Eleven of us met on Zoom to discuss Forty Autumns: A
Family’s Story of Courage and Survival on Both Sides of the Berlin Wall, by
Nina Willner. The conversation began with some personal sharing about family members
who had lived near the wall, mostly in what was called “East Berlin.” Carol
noted that many people had to quit their religious affiliations to survive the
Communist control in East Berlin, and many others gave up their jobs to keep
their religions. Pam led the discussion and asked us to imagine what it must
have been like to live in East Berlin in 1945 without leaving. Along the same
line, she noted that a lot of people left, resulting in a recognized “brain
drain” from East Berlin. Lydia noted that Japan’s population currently
comprises more aged adults than children and that those who were able to leave
East Germany were those who were wealthy enough to make the transition. Those who
were more wealthy, in many cases, had better education than those who were less
wealthy, also contributing to the brain drain.
People leaving East Germany reminded me of the refugee
situations all over the world today and the first time I read about the “population
explosion.” Ken knew that it was Paul R. Ehrlich who had introduced the world to
the population explosion, in his 1968 book, The Population Bomb. Cindy
brought up information she had seen in conjunction with reading Forty Autumns and
seeing video that explained that after World War I, Germany was indebted to the
world. Carla added that with Germany being dunned for those war debts, the
Germany economy was decimated. This left the door open for Hitler to enter the
scene with his propaganda about the Germans as a superior race and to begin
grooming Germany for what resulted in World War II. This is a bit of history in
a nutshell for our blog!
Pam read the next discussion question, which asked why some
people in the family central to Forty Autumns were more comfortable
staying in East Germany and others fled. Joyce had a psychological
interpretation of the situation, based on her studies of child development. She
said that siblings grow up in different worlds (internal worlds) from each
other, especially siblings of opposite sexes. They can also differ from each
other in many ways. Carla said that some people prefer to stay with what they
know, rather than trying something unfamiliar. Flo said that when the times bring
new societal changes, some people prefer staying with the status quo.
Shirley called Forty Autumns “eye-opening.” This
statement matched well with Pam’s first discussion question to us: What did you
learn that you hadn’t known before? I know some of our members are better in
touch with American history than others. I seem to have learned more about specific
episodes in history from historical novels and our book discussions than from
history classes. Historical novels have more relatable background information.
In a novel, the perspective around a historical event or story becomes more
finite than in a history class, so the material in the novel is easier to
understand. Forty Autumns is a memoir that reads like a novel.
The end of our discussion covered a lot of modern topics of
history-in-the-making, mixed with some references to the time when the Berlin
wall was standing. Thanks also to Pam for this book discussion, numerous nominations
of great reads, and help with Book Club matters, especially our current, still
somewhat new, nominating system. We will miss Pam and wish her good luck with
her changing lifestyle.
I’m always impressed and thankful for the thoughts, comments,
and insights that Book Club members offer during our discussions. Because I
write the blog posts, I revisit our discussions, and I notice their substantial
value every month!
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