Part detective story, part biography, this is the fascinating tale of Hilmar and Odette, both born illegitimately in Germany before the Second World War, both half-Jewish, both brought up by "Aryan" families. Eric Koch, having discovered that his well-to-do family has two skeletons in the closet (Odette is his half-sister and Hilmar is his step-cousin), embarks on a search into his family history and into the very different fates of these two "Half-Jews" who grew into adults as the Nazi party came to power. Hilmar's ...
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Part detective story, part biography, this is the fascinating tale of Hilmar and Odette, both born illegitimately in Germany before the Second World War, both half-Jewish, both brought up by "Aryan" families. Eric Koch, having discovered that his well-to-do family has two skeletons in the closet (Odette is his half-sister and Hilmar is his step-cousin), embarks on a search into his family history and into the very different fates of these two "Half-Jews" who grew into adults as the Nazi party came to power. Hilmar's adoptive mother discovers he is a Jew, and (despite his being a dutiful, even loving, son) when the opportunity arises denounces him to the Gestapo. Hilmar's increasingly desperate attempts to escape deportation and stay with the woman with whom he has fallen in love prove futile. He finally falls victim to the machinery of oppression and is sent to Auschwitz. By contrast, Odette, never suspecting that she is part-Jewish, ascends the social ladder and comes to hobnob with the Nazi "boheme" in her Berlin salon. To ingratiate himself with the right people, her publisher husband dreams up new forms of propaganda to help the Nazi cause. Hilmar and Odette's parallel stories advance in step through this book, each casting light on the other. And around the fringes of their lives move the spectres of Napoleon, Joseph Goebbels, and Lili Marleen. The narrator's detective tale becomes a third story, as he probes his family's past and explores the shadowy territory where personal uncertainties and frailties meet the implacable sophistry of Nazi ideology.
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Add this copy of Hilmar and Odette: Two Stories From the Nazi Era to cart. $18.04, good condition, Sold by Zoom Books East rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Glendale Heights, IL, UNITED STATES, published 1995 by McClelland & Stewart.
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Seller's Description:
Book is in very good condition and may include minimal underlining highlighting. The book can also include From the library of labels. May not contain miscellaneous items toys dvds etc. We offer 100% money back guarantee and 24 7 customer service.
Add this copy of Hilmar and Odette: Two Stories From the Nazi Era to cart. $18.29, very good condition, Sold by beneton rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Millsboro, DE, UNITED STATES, published 1995 by McClelland & Stewart.
Add this copy of Hilmar and Odette: Two Stories From the Nazi Era to cart. $19.03, very good condition, Sold by ThriftBooks-Reno rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Reno, NV, UNITED STATES, published 1995 by McClelland & Stewart.
Add this copy of Hilmar and Odette Two Stories From the Nazi Era to cart. $21.95, very good condition, Sold by Ainsworth Books rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Sumas, WA, UNITED STATES, published 1995 by McClelland & Stewart.
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Near Fine in Near Fine dust jacket. 0771045573. Only slight wear to book and dust jacket.; DJ in protective Mylar sleeve, unclipped. A bright, solid book.; B&W Photographs; 8.35 X 5.59 X 0.94 inches; 228 pages; "Part detective story, part biography, this is the fascinating tale of Hilmar and Odette, both born illegitimately in Germany before the Second World War, both half-Jewish, both brought up by “Aryan” families. Eric Koch, having discovered that his well-to-do family has two skeletons in the closet (Odette is his half-sister and Hilmar is his step-cousin), embarks on a search into his family history and into the very different fates of these two “Half-Jews” who grew into adults as the Nazi party came to power. Hilmar's adoptive mother discovers he is a Jew, and (despite his being a dutiful, even loving, son) when the opportunity arises denounces him to the Gestapo. Hilmar's increasingly desperate attempts to escape deportation and stay with the woman with whom he has fallen in love prove futile. He finally falls victim to the machinery of oppression and is sent to Auschwitz. By contrast, Odette, never suspecting that she is part-Jewish, ascends the social ladder and comes to hobnob with the Nazi bohème in her Berlin salon. To ingratiate himself with the right people, her publisher husband dreams up new forms of propaganda to help the Nazi cause. Hilmar and Odette's parallel stories advance in step through this book, each casting light on the other. And around the fringes of their lives move the spectres of Napoleon, Joseph Goebbels, and Lili Marleen. The narrator's detective tale becomes a third story, as he probes his family's past and explores the shadowy territory where personal uncertainties and frailties meet the implacable sophistry of Nazi ideology."
Add this copy of Hilmar and Odette: Two Stories From the Nazi Era to cart. $22.95, like new condition, Sold by Books on the Boulevard rated 3.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Sherman Oaks, CA, UNITED STATES, published 1995 by McClelland And Stewart Limited.
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Fine in Fine dust jacket. 0771045573. First Canadian edition.; Author Eric Koch, in searching his family history, found two skeletons in the closet: Odette is his half-sister and Hilmar, his step-cousin, both of them born out of wedlock. Here he relates their stories along with his own detective tale, discovering that both were half-Jewish and what became of them.
Add this copy of Hilmar and Odette: Two Stories From the Nazi Era to cart. $57.41, good condition, Sold by Bonita rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Newport Coast, CA, UNITED STATES, published 1995 by McClelland & Stewart.
