Nine Lives

by Waldemar Lotnik, Julian Preece, Lotnik Waldemar

Nine Lives offers a brutally frank account of ethnic warfare which has striking parallels with recent conflicts in the Balkans and also describes a major "sideshow" to the Second World War which is virtually unknown outside Eastern Europe.

Genres: History, War

224 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1999

Reviews

[Marc Pearce · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was one of the most riveting accounts of first-hand experiences of the World War II era that I have read, since reading "Unbroken" (about former Olympian, and WWII vet Louis Zamperini). A book which goes into every horrific, sometimes hard to read detail, in such descriptive ways, that if this was a film, you might feel the urge to avert your eyes from the screen. However, it is not a film (it probably should be), but the word picture that the book creates, keeps the reader glued to its pages from start to finish, despite (or perhaps because of) the the harsh realities described. Included within, are also many interesting, and often times, little known facts about that particular theater of World War II Europe. There are battles and skirmishes described, of which probably most people have never heard. This includes actions that continued to occur even after the official "end" of the war. Additionally, there are snapshots of how the various ethnic groups of the area interacted with each other before, during, and after the war, which I found to be absolutely fascinating. This was an account in which the author sugar coats nothing, and seems to give a fair accounting of atrocities committed by all parties to the conflict that he was either a part of, or was fighting against. A story of many twists, turns, and escapes from death so incredible, that they are almost too difficult to be believed. Because of that, I'd say that the title "Nine Lives" is an appropriate one. It is a historical account that I highly recommend reading. I guarantee that the reader will find this to be an amazing book!