Honestly, I had some bananas I needed to use so found this recipe.
To the book…
I loved this book. How many times have you read about Germany post-WW2 to the fall of the Berlin War? I haven’t which is more reason why I was fascinated with this family’s story. And…if you have read any of my other posts, you know my grandmother was German. The more I can read about life in Germany, the more I understand a side of her I didn’t know before she died.
If you teach the Cold War, I think this is a must read. If you teach Economics, this is a must read. When teaching economic systems, I try my best to describe the two systems. This book includes a multitude of examples I plan to use next time I teach economic systems. Capitalism has its woes (um…sin infiltrates all aspects of life); however, this book provides a stark contrast of the two systems – command and market – by contrasting East Germany and West Germany. Can you imagine being put on a 15-year waiting list to get a car (Czech car that was of better quality than the East German car)? Lucky for one family, their 15-year wait turned into only 13 years! (note sarcasm… seriously. 13 years!).
I no longer teach history but I still incorporate history into all my courses (AP Gov. and AP Macroeconomics). After reading this book, I reflected on what is missing in history classes today, and I realized it is EMPATHY! History is taught through the lens of facts and events but PEOPLE are always part of these historical events. How much better would a child understand the complexities of the Cold War if they were able to read a story like this book – a family who were separated for 40 years? Within history are people – people who feared, people who died, people who survived. The only time I have really injected empathy into a lesson was when I used to teach my Les Miserables curriculum within my Economics course. My students thought Jean Valjean was a real guy from the way I was characterizing him. How would history classes change if teachers stepped away from facts and events and dove deeper into what it meant to live through those events?
Give this book a try, especially if you have German ancestry. I believe it will truly help you grasp an aspect of life that is somewhat difficult to put into words.
