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A Tale of Two Soldiers: The Unexpected Friendship between a WWII American Jewish Sniper and a German Military Pilot
A Tale of Two Soldiers is a memoir about the unlikely friendship an American Jewish G.I. and trained sniper for the US Army, formed with a German Luftwaffe pilot during WWII. On Dec. 18, 1944, twenty-one-year-old Max Gendelman was captured in the Battle of the Bulge, one of only a handful in his company to survive. Starving and dazed, his dog tags blown off, he was marched through German villages and eventually arrived at a farm the Reich had commandeered from a German family. The family's grandson, Karl Kirschner, a lieutenant in the Luftwaffe conscripted against his will, was hiding out in one of the barns. To Max's astonishment one day Karl spoke to him through the fence; they discovered a shared passion for chess, and began to secretly meet to play the game. As they got to know each other, they recognized what they needed to do; they formed a pact, a plan to escape together. This was the start of a friendship that would endure for more than six decades.
- GenresHistory
226 pages, Paperback
First published October 17, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
March 22, 2014
A Tale of Two Stories is a remarkable story about two young men who find each other near the end of World War II. Max Gendelman, the author, was a Jewish American sniper, from Milwaukee, WI. Karl Kirschner was a German Luftwaffe pilot. Both men were intelligent, family-loving and inclined to live honorable lives.
Max relates their friendship - and daring escape together toward the American lines - with unflinching (for the most part) prose. He shares details of his anti-Semitic treatment in the American military and in his post-war life that may cause Americans to squirm. He does not shrink at the horrors of war - we feel the blood and guts and tragedy he knew. I wonder if he shied a bit from truth in relating his sexual experiences -- it does not matter to the main history being shared here, it just made me wonder. I kind of hoped he wasn't quite as chaste as he seemed to be before his marriage, but, I am from a different generation.
That these two men found - and saved - each other is an amazing, amazing thing in that time and place. I really hope high school history teachers will find this book and consider teaching it. More than anything I've read in a long time, this book re-enforces the awareness that soldiers are individuals, not simply nationalistic clones. We have a tendency in the US, I think, to reduce the German soldier in WWII to one blanket stereotype - the willing Nazi follower. How many were like Karl? Unwilling, conscripted but unlike Karl, unable to escape?
I congratulate the Gendelman children for completing Max's project after he died during the editing process.
Max relates their friendship - and daring escape together toward the American lines - with unflinching (for the most part) prose. He shares details of his anti-Semitic treatment in the American military and in his post-war life that may cause Americans to squirm. He does not shrink at the horrors of war - we feel the blood and guts and tragedy he knew. I wonder if he shied a bit from truth in relating his sexual experiences -- it does not matter to the main history being shared here, it just made me wonder. I kind of hoped he wasn't quite as chaste as he seemed to be before his marriage, but, I am from a different generation.
That these two men found - and saved - each other is an amazing, amazing thing in that time and place. I really hope high school history teachers will find this book and consider teaching it. More than anything I've read in a long time, this book re-enforces the awareness that soldiers are individuals, not simply nationalistic clones. We have a tendency in the US, I think, to reduce the German soldier in WWII to one blanket stereotype - the willing Nazi follower. How many were like Karl? Unwilling, conscripted but unlike Karl, unable to escape?
I congratulate the Gendelman children for completing Max's project after he died during the editing process.
August 7, 2015
This was a very simply-written book, but that is what made it so touching.
My father fought in WWII and he was similar to Max in not wanting to talk about his experiences with us, his children. We heard stories about his experiences during the war at his funeral from his oldest brother, Bill. They were in Europe at the same time during the war and my father had shared some of the things that he had done and witnessed.
I like the last paragraph of this book: War is a reminder of "man's inhumanity to man," but also is a reminder of man's ability to care for each other.
My father fought in WWII and he was similar to Max in not wanting to talk about his experiences with us, his children. We heard stories about his experiences during the war at his funeral from his oldest brother, Bill. They were in Europe at the same time during the war and my father had shared some of the things that he had done and witnessed.
I like the last paragraph of this book: War is a reminder of "man's inhumanity to man," but also is a reminder of man's ability to care for each other.
October 9, 2019
A touching story of humanity amidst inhumanity.
The simply written style may be a little rough but does make the story more immediate and powerful. It is very touching and emotional. I read it in a single session and could not put it down.
The simply written style may be a little rough but does make the story more immediate and powerful. It is very touching and emotional. I read it in a single session and could not put it down.
March 26, 2022
A truly wonderful story. Reading it, I felt like Max was having a personal conversation with me. Would that we had more people like Max in the world today!
May 28, 2014
Review written for and published by Portland Book Review on August 25th:
World War II was full of many atrocities, however, there were also astounding moments of bravery and kindness in the midst of so much horror. Max Gendelman tells one such story in his memoir, A Tale of Two Soldiers. A Jewish sniper caught as a prisoner of war, Max was able to survive because of his knowledge about the German language, and functioned as a translator between the captives and the German officers. While living in fear of the Germans learning of his Jewish heritage, Max strikes up an unlikely friendship with Karl, a conscripted German pilot who is recovering from his recent injuries. Bonding over games of chess, Max and Karl agree that as the Allied forces continue to advance, their chances of survival grow less likely. With the sound of artillery fire growing closer, Max and Karl make a daring escape and head for Allied territory.
World War II was full of many atrocities, however, there were also astounding moments of bravery and kindness in the midst of so much horror. Max Gendelman tells one such story in his memoir, A Tale of Two Soldiers. A Jewish sniper caught as a prisoner of war, Max was able to survive because of his knowledge about the German language, and functioned as a translator between the captives and the German officers. While living in fear of the Germans learning of his Jewish heritage, Max strikes up an unlikely friendship with Karl, a conscripted German pilot who is recovering from his recent injuries. Bonding over games of chess, Max and Karl agree that as the Allied forces continue to advance, their chances of survival grow less likely. With the sound of artillery fire growing closer, Max and Karl make a daring escape and head for Allied territory.
“Bombs fell everywhere, with emphasis on the police and army barracks. We were able to see a direct hit on the station, which we had just vacated. Our luck was certainly holding but for how much longer?”In his Afterword, Max states that he wrote A Tale of Two Soldiers for his children, so that they could fully understand the story of his escape and lifelong friendship with Karl. While the book does deal with many of Max’s harrowing experiences in the war, the emphasis is on the connection he forged with Karl. Some readers may notice that the book rambles a bit, delving into seemingly unconnected memories or segueing at random, which makes it read a bit more like a diary than a memoir. While this may annoy some readers, others will find it charming. A Tale of Two Soldiers is a personal look into the powerful and unexpected lifelong bonds people can form, even in the midst of war.
February 20, 2017
A heart warming story.
November 13, 2013
As a friend of the Gendelman family, I am honored to have read the book 'hot off the press'. And as a friend, I had heard some of the stories that are told here. But to read first-hand of Max's wartime experiences was to hear the stories on a different level. I am giving it 5 stars as a memoir; this is a story that needed to be written, and Max knew he wasn't a first-rate author, but it is his story as only he can tell it. I give him so much credit for his recall, but more than that I honor him for having to relive the atrocities he witnessed and bore. I am thankful he fulfilled his children's wishes to put his story in writing, and I am honored to know him and his family.
May 16, 2015
A clearly-written autobiography of a quiet, unassuming soldier living through unbearable circumstances.
November 10, 2015
Sounds like fiction but is actually a true story. An excellent, easy read.
April 5, 2017
While not great literature, it was great to read about a Milwaukee man who survived WWII and came back to his home town to live life. The amazing encounter with a German soldier and their ultimate escape made an interesting read. Good read for those who love human interest stories.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews