Many thanks to the following individuals who have posted reviews:

Carina Wilkerson:
Reviewed January 1, 2023

We Don’t Talk About That has touched me in a way no other non-fiction book ever has. I started and finished the book in one night after I could not put it down. I want to thank Giselle for having the courage to tell her story with such candour, and by doing so tell the unspoken stories of so many German families that suffered through WWII and the division of Germany that followed. My own family is among them, and I never truly understood the trauma that was endured because “we don’t talk about that.” My Oma, my paternal grandmother, often told me stories about the war and her youth in East Germany under Russian control. She was nearly the exact age as Giselle when she experienced many of the same tragic events at their home in East Berlin–the bombings, the invasion, hunger, death and the loss of home and childhood. I am left to wonder if Oma and her sisters and mother suffered rape by the Russians the way Giselle’s and so many other families did, but never spoke about after. My Oma, like Giselle, also escaped to West Germany as a young woman, although I regret to say I don’t know any of the details. Through Giselle’s book, I feel that I understand better now, the experiences that my family did not discuss. I always wished Oma had written her stories down, and with “We Don’t Talk About That,” I have found some peace that these stories are not relegated only to my shaky memory, but that the world can know as well. Danke, Giselle!

Lois sent January 30 at 3:29 PM

I’m 3/4 way through your book. Oh, God. It’s a bloody miracle you are here right now. I’m reeling…I LOVE LOVE LOVE your writing. It’s a page-turner for sure!

In my humble opinion, your book far exceeds the Anne Frank one. You spare no details but what I liked is that right up front you told us who the fam members were, explained the importance of the relationships and got us to CARE about each of them. (No not the Russians, sorry. Ain’t forgiving them for such horrendous acts!) so that when you launched into the action of it, it was so powerful. I can’t imagine the horror you had to go through ALL OVER AGAIN to put it on the page. DO you realize how much COURAGE it took to do that????? Most ppl bury horrendous shit in their past, never to speak of it again. God BLESS you, Giselle, for having the guts to tell the story of how human beings treat one another. Everyone was so busy with the Jewish annihilation aspects, no one paid attention to regular German citizens and what you all had to endure…my GOD. Each day you wake up you must be so flipping grateful for surviving it all and for what you have and where you are now. YOU ARE MY NEW ROLE MODEL. I will NEVER ever again complain or take anything for granted. I want to have the honour of meeting you someday. But I will fall into your arms and just cry.  There was a reason that you were meant to survive: To tell the story. Thank you for having the courage to write it.

Diane Southey:
I just wanted to let you know how much I enjoyed both “We Don’t Talk About That” and “Flight into the Unknown”. There are very few books I can read nonstop without putting down, but your books are so interesting and well-written. Your life story and how you handled the challenges is so inspiring! After reading “We Don’t Talk About That” and attending your book reading at the local library a few years ago, I’ve been anxiously awaiting the sequel. It did not disappoint. I received “Flight into the Unknown” for Christmas and again, could not put it down! I look forward to reading about the next chapter of your life. Thank you for bringing your story to light.

Marina Osipova – Author of The Cruel Romance

Dear Giselle, I read your book, “We Don’t Talk About That.” Was there anything I didn’t know before? Factually, nothing (I touch this subject in my books as well). Emotionally, a lot, overwhelming, goosebumps all over the body most of the time: at some points from horror, at others – from joy there were lovely, loving, and supporting moments with the people you met, with the members of your family, and even some enemies (the kind doctor). It took me some time to gather the courage to write to you because there was an overwhelming feeling – shame and guilt for what my people – Soviets, Russians – made to your people, especially to the women, children, the civil population at large. Reading all these details was devastating to me. Some stories shattered my heart. Many brought me to tears, one of them when your parents reunite after your father returned from Siberia. I’m so glad he had. I’m thankful for your understanding (as I feel it) that the Soviets mirrored what Wehrmacht and SS troops committed in the Soviet Union. Most likely, there were no mass rapes, not with such brutal outbursts at least, but rapes they were. The lives of ordinary people – on all sides – were trampled and destroyed. I’m proud of you, Giselle. Of your battle to survive, of remaining human, supporting, and kind at the time when many broke, of the achievements of your life. I expressed my impression in my review on Amazon. Thank you for your book, which is a rare glimpse at the subject that was taboo for so long.

Rose Seiler Scott  – Author of Threaten to Undo Us

We don’t talk about that is a fitting title for the memoir of a woman who lost her childhood, home and innocence to a war that extended into what should have been peacetime.

A colourful cast of relatives inhabit life on the farm in Roeder’s early life; back when cars, machinery and hot running water were novelties in European village life. Even during the 1930s one begins to understand that ordinary Germans were nearly powerless to speak out against the ruling Nazis. To do so, was to invite disaster on your family and standing in the community. Though Roeder’s father was not a Nazi, like most men of that generation, he was drafted into the army, leaving the women to eke out their existence in the family home.

But the worst was yet to come. As World War Two drew to a close, occupying Russian soldiers murdered neighbours and raped women. Their calls of “Frau Komm” sent women of all ages into hiding.

Forced into servitude on their own property after the war, Roeder tells of their life under the new communist authorities, including occasional acts of kindness and moments of joy. The family was just getting used to their new way of life when everything changes again. Imagine being given only a few moment’s notice to evacuate your home. All you have is a baby stroller, a handcart and four daughters, one of whom is an infant. What do you bring? Where will you stay and how will you feed your children?

Roeder’s family joined millions of others expelled from their homes in the German states of Pomerania and Prussia. The political decision to hand the territories over to Poland had devastating and tragic consequences for those who made the journey west. As the eldest child in the family, Roeder is initiated into adulthood at the age of 11. Without her resourcefulness, the family may not have survived.

Roeder recounts her story with such vivid detail it is truly like being there. She mixes it all—the good, the bad and the horrendous so that it rings true.  You can’t make this stuff up. It is a living nightmare that no child should have to live through. The reader cannot help but gain a new understanding of these little examined events of history and the long-term effects of trauma on those who lived through it.

The author’s first language was German, so the writing is not perfect. But a few odd sentences and incorrect grammar do little to mar this important story. In a way, I concluded that these quirks add to her authentic voice. We don’t talk about that is an important book and the emotion and intensity of the story will stay with you.

Nikki Landis, a Goodreads author, reviewed my memoir “We Don’t Talk About That: An Amazing Story of Survival”
Her rating: 5 Stars.

Nikki Landis is an award-winning author of about a dozen books. She is well known for her “Fight for Light Novels”, “The NightWatchers Saga” and the “Freedom Fighters Series”. In 2017 she was the proud recipient of the IPPY Gold Star for her latest book “Refugee Road”. I have just started to read it and am fascinated.

Nikki is not only a prolific writer, but she also reads more than anyone I know and reviews all the books on Goodreads. Plus, she is a wife and the mother of five boys (7 years to 18!)  and works full time. How does she do it? Do her days have more than 24 hours? Oh, I forgot – the night also has 12! Funny! Thank you, Nikki, from all my heart.

Read Nikki Landis’s review:
Read in Aug 2017

Some stories must be told, no matter how disturbing, horrible, or unbelievable they may seem. Some truths devastate because you can’t imagine how they are possibly true. You DON’T WANT them to be true. How can such brutality exist? How can one individual possibly survive after so much horror? How much can the human spirit endure and bounce back from the brink of destruction and continue on?

This book, I think, is probably one of the most emotional and life-changing stories I have ever read. It truly touched my soul. I have the utmost respect for the author and her courage, bravery, and willingness to step forward and tell the truth about the shocking and brutal events of her life. She is, WAS, a victim. Her family were victims. Her friends and neighbours. In fact, many German women were and yet they survived. They pushed forward. They endured the despicable and impossible, and they persevered.

This book is not an easy read. I had to stop often, take a breath or break, and come back to the story. Over several days I read and witnessed the horrific events that changed a nation and destroyed a country. As an American woman in 2017, what do I truly know of suffering? What do I know of survival, fighting with everything I have in order to make it through each day? What do I know of living in fear for my life or waiting for the next man to knock on my door, ordering me to disrobe? What do I know of losing all that I own, of being displaced without a home or country, and losing everything, including the people I love? What do I know of starvation?

The answer is simple. I do not. But by reading this story, I have an idea. My heart just aches. I’m devastated. I cannot imagine enduring for even one day what the author and these other women endured for months, years of their lives. How did they go on? How did they later marry and have families? How did not lose their very soul to such inhumane acts?

The story does not end there. The author takes us on a journey of self-discovery and the search for freedom. I found myself cheering her on throughout the book, hoping that she would finally find peace, love, and happiness. I don’t think you can give away spoilers in a novel like this. It’s a true account of suffering and perseverance, of losing everything and finding what truly matters, and because of that, I am happy to say I think the author found what she was looking for in the end.

Chronicling the first thirty or so years of her life, the author lays out life in the 1940s and 50’s and her youth, her family, and life before the war. Once the war starts, it’s a shocking read. Be warned, this novel tells the brutal truth and is in parts almost too much, but only because of content. The way in which the book is written, in a narrative that feels like you are listening to a close friend, is the only way to get through the stories.

There is a lot of wonderful historical detail from life back in that era, landmarks, cities, geography, and much information about the war and its effects on the German people. For me, this is one of the most interesting parts of the book. You hear much growing up about World War II and its effects on the world, the atrocity of so many lives lost, the hatred of the Jewish people, but I don’t think I can recollect much learning in school about the German people and their struggles. It’s wrong. We can’t forget as a society what happened. We can’t condone what happened. We can’t let it happen again.

WE CAN’T FORGET.

Stories like this must be told and published. They must be shared. They need to be read. What hope do we have for humanity if we forget if the dust covers the words of these atrocities and God forbid, history tries to repeat itself? No, we can’t let that happen. And the author is right to share this story, to talk about what happened, and to ensure her words are written down for all eternity. In her own words, with no embellishment, she describes the gritty and gruelling aspects of her life from start to finish. There’s no other way the story could be written.

I have a much better understanding of history now. Such experiences must mark a person for life. This is a memoir I would recommend to everyone, but especially I will recommend it to the women I know. It’s an emotional, courageous, and extraordinary story that MUST BE READ. I highly recommend purchasing this book and owning a copy for yourself. “We Don’t Talk About That” is truly an amazing story of survival.

Audrey M., Canada, 2016

This evening I finished reading your book “We Don’t Talk About That”. I was mesmerized throughout all the pages. I felt it to be ‘unfinished’! I want to know what happened! May I ask why you did not add an epilogue and at least a brief summary of the ensuing years?

Will you write another book to let us know what became of the rest of your life? I have relatives who were involved in these events of history as well, I never asked but now I want to hear their full story. Your book has helped me to understand better and motivated me to approach several and a dinner party is planned. NOW I will really be able to HEAR them.

I do thank you for writing this book.

H. W. Bryce, Vancouver, B.C. 2015

I found this book to be a compelling read.

I am of the same era, so I remember a lot about it. I remember the sombre news on our battery-driven radio in the countryside of Northern Saskatchewan. The deep-voiced announcers pounded their reports through the static and ambient white noise to tell of this battle or that.

And while Giselle was suffering from little or sometimes no food and had to grub in fields by night to rescue little potatoes left behind by the harvesters, and to sweep up flour dust in a mill to get supplies for home-made bread on wood-starved cookstoves, we “suffered” rationing. Looking back, we might have thought of rationing as deprivation, but we never suffered without food, even if Mother sent us kids out to collect spring dandelion leaves for salads, etc.

There are many “moving” parts in Giselle’s past, and sometimes the oddest things will catch you unexpectedly. One such episode is when her mother was working for a widower farmer, and he popped the question. But her mother was convinced that her husband was coming back from “the gulag” in Siberia and declined. She reported that he understood, but promised, “I will ask you again next year.”

I had to stop to breathe. I don’t know why that moved me so much.

But it is Giselle’s varied and often harried experiences that draw you in. Having to watch a Russian soldier bayonet a young mother in the crotch for fighting off his attempted rape and then stab her baby in the eyes with his bayonet has to be a life-changing trauma.

And then, on the other side of that same railway car that was supposedly carrying them away from this nasty war that had landed on their doorstep, to freedom, that same soldier turned from his fresh killings to where Giselle, then an 11-year-old child, huddled on one side of her mother while her little sisters held on to their mother on the other side. He raped the mother, who begged the children not to cry or the soldier would “do that to you too.”

To be spared death is not to be spared trauma. Well, it can’t get much more harrowing than that.

Such experiences are bound to mark you for life. That Giselle managed to survive that and more and come out a vibrant, intelligent, successful, full-fledged person speaks volumes about the strength of the human spirit.

Giselle’s descriptions of the exodus of thousands of Germans booted from their homes – twice in their case* – where people died and had to be left behind or die with them, be they old, sick, or just babies – by necessity conjures up the television images of today’s exodus out of Syria and Africa, and the resultant overwhelming population explosion in Europe. And this also in winter, which is coming on in Europe now (in more ways than one). We can thank God that the television exodus is probably the nearest we will come to such an experience.

*Once when driven out of their home, by invading Polish army units, they were given ten minutes to get out. One young soldier struck the mother across the back with his bayonet and she tumbled down the stairway. Such brutality was repeated and compounded throughout the war.

Then, just like life, life happened after the escape. So part one, family and life; part two, the war; part three, life on one’s own and on with (a) career(s). Not to mention more attempted rape and a dangerous liaison.

Giselle’s graphic descriptions of places, houses, rooms, beds, details, including the pictures they formed in my mind of wounds, crying, etc., are splendid.

Personally, I liked the family intro to the book. I had to leaf back to it a few times. But Giselle was careful to remind us who was who throughout. Well done. One upon the Dostoyevskys of the world with that.

And the prewar setup is good.

Have to admit, although Giselle’s writing and her personal touches kept me reading, I found myself impatient to get to the “REAL” part of the story: The war, the escape(s), the trials, etc. etc. etc.

This is a very timely memoir. Read it.

Share the compassion.

Patricia Banks, Artist/Writer from Nanaimo B.C. 2015

In all places, in all times throughout history, victims of abuses and other atrocities have been similarly warned to keep the truth silent, appallingly enabling the perpetrator’s free reign. History is full of accounts of villains and heroes, but little is known about common citizens, ultimately pawns in the unfolding drama and terror that becomes their day to day existence.

This true story is a welcome addition to understanding a tumultuous time in world history. It fills in the gaps and illuminates the details with unheard stories of one such family told through the experiences of one of its members. It is a tribute to the extraordinary strength, commitment and courage of one woman.

Giselle Roeder’s book is gripping and poignant. She engages the reader, leading them gently by the hand, on a whirlwind journey back through time to relive the events before, during and after WW2 that have shaped the lives of millions. She brings the truth out of the darkness for the benefit of all. An amazing story of optimism, hope, achievement, survival and triumph, in spite of the odds.

Ed Z, Qualicum Beach, B.C. 2015

Giselle, I read your book and finished it last week. I promptly passed it on to a German friend of mine to read also. What did I think? Well, it was an eye-opener to say the least!  You are a very brave & courageous woman to have put all your experiences in writing. To say that you are a survivor would be a gross understatement! I’m sure that there are millions of people worldwide that have no idea what really went on behind the scenes during and after WWII because “We don’t talk about that”!  Thank you for bringing your story to us.

Gerhard S., Vancouver, B.C.  2015.

Finally, I purchased your book. I started reading and couldn’t put it down. It isn’t just good it is very good. It is gripping, even though I have heard much of the story from you over the past twenty years. It is good to see the story did not change. It is well organized so that one knows who is who as we meet them over the years of age, old rural bliss, looming disaster, cataclysm and redemption.

You may have started a new genre with this book. It is not often we encounter a book showing fortitude and heroism amongst the despised losers of a bitter war, together with kernels of humanism remaining amongst the unspeakable brutality of vengeful victors when they encounter the only ones left: the innocent. Everyone should read it.

Liza B, Victoria, B.C. 2015

I was sitting at work and it is a little slow right now. Kathy sits across from me. At her desk are numerous Friesens Press books. I grabbed your book “We don’t talk about that” and even though I am only on page 66 I have never been more captivated by a book. By page 20 I had to interrupt Kathy twice to make her read parts out of the book. I have already had to tell numerous people about the book and what is happening. History has always intrigued me and to read about your childhood and your everyday experiences to how even Hitler came to power is fascinating. This book gives glimpses into the war and what was happening during that time that the Press and News never even touched on. I was hoping there was a picture section in the book but I was very happy to find the pictures on your website. I am a huge animal lover and get nervous when I start to read a part regarding animals. At times I have cringed (when the horses were shot during your dad’s first vehicle story) to identifying the bond between a person and animal (you and your horse) to compassion (how your family treated the cats with such love). I just wanted you to know that your book (even though I am not even half done) is an amazing read and I get a little grouchy when work comes onto my desk where I have to stop reading your book. Thank you for sharing your story with us.

No sooner had I written the above than I turned the page into the true horror of the book. I was shocked to know what the Russian soldiers had done to the Germans. You do not hear about that when you read and see the documentaries regarding WWII. As hard as it is to read the brutality of what occurred it has been a real eye-opener to events I never knew took place. Thank you Giselle for shedding light on a subject that so many people of tried to bury.

A recent on-line interview by another author, Caron Allan in the UK: 2015

https://caronallanfiction.wordpress.com/2015/02/10/author-interview-giselle-roeder/

 Lyn Alexander “a writer” (New Brunswick, Canada) – See all my reviews 2014

5.0 out of 5 stars

Survival to Triumph, Dec 22 2014

This review is from: We Don’t Talk about That – An Amazing Story of Survival (Paperback)
It’s been said in reviews already: This is an amazing chronicle. Roeder opens her story in the breathless voice of a child, recounting the wonder days of German farm life before Hitler’s war. The harsh world of Nazism only gradually brushed country life but closed down more tightly when the war began. Still, the war seemed far away, until the tide turned and the Russian army swept through Pomerania on their way to Berlin.
This is a strong story of endurance, of survival, of incredible horrors that no child should ever witness, and of going forward through tough determination out of the ashes of defeat to personal triumph. The writer’s voice matures with the story. The entire memoir is charged with energy, and with a unique perspective.
We need to remember the consequences of war. He who forgets the past is destined to repeat it. We see this everywhere today. We have not learned this lesson of history. We must.
Read this wonderful book, and remember.

 Raymond Walker (UK writer) – See all my reviews 2014

5 out of 5 stars

We should be talking about this., 22 Oct 2014

Ann Victoria Roberts (from amazon.co.uk) 2014

Bob Pickles (from Amazon.co.uk): 2014

Giselle Roeder’s book is a vital piece of the jigsaw of suffering in World War II (& representative of civilian suffering in all conflicts). It could well have been a story of the tragedy endured by Jews, Gypsies or Polish intelligentsia perpetrated by the Nazis. It is not: It is from the other viewpoint – that of a German family (Pomeranian) caught up in a relentless & ruthless revenge policy endorsed by Stalin himself by rampaging & victorious Russian troops determined to wreak havoc on a nation who so equally ravished their own country & population. Revenge is indeed violently exacted upon the females of all ages by the terrifying & simple phrase “Frau, Komm”. Anyone who knows their history will understand the terror behind these powerful two short words. Not since the Japanese visited their venom on the innocents of Nanking or Manilla has rapine acts of such propensity been perpetrated in so condensed a period or area.
Nonetheless, ‘Gila’ & her family endure, comfort & protect each other through all adversities of starvation & illness, separation & violence in its many forms to seek salvation & safety of a kind in the West Germany of post-war Europe. Gila’s subsequent determination to educate herself & find a satisfying & humanly rewarding career is inspirational to today’s doubting youngsters. If it were not so harrowing, it should be desired reading in schools & given the same historical literary importance as “The Diary of Anne Frank”. To be read alone with a strong drink perhaps – a fine testament to the unquenchable spirit of survival & hope with the help of a few ‘angels’ along the way. My only criticism is the abrupt ending which cries out for the developing story of Gila’s emigration to Canada & adventures & subsequent career & personal life there – we all like a happy ending!
Buy, read and learn the balance of history & why the current campaign supported by Angelina Jolie & others against rape in conflict is such an important but seemingly futile message of hope. “Without hope, we are but grains of sand washed into an ocean of despair”.

Ishbel C from Calgary writes: 2015

I want to tell you how much I am appreciating and enjoying  “We Don’t Talk About That”.

Joyce I from Nanaimo writes: 2015

Thank you for writing your book “We Don’t Talk About That”.

I loved reading about your relatives, especially your father and was so happy that he came home again. I did not realize that in Germany life under Hitler’s rule was so bad for his own people. I came from the “other side” so to speak were all we heard when growing up was that the Germans had bombed London. I had not realized throughout my life that the German people were also going through their own hell at that time.

I could not put your book down until I had finished it. I also came through the war years but at a younger age. I was born in 1940 – just in time for the bombing of London. We were evacuated to Wales when I was 2 years old. Our family was made up of five children 3 boys and 2 girls.

I emigrated to Canada when I was 24; stayed a year with my brother in Quebec then moved to Vancouver, B.C. I married a Dutchman. He was born in Rotterdam, and spent 4 years of the war in a work camp in Berlin, but, as in your book, would not talk too much about his experiences there, only that he was always hungry. He had to find his own way back home to Rotterdam when he became sick with pleurisy and was released.

Giselle J from Prince Rupert, BC: 2015

I just finished reading your book (We Don’t Talk About That) and want to thank you for writing it – and for “talking about that”. I have to admit, I couldn’t put it down for the last 100 pages so haven’t accomplished much in the last 5 hours, other than reading! My parents came to Canada from West Berlin in 1956 and I will share your book with them. When I was growing up in NW BC, we had a German family living two doors down from us. The wife grew up in East Prussia and she too never talked about what happened when the Russians came. My dad was in Berlin when the Russians came and he too doesn’t talk about that. Thank you for breaking the silence!

George H: www.george-hopkins.com from Staten Island, NY: 2015

We recently returned from a trip which included a visit to a work camp in Berlin. I was surprised to hear about the atrocities the Russians performed after WWII when they took over the camp. Your story should be told and read by all. Congratulations and best wishes. “We Don’t Talk About That” is a winner and thank you for sharing it with all of us.

Claudette C from Nanaimo: 2015

“We Don’t Talk About That” is such a courageous act of storytelling and yet must be told for all the world to hear and believe the effects of war depicted daily on the news today. We sit safely engaged on a daily basis with the horrific pictures we are shown on television than read Giselle Roeder’s book and our emotions are rocked to the core of our beings; for this story leads us deep inside the world of people subjected to the real-life impact of war.
Giselle’s courage & candid telling of such shocking events must not be ignored. Anyone who reads her story will never be able to forget what innocent victims of war have to endure.
This is a call to arms for an end to atrocities carried out in the name of freedom. What appears as a fight for national freedom is shown in this book as an opportunity for committing such atrocities against humankind that do not bear knowing about, let alone telling about as this amazing author, Giselle Roeder has done.
I weep as I read, but must find the courage to continue as the courage it takes to read is dwarfed in comparison to the courage to tell & print the story.

Sue G from the UK: 2015

Giselle, I finished your book a week or so ago. I enjoyed it immensely, though enjoying is probably not quite the right word.  I am amazed by your recall of such details (though I guess so many events were quite clearly etched on your memory), and your synopsis of the origins of WWII was the finest I’ve ever read.  I can only assume as it finished so abruptly that you have left the door open for a continuation?  I shall certainly pass it on to friends to read, and I do hope you have great success with it.  I have enormous admiration for you undertaking what must have been a real effort to re-live, and perhaps you have found it cathartic in the process?  I shall be very interested to hear other views and comments, so keep me posted.

Eastern Reader (from Amazon.com): 2015

This is a book that you cannot put down. It is the true story of a young woman’s survival through war, famine and serious illnesses. It begins with her account of her childhood on a large farm with her multi-generational family in Germany prior to and during the start of WWII. The true story is told by the author who witnessed horrific events, escaping the threats of arrest and death, overcoming the loss of close relatives, and all of her family property. In spite of or perhaps because of these horrific experiences, she was so resilient that she did not lose her sense of humour for long and grew up learning many skills along the way, to become a self-reliant strong woman. There is a hint at the end of the book that she will start a new life, a little obvious that there will be a sequel and yet, leaving the reader a bit up in the air.

Stephanie H from the UK: 2015

I really want to say how much I enjoyed reading your book.  It was certainly a story to tell but your recall is amazing and I cannot begin to imagine what it must have been like growing up in those difficult times.  Quite an eye-opener for me as I had no idea what was going on in Germany, Poland and Russia.  Having not been born until after the war it was not something that I ever heard about so that made it all the more incredible somehow.

Thank you again for sending me an autographed copy which will be much treasured and is already in demand by friends who want to borrow it and read your amazing story.  The way it finished fairly abruptly makes me wonder if you are planning on a sequel?  Anyway, well done for writing it.

Michele G from London, Ontario: 2015

I loved every minute of reading this book. How brave of Giselle to sit down and go through all her memories again, in order to share this wonderfully written book with the world. The quality of a good book for me is when it can make you laugh, cry, count your blessings, and not want it to come to an end. This book achieved all of those things. I have learned over my lifetime, that everyone has a story and some will share that story and some won’t. I’m glad that you shared your story, Giselle and hope that many have a chance to read it.

 Jim C from Nanaimo: 2015

I very much enjoyed your story. You truly were a wonder and a very brave person to boot. Thank you for sharing as it certainly has enlightened me on the times and the things people had to put up with in Europe during those troubled times. Looking forward to the next chapter in your saga.

Suzanne B from Nanaimo: 2015

I finished your book and absolutely loved it.  What a life you had, and you have such a talent to write about it.  I have learned many things that were never covered by the media. Of course, I knew about East and West Germany and the Berlin Wall, but not in such detail and from a personal account.

Congratulations and the best of success.  2 thumbs up.

John D from Qualicum Beach, BC: 2015

I read your book in 3 days. That about sums it up. I was so intrigued by your story that I just had to keep reading. Please let me know when the follow up is published. Thank you for taking the time and energy in the writing. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Laurie G from Nanaimo: 2015

A totally amazing book, I couldn’t put it down. I laughed, I cried. Thank you for sharing your story with the world. I tell everyone about it. I can’t wait for the second book.

James K from Castlegar, BC: 2015

We Don’t Talk About That is a truly remarkable book that reads like the cinematic unravelling of a Steven Spielberg movie. I am reading it aloud to my wife, Marge, and we are now up to chapter 14. We brought Kleenex for our tears. I am obviously so deeply moved by this true story that at times the writing takes my breath away and I have to stop reading. Our hearts are overflowing each day with the author’s courage and initiative as a child in the war. The real child depicted in the story certainly was enterprising in her search for food and friendly contacts who might help her family, and as a result, she saved lives.

 Celine A: 2014

Hello Giselle,  I just wanted to tell you that I just finished reading your book and that I thoroughly enjoyed it. I could not put it down. I was disappointed when I got to the end, I wanted to read more. Congratulations on such a wonderful book.

 Jocelyne P from Montreal: 2014

Back from cruise – and LOVED your book.  A real page-turner. I couldn’t put
it down.  Bought it from Amazon and it’s on my Kindle reader on my iPad. I
was wondering about the last page.  Is it meant to end with the paragraph
‘puzzled and uncertain’? If so, are you planning a sequel?

[GR: The “puzzled and uncertain” paragraph is part of the excerpt from my sequel.]

Margaret P from Nanaimo: 2014

I started to read “We Don’t Talk About That” and never stopped until I finished it. I found it riveting. Written by this mostly self-educated, German by birth author in excellent English, her memoirs of her family and herself determined to survive WW II and the post-war years by sheer will and ingenuity, under enormous odds against success, is a testimony to the human spirit’s ability to conquer the odds..
There is a sequel coming and I can’t wait to read it.

Robert F from Winnipeg: 2014

What gripped me is that a woman I have known for 40 years has experienced this first hand and she never told me anything about it. I learned what great lengths people will go to in order to survive horrors that most people will never experience. I will tell friends about this detailed personalized story about the horrors of war. How the book is very frank in its graphic descriptions about the life of a German family which draws the reader into a personal connection with the author as the book is believable.

Colleen M from Nanoose Bay: 2014

A book hard to put down. How did she ever survive? It relates the author’s life before, during and after WWII. I think the readers will learn things that the average person in North America never learned in school or read in Newspaper; about how the war affected thousands of families, not just the Jews, and not just the Nazis. I like the fact that the book is not “just” about the war. It covers not only the innocent childhood memories and the fears and atrocities encountered during the Russian invasion, but the creation of the two German States, the author’s life after the war and how she survived, became successful and overcame even more difficult situations in her young adulthood before, finally, making a monumental decision to leave Germany and come to Canada. I recommend the book highly because of learning a part of history that people to this day don’t want to “Talk About” and at the same time for the entertainment value that touches your heart.

Eric M R from Winnipeg: 2014

I was blown away by descriptions of events during the war as seen through a young German girl’s eyes. It opened my mind to what ordinary German families endured and went through during WWII. The book tells an amazing story of an innocent eleven-year-old girl who persevered through some horrible events during the war and made her into a strong successful woman. The book is one of those that you just can’t put down – like watching a movie.

Geri B from Parksville: 2014

The graphic horrors of war told in a realistic, sometimes even distanced way as experienced by a young girl. I was touched by the ability of the human spirit to do what it takes to survive.

 Island bookie (from Amazon.com)

A must read!, May 16, 2014

I have been privileged to read an early manuscript of this gripping story of survival. It is easy to understand the reluctance of so many women to talk about their experiences during and immediately following a war. This author has demonstrated great courage in taking on the task of recording what others will not talk about. The book relates both her experiences as a young child in a war-torn country and her subsequent experiences as a young adult including an unwanted affair, being stalked, being confronted by a rapist which drove her to find escape in emigration.

Linda B from Seattle, Washington:

I just finished this book. It is very good although I have to admit I did find it difficult to read of the experiences from an emotional perspective. This is a great book written by a very courageous woman who actually lived it. Very interesting, sometimes funny, sometimes horrific. A truly incredible story. The author is an amazing woman and I am in awe of her bravery in sharing her story.