years old when the Jewish people in Berlin start to disappear. He flees Berlin along with his good friend and their parents and find shelter in a Dutch Refugee Camp. Eventually the Netherlands falls to the Nazis and the camp is transformed into a transit camp for individuals bound for the horrors of the Eastern concentration camps. The cruel new SS regime
made many changes when they took over the camp. Jacob was handpicked by the new regime to police the Jewish population. He has compassion for his fellow detainees and is not cruel to them like some of the others. He is also in a position to help his friends and family. This book is the story of unconditional loyalty and a will to survive at impossible odds. If is based on true events. I recommend this book.

Jacob seeks refuge in a Dutch camp, which is soon turned into a transit camp run by the Nazis. He transforms from refugee to guard to prisoner. This story, based on true events, focuses on the risks people took to protect themselves and their family.

I listened to the audiobook and it was definitely a 5 star listen for me. Mike Paul narrates this in a theatrical way that kept me engaged the entire time. I've never had an audiobook keep me on the edge of my seat. This did. It was narrated perfectly.

Beyond that, the story is written so well and the characters are developed beautifully. It's easy to look back with 20-20 hindsight and question some of the decisions people made and the faith they had in the Nazis. This book takes you on a journey through the different stages of Jacob's life in a way that highlights how little was known, why decisions were made, and the moral ambiguity behind a lot of the decisions. It was full of perfectly structured one-liners that deeply made me feel the gravity of the situation Jacob was in. I like that this isn't a chick-lit version of the Holocaust. It's not romance-driven. It's not written to shock the conscience. It's written to show the unjust actions of the German Nazis, the bravery of people who didn't know the severity of what was coming, the strength of loyalty, and the moral ambiguity felt among the victims of this tragedy. I also appreciate how much research and thought Michael Reit put into telling lesser-known stories of such incredible people.

This is a phenomenal debut novel by Michael Reit. I have read countless books about the Holocaust and spent months studying the Holocaust in Germany and Poland, yet I still learned stuff in this book. I highly recommend.

Thank you #NetGalley for the audiobook of #BeyondTheTracks in exchange for my honest review.