Otto & Daria: A Wartime Journey Through No Man's Land: 4 (Regina Collection) - Hardcover

Praise for Eric Koch's previous historical fiction title Hilmar and Odette: "Eric Koch's brilliant, unique, and moving account has the passion of personal involvement, the clarity of historical observation, and the revelation of archetypal drama. It is a remarkable piece of writing." Adrienne Clarkson, former Governor General of Canada "Mr. Koch's amazing story, movingly and skillfully told, once again proves that truth can be stranger than fiction, especially in dark times such as Europe in the thirties and forties. It takes a good deal of imagination, background knowledge, psychological understanding, and the talent of a born writer to carry it off. Mr. Koch has done so triumphantly." Walter Laquer, Center for Strategic & International Studies, Washington, DC "A sensitive and stylish account of how one man has been able to disentangle the lives of men and women living in Germany in the years before and during the Nazi period. One seldom encounters a memoir that is more worthy, more admirable, more compelling, or more understanding." John Robert Colombo, author and anthologist

A poignant memoir of lives cleaved by war, Otto and Daria is the first-hand account of Eric Koch, a man who once was called Otto. As a Jewish refugee from WWII Germany, Otto first left his country for England, and later arrived in Canada, where he was for a time imprisoned in a camp. The counterpoint to Otto's recollections are the letters from his long-distance love interest, Daria Hambourg, a London girl of bohemian temperament, unusual literary talents and a distinguished, but restrictive, family background. These parallel writings tell the story of two young people caught in the grip of history, and together show what you have to give up in order to move forward.