In the midst of World War II, a German-American family finds themselves stranded in Japan in this inspiring tale of an extraordinary family adapting to the hazards of fate, and finding salvation in each other. In the spring of 1941, seven-year-old Hildegarde Ercklentz and her family leave their home in New York City and set off for their native Germany, where her father has been recalled to the … has been recalled to the headquarters of the Commerz & Privat Bank in Berlin. It was meant to be an epic journey, crossing the United States, the Pacific, and Siberia–but when Hitler invades Russia, a week-long stay in Yokohama, Japan becomes six years of quasi-detention, as Hildegarde and her family are stranded in Japan until the war’s end. In this spellbinding memoir, Mahoney recounts her family’s moving saga, from their courage in the face of terrible difficulties–including forced relocation, scarce rations, brutal winters in the Japanese Alps–to their joyous reunion with their German relatives in Hamburg, and their eventual return to New York City in 1950. Richly detailed and remarkably vivid, Journey Interrupted is a story unlike any other–the inspiring tale of an extraordinary family adapting to the hazards of fate, and finding salvation in each other.
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The book was so interesting from start to finish. The fact that it was true made it even more so. The family is magnificent.
I really enjoyed this book. While I wished it had more details of their day-to-day lives, it was very informative and interesting. A point of view of WWII that I hadn’t read or really even considered before.
Fascinating perspective on what is what like to be child during WWII and a stranger in a strange land.
Very detailed accounts of long passed occurrences. Enjoyable!
I enjoyed this book. I had never read a book from the perspective of someone trapped in Japan during the war. While there were many hardships, they were treated much better than I would have expected by the Japanese.
Wonderful review of Really a good history review especially since I lived through this era.
I enjoyed the book and it gave me some insight into life for Europeans in Japan, as well as the difficulties the family had after the war with two of the children being US citizens with the rest of the family still German citizens. But if you are looking for a book that gives historical detail keep in mind that this is a book based on the memories of someone who was a child at the time of WWII. As a result, there is a lot she simply wasn’t aware of.
I loved it!
Extremely interesting. The story of a family of German Origin, with two children born in United States, one in Germany go to visit family in Germany, planning to go across the US to Japan and cross Russia and into Germany in 1941. The story is written by the daughter, who is a young girl at the time. Russia declares war on Germany while they are in Japan, they cannot get passage back to the United States, and end up being in Japan after Pearl Harbor. They are there until peace is declared and then because the parents are German Nationals they are sent to Germany instead of back to New York. Eventually they come back to the U.S., this is the story of their journey. A most informative book of a family caught in wartime.
I very much enjoyed reading this book about the German American family caught far from home during WW11. It is very well written by one of the family members who experienced it. I wholeheartedly recommend it.
Couldn’t put it down. A side to WW11 I had no idea of. Plan to reread it.
This was a most interesting first person account of living through WWII and postwar Germany seen throug the eyes of a young person.
Fascinating! It is so full of authenticity that it is like being with the author during her incredible journey. I loved it! It is a visit into another time and place.
What one can live with and endure. Very emotional and real.
I learned something new about people/families trapped in Japan during WWII. Only 3 stars because the writing was stilted/naive in many ways. I also did not expect there to be so much of the book devoted to the author’s reign as a Rheingold girl and frankly found that boring.
Authors issues were nothing compared to what others suffered
Interesting memoir. I never thought about people caught or stranded in a country when war broke out. My aunt lived in Yokohama in the 60s so the pictures were interesting. I bought the book for her too.
I could not finish this book. While there are parts that were interesting, most of it was boring.
This was a little long winded. But a very interesting story.
Interrupted Journey is the story of a German family working and living in the United States during the beginning of WWII that were recalled by the father’s employer, a large German bank. The family travels across the US from NYC to San Francisco and takes a ship from CA to Japan with the intention to cross Siberia and entering Germany from that direction. Unfortunately, they arrived in Japan just as Hitler declared war on Russia, making it impossible to travel in that direction. After that Japan’s attack on Pear Harbor made it impossible to return to the US, so they were stranded in Japan for the duration, plus. The story is told by the daughter who was quite young as their travels begin and I think much of what she supposedly remembers has been retold to her by older family members. I don’t find that a problem with the story and she did a competent job of relaying the facts about their forced stay and the hardships of terrible cold, poor rations and being constantly spied on. Interestingly, the father continued to receive his salary from the bank–in yen–until the time that Germany surrendered. I am sure this kept them from a far worse situation. The story continues after the war and we discover what happened to the family afterward. What prevents this from being a five-star book is the writing style. The author tells us that this happened and then that happened and then something else happened and the style kept me from being fully engaged with the family’s plight. It is still well worth reading and I recommend this book.