- Paperback: 314 pages
- Publisher: Trafford Publishing (Nov 16 2007)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1425134009
- ISBN-13: 978-1425134006
- Product Dimensions: 22.9 x 15.2 x 1.8 cm
- Shipping Weight: 408 g
- Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #379,909 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Details |
Product Description
Product Description
Exile from Latvia is the story of a young boy's experiences before, during and after World War II, told endearingly, to touch the heart.
Driven from his beloved Latvia by the Soviet Army, Harijs' family flees to Germany in the hope of being captured by the advancing American forces. The family experiences hardships of all kinds - hunger, homelessness and air raids. They brush with death many times in many ways and their life is often punctuated with misunderstandings, both humorous and tragic. Presumed guilty they must prove their innocence. The continuous migration causes Harijs to lose friends constantly. These experiences shape Harijs' life, surprisingly, in a positive way, especially in the Displaced Persons' camp under dedicated teachers and scoutmasters. There are lighter moments as young Harijs discovers girls, often handling the developing attraction in awkward though humorous ways, eventually touching the heartstrings of a girl tenderly. There is laughter, love, grief, tears and longings of the heart. Finally the anticipation of an unexpected future replaces the memories of cruelty, atrocity, hate, betrayal, misunderstandings, ignorance and fear with commitment to meet the future with confidence. During the war years Harijs made friends only to lose them. He will not lose you. You'll move alongside him through the first-person escapades of a pre-teen boy looking for answers in a senseless world.
Driven from his beloved Latvia by the Soviet Army, Harijs' family flees to Germany in the hope of being captured by the advancing American forces. The family experiences hardships of all kinds - hunger, homelessness and air raids. They brush with death many times in many ways and their life is often punctuated with misunderstandings, both humorous and tragic. Presumed guilty they must prove their innocence. The continuous migration causes Harijs to lose friends constantly. These experiences shape Harijs' life, surprisingly, in a positive way, especially in the Displaced Persons' camp under dedicated teachers and scoutmasters. There are lighter moments as young Harijs discovers girls, often handling the developing attraction in awkward though humorous ways, eventually touching the heartstrings of a girl tenderly. There is laughter, love, grief, tears and longings of the heart. Finally the anticipation of an unexpected future replaces the memories of cruelty, atrocity, hate, betrayal, misunderstandings, ignorance and fear with commitment to meet the future with confidence. During the war years Harijs made friends only to lose them. He will not lose you. You'll move alongside him through the first-person escapades of a pre-teen boy looking for answers in a senseless world.
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Most helpful customer reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
a must read,
By
This review is from: Exile From Latvia: My WWII Childhood - From Survival to Opportunity (Paperback)
The last page of Exile From Latvia comes much too soon and one can only hope that the author will continue his story in a sequel. Exile From Latvia glimpses at the war torn world out of the eyes of a young, innocent schoolboy. You will find yourself loving 'Harijs' and you will be astounded at the very positive and optimistic view of life he conveys. He has a maturity and a love of life that reaches out and touches the hearts of adults - those back then and all of us, his readers. Written in narrative prose this book is not about the war and it is not about suffering. Exile From Latvia is truly only about survival and winning ~ physical, emotional and spiritual. Let Harry lead you on his difficult journey from survival to opportunity! A must read!
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta) Amazon.com:
4.2 out of 5 stars (4 customer reviews) 4 of 5 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Stolen Innocence,
By Vilnis Neilands - Published on Amazon.com
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Exile From Latvia: My WWII Childhood - From Survival to Opportunity (Paperback)
Considering the topic, Mr Kapeikis presents an enjoyable read of a boy wandering into adulthood, with the usual trials, troubles, moments of happiness and even titillation. Though the sequential loss of the totality of ones reality, bit by painful bit, can overwhelm and sour, Mr Kapeiks hold such at bay with his delightful well chosen rememberances, descriptions and anecdotes of his d.p. days. It is an enjoyable read despite the underlying horrors he had to endure.Particularly I enjoyed the apparent similarities among boys growing up which brought frequent smiles to my face, including the headlong plunge across the handlebars and torn up knees. The Boy Scout stories, the awakening interest in yucky girls, religion, education, and tenacity of holding on to ones heritage and culture all reawakened reveries of my past. Those times all seemingly funneling to Bremerhaven and the ultimate travail and the gateway to all our new realities. Mr. Kapeikis description of that trip does absolute justice to the otherworldly insanity of what "coming over on the boat" in a converted Liberty ship was really like. Only someone that experienced it could do it justice. Abject misery, wallowing terror, interspersed with ubiquitous voluminous wretching that was so outside the norms of everyday civility that now in a retro-spective and perverse way seems funny beyond words. Yet at the time it was the ultimate test of will to see whether we all were truly worthy of becoming Americans. I look forward to his sequel where one presumes he will reveal his melting pot years, immersion and search for identity in the blending of cultures I recommend this book. It was well worth the money and time. 4 of 5 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
"Let Freedom Ring",
By Varis - Published on Amazon.com
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Exile From Latvia: My WWII Childhood - From Survival to Opportunity (Paperback)
I had an intense interest in reading this book from its title EXILE FROM LATVIA. Having been born in Riga, Latvia, in 1942, I have no memories of Latvia, because I was too young when fleeing from Latvia at the age of one with my parents for the same reasons as Harry Kapeikis. Having lived in Fishbach Displaced Persons (DP) Camp (Germany) from 1944-1949, I had many similar life experiences as Harry describes in his book, but only at a younger age. Harry describes vividly the struggles for survival, fears, and dangers in fleeing to unknown destinations during and after WW II. It was sad to read about Harry losing contact with many friends with the constant relocations during/after the war years. One such friend of Harry's was Vija, whom Harry met in Germany and accompanied him to the land of the free in 1949. She was very special to him as teenagers, but they went their separate ways upon arriving in the US each departing with their parents. I recommend this book to anyone with ties to any Latvian/Americans or anyone having an interest in wartime struggles of refugees during this period. Reading this book is an excellent educational experience. I look forward to Harry's sequel to EXILE FROM LATVIA.
6 of 8 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Memories of times gone by,
By Paul Dermanis - Published on Amazon.com
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This review is from: Exile From Latvia: My WWII Childhood - From Survival to Opportunity (Paperback)
I found the book very interesting, since my experiences at the end of the Second World War were similar to Harry's. We both arrived in the United States at the same time. In fact, I met Harry and his family in Tacoma about 60 years ago. He writes that he is working on a sequel to his book; I am certainly looking forward to it.
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