Brings 'american life' into proper prospective. Deeply moving!

An essential read!! An absolutely vital companion read for The Diary of Anne Frank. Tannehill's masterfully written account provides mature readers a beautiful, yet `in your face' experience; sweeping them into time and place as if a permanent fly on the wall. The child Evelyne seems to be always within arm's reach and her life's struggle become a salient, disturbing reality for the reader. Her short lived joys and affections, as well as her suffering, fear, and anguish become those of the reader's. Personally, this book exponentially deepened my own understanding of the East Prussian history, and the devastating effects of the Russian conflict. It provided me knowledge of historical events that I realize now were sadly were absent even in my college History instruction. The reading of this autobiography has provided me as a bridge of knowledge concerning historical events that are seemingly too abandoned and forgotten; I am awed by Evelyne Tannehill's ability to humbly, yet powerfully, bring this part of the past to the surface for re-examination; a true literary gift. This book pulled me out of an ocean of ignorance and now I stand on a firm land of insight.