Abandoned in Berlin

This is a really interesting and informative read.

The true story follows Hilda's investigation into her family and what happened to the property they had owned in Berlin.  It was interesting and harrowing to learn about how these people were persecuted during WWII.

I read this book in one day as it keeps you gripped, wanting to find out what happens and whether there is any justice for this family.

A short biography of a woman who investigated and pursued restitution of her mother's childhood home in Berlin that was lost during World War II. It's a bit of a dry read, the characters themselves don't really develop, and the timeline doesn't seem to progress naturally (there are a few spots where you realize it's been a year later or so). But I found the process of this woman, Hilda, investigating the process of restitution to be interesting enough to continue to read it all the way through. So...only if you find yourself interested in the process of restitution in Germany for a Jewish woman after World War II would I suggest, and rather lightly at that, you consider reading this.

Hilda is Borneo in San Fransico.  She wants to find out more about her family when they her mother lived in Berlin as a child plus the home they lived in.  Hilda had gone to Berlin once before with her mother but it was a painful journey for her mother.  Hilda and a friend help her navigate and slowly discover much about the treatment of her relatives and what happened to the property they owned.  Sadly, much was still to be discovered at the time this book was written.

My interest was in what Hilda had to do to find out what she could.    This is a historically accurate story.  I think it was amazing that Hilda didn’t give up.  This is a book that one may want to read for history or for their own family search of those who lived in Berlin at that time.

Abandoned in Berlin
A True Story
by John R. Cammidge
Gatekeeper Press
Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), Members' Titles
Biographies & Memoirs ,  History
Pub Date 05 Sep 2018


I am reviewing a copy of Abandoned In Berlin Through Gatekeeper Press and Netgalley:


Hilda was born in San Francisco but is horrified to learn the way her Jewish family was treated in Berlin not only before and during the Holocaust but in the 1950’s as well!


Hilda began her investigation on her family after a June 2016 trip to Berlin and she lear of collusion, discrimination and persecution and a failure in West Germany to admit to former crimes.


I give Abandoned In Berlin five out of five stars!