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The History Book Club discussion
THE SECOND WORLD WAR
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WE ARE OPEN - WEEK THREE - MILITARY SERIES: HANNS AND RUDOLF - May 26th - June 1st - Chapter(s) Four and Five: 4: Hanns, Berlin, Germany, 1928 and 5: Rudolf, Berlin, Germany, 1928 (44 - 71) No Spoilers, Please
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However if we discuss folks outside the scope of the book or another book is cited which is not the book and author discussed then we do have to do that citation according to our citation rules. That makes it easier to not disrupt the discussion. Thought that I would add that.
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Chapter Four - 4: Hanns, Berlin, Germany, 1928
In Chapter Four, the author details Hanns life in Berlin beginning in 1928. His life was affluent and Doctor Alexander could even afford a weekend getaway, servants, a fancy car. Hanns life was exposed to powerful people through his father and the twins prepared for their bar mitzvahs.
Chapter Five - 5: Rudolf, Berlin, Germany, 1928
In Chapter Five, Rudolf finds himself in the same city as Hanns but under very different circumstances - he had just been released from prison. Rudolf did not know what to do with himself - he felt down deep that he might want to work on a farm. He met his future wife. Later he traveled to a League Convention and ran into Himmler. Rudolf's boss suggested that they establish a stable on the Pomeranian farm for the SS. Unfortunately to manage the stable for his employer, Rudolf had to join the SS. There he ran into Himmler and Himmler wanted him to become a soldier again and forget his dream for awhile. Rudolf was very torn about this decision - they needed the money and Himmler wanted him to train as a supervisor at Dachau. He met Theodor Eicke - the Kommandant of Dachau. Rudolf was appointed "black supervisor" and soon had doubts about his position. He pondered whether to return to his life as a farmer. Promotions came. Rudolf was able to spend time with his family away from his position and never discussed the job that took him away from farming. He was transferred to Sachenhausen and became an adjutant to the Kommandant of the camp. He was now further away from the prisoners themselves. However, he had to execute a colleague for a lapse in protocol. This upset Rudolf greatly - yet he followed through.
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Discussion Questions:
What do we know about young Hanns so far in this book through Chapter Four? And how does Hanns' life and opportunities differ from Rudolf's? Hanns did not seem to be in need of money - opulence surrounded him while Rudolf's existence was starkly different. Was money a factor in Rudolf's decisions so far or were there other factors which pushed Rudolf to make the decisions which he did? Do the readers feel they know Hanns as well as they know Rudolf at this point in the reading?
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Does anybody else sense that Rudolf is like a boat without a rudder and that Hanns' rudder was his father Dr. Alexander? Or do you feel differently?
Also Happy Memorial Day for those in the US:
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Does anybody else sense that Rudolf is like a boat without a rudder and that Hanns' rudder was his father Dr. Alexander? Or do you feel differently?"
Hi Bent..."
One driver for Rudolf it seems was his looking for a mentor or a father substitute (possibly this yearning was something he did not realize) - whereas in the case of Hanns - he had a strong and successful father figure in his own father - Doctor Alexander which helped give him direction in his young life and was someone to look up to.
Rudolf did not seem to have that direction or that figure.
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I think it created the paths..."
I see.
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Libby be careful about only speaking about events up through 71. This is a non spoiler thread. The Q&A by the way is a spoiler thread so you can discuss any element of the book there - but not on the non spoiler threads. We only are discussing up through page 71 on this particular thread.
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Discussion Question:
Do you feel the lack of the emotion love in Rudolf's early life led him to lack empathy with other people not of his own circle? Did these disconnects he experienced make him "feel isolated" when in fact he was not. Why was Rudolf so lonely?
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The twins by the end of Chapter 4 had had their Bar Mitzvah. For those of you who are familiar with this event or may have had a Bar or a Bat Mitzvah yourself - please share what this event meant to you and also possibly extrapolate what this event meant to Hanns and his twin brother?
The following is from Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bar_and_...
According to Jewish law, when Jewish boys become 13 years old, they become accountable for their actions and become a bar mitzvah. A girl becomes a bat mitzvah at the age of 12. Prior to reaching bar mitzvah, the child's parents hold the responsibility for the child's actions. After this age, the boys and girls bear their own responsibility for Jewish ritual law, tradition, and ethics, and are able to participate in all areas of Jewish community life. Traditionally, the father of the bar mitzvah gives thanks to God that he is no longer punished for the child's sins (Genesis Rabba, Toldot 23:11). In addition to being considered accountable for their actions from a religious perspective, b'nai mitzvah may be counted towards a minyan (prayer quorum) and may lead prayer and other religious services in the family and the community.
Bar mitzvah is mentioned in the Mishnah (Ethics of the fathers, 5:21), and in the Talmud. In some classic sources, the age of thirteen appears for instance as the age from which males must fast on the Day of Atonement, while females fast from the age of twelve. In the late Middle Ages this was systematized in Europe into a general rule as to when a young person was obligated to observe the mitzvot. The age of b'nai mitzvah roughly coincides with physical puberty.[1] The bar or bat mitzvah ceremony is usually held on the first Shabbat after a boy's thirteenth and a girl's twelfth birthday.
Please share your knowledge and experiences with this event.
Bentley wrote: "One major difference between Rudolf and Hanns is love - Hanns loved and respected his father and I think it is clear even at this juncture that Rudolf did not. Rudolf felt himself "alone" - when y..."The author confirms this again by writing, "Despite his decision to marry Hedwig, Rudolf felt unable to share his feelings with his wife." (p. 56)
I think this can play a role in creating a disconnect to the world around you. You can be a very sociable person, but live in an internal world and you get good at repressing.
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Another point is that Rudolf may have felt unloved himself and somehow that manifested in his feeling that he was not lovable.
While the love of horses did help him to decide to join the SS, he also finds acceptanceIn the military life style and can show his worth just by hard work.
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I feel like Rudolf's killing of his fellow officer will be a turning point in his life as far as doing something he doesn't want to do in order to please his superiors.
David wrote: "I feel like Rudolf's killing of his fellow officer will be a turning point in his life as far as doing something he doesn't want to do in order to please his superiors."I agree. With this event, Rudolf demonstrates that he is capable of putting personal emotions aside to do his "duty" and prove his loyalty. It may well have been the beginning of a process of compartmentalizing what he sees as his professional life from his personal/emotional life.
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I looking forward to be reading these two chapters maybe it will have more about the people
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While reading the passage when Rudolf coldly kills his friend. I can't help think about how many civilians during WWII, stood up for Jews by housing/hiding them etc... While Rudolf chose not to stand up for (he states in his own account) what he thought was wrong.
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You make a good point Rebecca how so many other civilians showed so much bravery in helping and hiding the Jews.
Rudolf found camraderie when he met Himmler of the SS who also liked animals and was passionate about farming. And Rudolf liked that he was Hitler's faithful follower. Rudolf liked his vision and he needed someone to follow never liking his father who died and then his mother. I see Rudolf as a follower more than a leader and a man without ethics or morals.
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Bentley wrote: "Discussion Question:Does anybody else sense that Rudolf is like a boat without a rudder and that Hanns' rudder was his father Dr. Alexander? Or do you feel differently?
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I agree. If Rudolf's leaders were selling Ice Cream, he would of been sellman's of the month almost each month. Might of invented the Rocky Road Ice cream.
Compartmentalization, it appears Rudolf learned this after WW1 and he saw the families killed. He was able to turn off feelings at a early age.
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Bentley wrote: "Discussion Question:Does anybody else sense that Rudolf is like a boat without a rudder and that Hanns' rudder was his father Dr. Alexander? Or do you feel differently?
It looks like all the Alexander children benefited from both of their parents. Hann's father showed his children compassion and love to their fellow man through his work by continuing to provide help to others regardless of their economic situation. They may have not attended synagogue regularly but they were certainly living their faith in their community.
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I also get the impression that Rudolf is an opportunist and the rising Nazi party gave him a chance to return to the "discipline and rigor of the army; the structure, the hierarchy, the sense of purpose" (pg. 56). But it took something "special" to move him away from the tranquility of the farm life and along came Heinrich Himmler. We have all seen pictures and films of Himmler and he appeared very unprepossessing; however, he was obviously extremely persuasive and Rudolf needed someone to look up to who believed in the same ideologies that he did. His meeting Himmler may have been the turning point of his life.
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I keep thinking of the Robert Frost poem - The Road not Taken when thinking about Rudolf's life (it is a pity for him and a travesty for so many Jewish people who died at Auschwitz):
The Road Not Taken
BY ROBERT FROST
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
by
Robert FrostI think the road Rodolf took made all of the difference in his life which may have ended differently than it did if he had stayed a farmer and not joined the SS.
But for some reason Jill - Rudolf also identified with Himmler as he did with so many father substitutes.
I love that poem, Bentley and it is very appropriate here.
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The discussion topic is about a newsworthy item which is quite timely for our discussion:
Pope at Yad Vashem: Never again, Lord, never again!
Rather than mentioning Jews - or Nazis, Germans, concentration camps or World War II - Pope Francis takes more global and theological approach to the Holocaust.
By Ilene Prusher | May 26, 2014 | 5:00 PM | 18
Pope Francis gave a short speech Monday during his visit to Yad Vashem, Israel’s official memorial to the Holocaust, addressing humanity as “Adam” and blaming it for descending to the murderous behavior that lead to the deaths of six million Jews.
Rather than mentioning Jews – or Nazis, Germans, concentration camps or World War II – Francis took a more global and theological approach to the Holocaust. The speech began with the question “Adam, where are you?” a line from Genesis 3:9 in which God inquires into the first human beings’ whereabouts when it is clear that Adam and Eve have gone astray.
“Who convinced you that you were God? Not only did you torture and kill your brothers and sisters, but you sacrificed them to yourself, because you made yourself a god. Today, in this place, we hear once more the voice of God: Adam, where are you?” the pope posed in a speech he delivered in Italian.
“Here before the boundless tragedy of the Holocaust, That cry – 'Where are you?' – echoes like a faint voice in an unfathomable abyss,” he said. “A great evil has befallen us, such as never happened under the heavens. Now, Lord, hear our prayer, hear our plea, save us in your mercy. Save us from this horror.”
The pope continued: "Grant us the grace to be ashamed of what men have done, to be ashamed of this massive idolatry, of having despised and destroyed our own flesh which you formed from the earth, to which you gave life with your own breath of life. Never again, Lord, never again!"
Pope Francis, on his third and final day of his holy land tour, became the third pope to visit Yad Vashem, following the historic visits of Pope John Paul II in 2000 and Pope Benedict in 2009. Accompanied by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Shimon Peres, and Rabbi Israel Meir Lau, the former chief Ashkenazi rabbi and himself a Holocaust survivor, Pope Francis rekindled the eternal flame in the museum’s Hall of Remembrance and then laid a wreath with the help of two high school students, pausing reflectively for more than a minute. He bowed his head deeply, listening as a farewell letter was read aloud in Italian. The letter was from a young woman to her sister just days before her deportation from Romania. The woman, Ida Goldish, and her young son Vily died a few days later.
As part of the official ceremony, the pope greeted six Holocaust survivors, shaking their hands and listening to brief highlights of their stories. These included Moshe Ha-Elion, Avraham Harshalom, Chava Shik, Joseph Gottdenker, Eliezer Grynfeld and Sonia Tunik-Geron.
Afterwards, Ha-Elion, who spent 21 months in Auschwitz as well as having been in three other concentration camps, said the pope’s speech felt more like a prayer than an address.
“His focus was asking humanity, how did we deteriorate to such a situation? It was a general question for humanity, more than it focused only and specifically on the Holocaust. But I think his approach was appropriate,” said Ha-Elion, 89, who now lives in Bat Yam and is the president of Israel’s Greek Holocaust survivors organization. Ha-Elion, who came from Salonika, is the only one to survive from his entire family, and now has 10 grand and great-grandchildren.
Another survivor in the audience, Miriam Aviezer, said she wished the pope had seized the moment to say something about anti-Semitism, particularly given two developments in the last two days: a shooting at a Jewish museum in Brussels, in which four people died, an attack outside a Paris synagogue short aftewards and the startling success of the far-right National Front in European parliamentary elections.
“His words were emotional, but not very concrete,” said Aviezer, who came from Croatia and was hidden as a child during the Holocaust. “The pope has the power to influence Christians all over the world and he could have made a strong statement against anti-Semitism that would sway many people.”
Avner Shalev, the Chairman of the Yad Vashem directorate, said separately from the formal ceremony that he was very concerned about these developments. “Anti-Semitism is strengthening in Europe – there is no denying it,” he said. “Everything that we do here is focused of getting people to learn from what happened not long ago, so clearly we have to do more in terms of education.”
Shalev, who has overseen the visits of all three popes to Yad Vashem, said that
Pope Francis’ words were a testament not just to the Vatican’s recognition of the Holocaust, but this particular pope’s view of the Shoah as a break in humanity. He also noted that the pope had offered to open the Holy See’s archives from the period of World War II, which have thus far been closed, and said he believes the pope will stand by his word regardless of what might be found. Some critics say the Catholic Church did not do enough to oppose the Nazis’ plan, though there were many cases of individual churches, clergy members and average Christians who helped save Jews.
Shalev also said that pope’s invitation Sunday to President Shimon Peres and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to come to the Vatican for a prayer meeting was a “bold statement.” Many analysts have noted that the invitation is unusual and suggests a different path for this pope, perhaps hearkening back to a time when the Holy See played a much more prominent role in politics.
“Everyone knows that the peace process needs to advance somehow,” said Shalev. “So he asked them and they immediately responded. I think that’s the most political that it can be, and coming from him, I think there is a power in that invitation.”
Rabbi Arthur Schneier, an American rabbi accompanying the pope on the visit, said it was a remarkable moment in the history of the Israel-Vatican relations – which after all were only made official in 1993. Schneier, an Austria-born Holocaust survivor and the rabbi of the Park East Synagogue in New York, has been involved in trying to forge better relations between Jews and the Vatican since 1965.
During the visit to the Western Wall in the morning, he gave the pope a copy of the Jewish “traveler’s prayer” [tefilat haderech.] “Christians believe that St. Christopher protects you in your journey, and I explained that although we don’t have a saint for that, we do have this important prayer, and that it’s not just for this trip, because life is a journey,” Schneier told Haaretz.
Schneier noted that during the visit to the president’s house shortly after the visit to Yad Vashem, the pope did specifically mention anti-Semitism and racism.
“I think this trip is a very positive and constructive step in the relationship between the Catholic church and the Jewish people and also the Vatican’s respect for the state of Israel. That is a very significant and clear reaffirmation of something that began with Vatican II,” he said, referring to a 1965 decision of the Catholic Church to state that it does not view Jews to be responsible for Jesus’ death.
“He is the one to take it even further than his predecessors. In the history of mankind, we can’t look at it measured in days or weeks,” Schneier said. “For Israel, it’s 20 years after diplomatic relations. I think it will give further encouragement to other religious leaders who are either silent or are afraid of interfaith relations.”
(Source: http://www.haaretz.com/travel-in-isra...)
More:
Other Articles:
http://www.catholicherald.co.uk/news/...
http://www.catholicherald.co.uk/comme...
http://www.catholicherald.co.uk/news/...
http://www.catholicherald.co.uk/news/...
http://www.catholicherald.co.uk/news/...
http://www.catholicherald.co.uk/news/...
Violence cannot be defeated by violence ...Pope Francis
http://www.catholicherald.co.uk/news/...
Full text of Pope Francis’s speech at Yad Vashem
Read more: Full text of Pope Francis's speech at Yad Vashem | The Times of Israel http://www.timesofisrael.com/full-tex...
Follow us: @timesofisrael on Twitter | timesofisrael on Facebook
http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/insideisra...
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/27/wor...
http://www.theyeshivaworld.com/news/h...
http://time.com/115750/pope-francis-i...
Video: (BBC)
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-...
Video: (Pope Francis at Yad Vashem, 26 May 2014)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-SNb...
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Your thoughts on any of the above.
During his visit, the Pope signed the Yad Vashem Guest Book in Spanish.
English translation of his message:
With shame for what man, who was created in the image of God, was able to do; with shame for the fact that man made himself the owner of evil; with shame that man made himself into God and sacrificed his brothers.
Never again!! Never again!!
Bentley wrote: "Donna - compartmentalization is the only thing that could explain such cold bloodedness - I do not understand how he could separate the two. However, by that time he had already seen what could ha..."Regarding Rudolf's participation in the execution of the offending officer - I jump in here - I would note that he did not "kill" him - he participated in his execution. Rudolf knew when the prisoner escaped what penalty the officer could face (pretty still potential penalty - but) and as Bentley mentioned in the previous section there are obligations to following military orders. (was this SS military in that respect?).
I also note there is a lot of discussion of direction taken - I think that Rudolf is, from the death of his father on, steering his way as best he can.
I think so far in the book Hanns is still a child, with or without his bar mitzvah) going to a private school and totally provided for by his super successful father.
I think so far one can make comments on the upbringing of both fellows - can't say boys as Rudolf is past that stage - but this is not a comparison situation.
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It is to a certain extent if you marry their ages at respective times in their lives to various chapters and locations - it does take some back and forth.
By now we can see that Rudolf's direction is set - Hanns' direction is evolving in the next chapters coming up.
One last point - last page of Chapter 5: (page 71)
When his friend collapsed on the ground, Rudolf walked up and shot him in the head.
I think that is pretty conclusive that he killed him.
You may be confusing the comments above with the murder of Walter Kadow (page 37) earlier.
Jill wrote: "I also get the impression that Rudolf is an opportunist and the rising Nazi party gave him a chance to return to the "discipline and rigor of the army; the structure, the hierarchy, the sense of pu..."I think Jill hit the nail on the head about Himmler's persuasiveness. I feel that, even though Rudolf was rudderless, I get the impression that Himmler 'massaged' Rudolf to get him to do what he wanted. On page 61, Himmler saw him in line while being inspected and talked him into becoming a trainee to supervise a concentration camp. From the way Rudolf talked of his idyllic life in Pomerania, he wouldn't want to leave. Surely Himmler would have to lay it on thick, making Rudolf feel important and to play to his sense of duty, to "become a soldier again" had as much, if not more to his path to Auschwicz as his upbringing and moral code. Everyone wants to feel important and needed. Also, Himmler had Rudolf promoted relatively quickly up the chain of command, validating his efforts to please his superior. Had Himmler not made these efforts, I do not think Rudolf would have taken the path that he ended up on.
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Do you think that he would have met Himmler otherwise?
Bentley wrote: "Discussion TopicThe discussion topic is about a newsworthy item which is quite timely for our discussion:
Pope at Yad Vashem: Never again, Lord, never again!
Rather than mentioning Jews - or ..."
I agree Bentley, it is a very timely topic. I think Francis is truly a great man. Having been brought up Catholic and gravitating away from religion over the years, I did not think the new Pope would amount to much more than the same old same old. But, Francis seems to be more down to earth and caring more about people and their lives and less concerned for antiquated church doctrine. His message at Yad Vashem is moving.
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The timing was striking for our discussion.
Some notes on these chapters and maybe there are no notes but I notice that although there is strong Nazi activity near where the Hanns is living there is no mention of the attitude or posture towards this by Hanns or Dr. Alexander or anyone. So I am assuming that no one noted their thoughts and opinions and possible fears.So the Alexanders were rich - Marlene Dietrich and Albert Einstein visiting - summer home - private school - their own Torah (big bucks or marks as you wish).
The Alexanders were a well educated family of a successful professional - really no comparison foundation for comparing the boys. So far Hanns has not faced one decision determining how he lives - whether he eats etc.
I also look at some of the political commentary and pg 59the fourth paragraph says that von Hindenburg appointed Hitler Chancellor "in the absence of any alternative....." - from other histories I have read I had the impression that were he in better shape and stronger von Hindenburg might have been able to follow a different course. I make this comment here and will try to ask Mr. Harding too but I am concerned about reading his questions etc as I want to avoid spoilers.
That Himmler who knew Rudolp tried to lure him away from the farm was logical. He knew the fellow, who had military and war experience, who was more mature (he joined the SS at 32 while the average entry was at 23 years) and Himmler needed people. It is also true that after the Wall Street crash the German economy was faltering and the need to provide for his family must have occurred to Rudolf.
I think that Rudolf certainly knew it was not right what he was doing. He may have felt trapped but he could have tried to go back to the farm. I just make a mental note that these are political prisoners - Rudolf's anti-semitism is just a background factor for now and it seems that to him an "enemy of the state" doesn't have to be a Jew.
I am curious if he will get closer to the grim action again as he was with the first caning (pg 66) -
It is really a good book and the temptation to read forward is strong but I want to be able to comment on other remarks here for the rest of the week without bringing in spoilers.
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I understand Vince about the spoilers - but you can go on that thread and click on newest - go to the end and pop your question in. However, it is your choice and you are correct that the Q&A thread is a spoiler thread. Good question though.
Yes, the money that even America was giving to Germany dried up with the Stock Crash. Tough times.
I understand Vince so do what you think is best.
Bentley wrote: "Discussion TopicThe discussion topic is about a newsworthy item which is quite timely for our discussion:
Pope at Yad Vashem: Never again, Lord, never again!
Rather than mentioning Jews - or ..."
Bentley, I really appreciate and want to thank you for bringing forth the timely visit of Pope Francis a truly wonderful Pope with this article. "Never again" has been the slogan for Jews for many years. The importance of the slogan was that Jews would never again allow themselves to be slaughtered indiscriminately by those who hate them. It was not only the scope of the Holocaust that would never again be repeated, but the idea behind that atrocity - that Jews should be killed merely for being Jewish - would also never again be tolerated. But of course as we know Jews are still being killed merely because they are Jews. I hope the Popes message gets out to the whole world.
During this time, I remember the Nazis Party were really motivated to build membership. Himmler might have had this in mind when he talked with Rudolf. "Why be stuck in farm when the Fatherland needs you" kind of thing.
Yes, thank you Bentley. As someone who no longer practices Christianity, but still believes in its basic philosophy, I find Pope Francis compelling. As it relates to this book, I found his statement that terrorism is '..evil in the origin and in the result. In the origin because it comes from hate and in the result because it does not build but destroys.' very appropriate to Nazism, a hateful and destructive philosophy that for some was a religion.
On another note about this book, page 54 had several statements that rankled, at least for me: (National Socialism)..would be the end of Jewish supremacy. Supremacy in what way? What gave him that idea? Then Rudolf says: I never personally hated the Jews, but I did see them as enemies of our nation. His memoirs were written while he was awaiting execution. I think this is a sad attempt to justify himself. And further in the chapter, he tries harder in his attempt to place a balm on his legacy. For example on page 67, his quote begins "I could not summon up the courage…"I apologize for putting this in here, but I feel I must. Back on page 54 the author describes Hedwig as having 'a body built for hard work'. What exactly is a body built for hard work, I wonder?
I would agree that Rudolf was trying hard to justify his actions.....too little, too late. The Nazis tried hard to place blame for the failing economy, etc. on the Jewish people who had always been a target for suspicion and ill-concealed hate. Many Jews were professional people and the backbone of their communities, especially those in banking.....thus the "supremacy" idea. The Nazi ideology called for overt anti-semitism....it was already ingrained in many people but now it became "acceptable" to publicly speak and act out that "blame game".
Very true. I wholly agree. The Jews were their scapegoats and a threat to their aryan ideology of a pure race.
The History Book Club
Books mentioned in this topic
Crazy Horse and Custer (other topics)The Road Not Taken and Other Poems (other topics)
Hanns and Rudolf: The True Story of the German Jew Who Tracked Down and Caught the Kommandant of Auschwitz (other topics)
Authors mentioned in this topic
Stephen E. Ambrose (other topics)Robert Frost (other topics)
Thomas Harding (other topics)
For the week of May 26th - June 1st, we are reading Chapters Four and Five of Hanns and Rudolf..
The third week's reading assignment is:
Week Three - May 26th - June 1st
4: Hanns, Berlin, Germany, 1928 and 5: Rudolf, Berlin, Germany, 1928
(44 - 71)
We will open up a thread for each week's reading. Please make sure to post in the particular thread dedicated to those specific chapters and page numbers to avoid spoilers. We will also open up supplemental threads as we did for other spotlighted books.
This book was kicked off on May 12th.
We look forward to your participation. Amazon, Barnes and Noble and other noted on line booksellers do have copies of the book and shipment can be expedited. The book can also be obtained easily at your local library, local bookstore or on your Kindle. Make sure to pre-order now if you haven't already. This weekly thread will be opened up May 26th.
There is no rush and we are thrilled to have you join us. It is never too late to get started and/or to post.
Bentley will be leading this discussion and back-up will be Assisting Moderators Jerome, Kathy and Libby.
Welcome,
~Bentley
TO ALWAYS SEE ALL WEEKS' THREADS SELECT VIEW ALL
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Notes:
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Directions on how to participate in a book offer and how to follow the t's and c's - Hanns and Rudolf - What Do I Do Next?
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