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Telegram
It’s 1944. Sauli Berglund watches from the edge of his property as ninety-six German POWs arrive at a work camp on Big Bear Lake.
These young German soldiers, so full of life, so healthy, so very safe. And they would remain so. He watched them dodge no bullets. He watched them wipe no blood from their hands. He watched the tears they wouldn’t shed for the friends who wouldn’t die in their arms. Here, they were an ocean away from the battle. Here, they ate hot food every day. Here, they enjoyed their lives in the very place Sauli had raised his children.
His mind sees a little boy, Ronnie, laughing, jumping off the dock into the cool water. “Ronald Berglund, Lieutenant, U.S.Navy,” the telegram had read. “Missing in action.”
A father protects his children; that’s what a father does. He wraps his powerful arms around them pulls them against his chest where they’re safe. And as long as they are safe, so is he. But when they’re not?
Three more telegrams will find the Berglund family before the war is over, but Sauli doesn’t know that yet. Nor does he know that Anni, his fiery daughter, will fall in love with a German POW or that someone close to the Berglunds will fan the flames of intolerance that threaten to engulf the community and harm Sauli’s family. What Sauli does know is that on the home front, in the Suomi Hills, there are no lengths to which he will not go to protect his family.
Wars are not always fought on the battlefield; the combatants are not always soldiers.
And telegrams are not always bad news.
These young German soldiers, so full of life, so healthy, so very safe. And they would remain so. He watched them dodge no bullets. He watched them wipe no blood from their hands. He watched the tears they wouldn’t shed for the friends who wouldn’t die in their arms. Here, they were an ocean away from the battle. Here, they ate hot food every day. Here, they enjoyed their lives in the very place Sauli had raised his children.
His mind sees a little boy, Ronnie, laughing, jumping off the dock into the cool water. “Ronald Berglund, Lieutenant, U.S.Navy,” the telegram had read. “Missing in action.”
A father protects his children; that’s what a father does. He wraps his powerful arms around them pulls them against his chest where they’re safe. And as long as they are safe, so is he. But when they’re not?
Three more telegrams will find the Berglund family before the war is over, but Sauli doesn’t know that yet. Nor does he know that Anni, his fiery daughter, will fall in love with a German POW or that someone close to the Berglunds will fan the flames of intolerance that threaten to engulf the community and harm Sauli’s family. What Sauli does know is that on the home front, in the Suomi Hills, there are no lengths to which he will not go to protect his family.
Wars are not always fought on the battlefield; the combatants are not always soldiers.
And telegrams are not always bad news.
304 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 25, 2011
8 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
April 29, 2013
Sauli and Evelina Berglund run a lakeside resort in Minnesota. World War II may be drawing to a close, but that's small comfort when you've got one son fighting overseas and another missing in action. It's no wonder Sauli can't keep his mind on his work with one hundred German prisoners of war being held right next door. It doesn't seem fair that his sons may be suffering while at this hotel for the enemy, German soldiers laughed and ate and slept and were always, always safe.
Every day, Sauli ventures into town to stare at the Active Duty roster. This was a posted list of the names of all the local boys currently fighting, those who had been wounded, and the few Fallen Heroes. He lives in fear that one day, he will see one of his sons' names in the last category.
After a telegram arrives, the family discovers that their son is no longer MIA, but is now a prisoner of war. A family friend suggests talking to one of the German prisoners to discover under what conditions their boy may be being held, and they are surprised to find the foreigner in their kitchen is not the monster they had imagined him to be. He's a thoughtful, eloquent young man who believes Hitler is taking his country in the wrong direction. They learn that the war has cost him a loved one, as well, and that he wants nothing more than to return to his studies at the university. "...for some of us, no matter which side of the Atlantic Ocean we are on, we are prisoners.” he says.
This was a wonderful book, full of humor, suspense, great sadness and even greater joy.
The ending honestly made me want to stand up and cheer. I can't remember the last time that happened.
Every day, Sauli ventures into town to stare at the Active Duty roster. This was a posted list of the names of all the local boys currently fighting, those who had been wounded, and the few Fallen Heroes. He lives in fear that one day, he will see one of his sons' names in the last category.
After a telegram arrives, the family discovers that their son is no longer MIA, but is now a prisoner of war. A family friend suggests talking to one of the German prisoners to discover under what conditions their boy may be being held, and they are surprised to find the foreigner in their kitchen is not the monster they had imagined him to be. He's a thoughtful, eloquent young man who believes Hitler is taking his country in the wrong direction. They learn that the war has cost him a loved one, as well, and that he wants nothing more than to return to his studies at the university. "...for some of us, no matter which side of the Atlantic Ocean we are on, we are prisoners.” he says.
This was a wonderful book, full of humor, suspense, great sadness and even greater joy.
The ending honestly made me want to stand up and cheer. I can't remember the last time that happened.
February 28, 2014
Good storyline with some very likable characters. I found a couple of incidents rather implausible but if you can suspend disbelief, it's very enjoyable. I would have given a higher rating based on story/writing, but this book definitely needs another go-round with a proofreader. All in all, glad to have read it.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews