{"product_id":"forty-autumns-a-familys-story-of-courage-and-survival-on-both-sides-of-the-berlin-wall-isbn-9780062410313","title":"Forty Autumns: A Family's Story of Courage and Survival on Both Sides of the Berlin Wall","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eIn this illuminating and deeply moving memoir, a former American military intelligence officer goes beyond traditional Cold War espionage tales to tell the true story of her family—of five women separated by the Iron Curtain for more than forty years, and their miraculous reunion after the fall of the Berlin Wall.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eForty\u003c\/em\u003e \u003cem\u003eAutumns\u003c\/em\u003e makes visceral the pain and longing of one family forced to live apart in a world divided by two. At twenty, Hanna escaped from East to West Germany. But the price of freedom—leaving behind her parents, eight siblings, and family home—was heartbreaking. Uprooted, Hanna eventually moved to America, where she settled down with her husband and had children of her own. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eGrowing up near Washington, D.C., Hanna’s daughter, Nina Willner became the first female Army Intelligence Officer to lead sensitive intelligence operations in East Berlin at the height of the Cold War. Though only a few miles separated American Nina and her German relatives—grandmother Oma, Aunt Heidi, and cousin, Cordula, a member of the East German Olympic training team—a bitter political war kept them apart. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn \u003cem\u003eForty Autumns\u003c\/em\u003e, Nina recounts her family’s story—five ordinary lives buffeted by circumstances beyond their control. She takes us deep into the tumultuous and terrifying world of East Germany under Communist rule, revealing both the cruel reality her relatives endured and her own experiences as an intelligence officer, running secret operations behind the Berlin Wall that put her life at risk. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA personal look at a tenuous era that divided a city and a nation, and continues to haunt us, \u003cem\u003eForty Autumns\u003c\/em\u003e is an intimate and beautifully written story of courage, resilience, and love—of five women whose spirits could not be broken, and who fought to preserve what matters most: family. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eForty Autumns\u003c\/em\u003e is illustrated with dozens of black-and-white and color photographs.\u003c\/p\u003e | \u003cp\u003eIn this illuminating and deeply moving eyewitness account of history, a former military intelligence officer shares the true story of her family: Americans and East Germans, caught up in a Cold War drama—sisters, mothers, daughters, and cousins separated by the Iron Curtain for forty years, and their miraculous reunion after the fall of the Berlin Wall.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eGrowing up in a provincial country village outside of Berlin, Hanna was encouraged by her schoolteacher father to learn about life beyond their small town and to follow her dreams. “The world is infinitely vast and full of wonder,” he told her, fueling young Hanna’s imagination. But at the end of World War II, the Soviets took control of the eastern part of Germany and established a repressive communist satellite state—East Germany—which used brutal force and a massive wall to cut off East from West. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eDetermined to live free, Hanna made a dangerous escape to West Germany. But the price of freedom—leaving behind her parents, her eight siblings, and her home—was heartbreaking. Uprooted, Hanna eventually moved to America, where she settled down with her husband, a U.S. Army officer, and had children of her own, but she never forgot her parents and siblings trapped on the other side of the Berlin Wall. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThroughout the Cold War, the West knew little about East Germany, except that it was a bleak authoritarian state ruled by a communist dictator, controlled by ruthless secret police, and that it was a staging ground for Soviet aggression into the West. Growing up near Washington, D.C., Hanna’s daughter, Nina Willner, became the first female U.S. Army intelligence officer to lead sensitive intelligence collection operations in East Berlin at the height of the Cold War. Though separated by only a few miles, American Nina and her German relatives—a large family that included her aunt Heidi and her cousin Cordula, a member of the East German Olympic training team—were kept apart for more than four decades by a bitter political war.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eForty Autumns\u003c\/em\u003e brings into focus these five resolute women who fought to preserve what matters most—three generations whose lives embodied one nation’s birth and demise. Nina takes us deep into the tumultuous and terrifying world of East Germany under communist rule, revealing both the harsh reality her relatives endured and her experiences as an intelligence officer running secret operations behind the Berlin Wall that put her life at risk.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eReminiscent of the international bestseller \u003cem\u003eWild Swans, Forty Autumns\u003c\/em\u003e is an intimate and beautifully written account of unbending faith, unwavering determination, the enduring power of the human spirit, the constant longing for reunion and unification, and a personal look at a tenuous era that divided a city, a nation, and the world—and continues to haunt us today.\u003c\/p\u003e | \u003cp\u003e“Excellent and intriguing.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eLibrary Journal (starred review)\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Meticulous and compassionate.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eChicago Tribune\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“A thrilling and relevant read for historians and casual readers alike.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“A poignant parable of hope and, at times, a harrowing ghost story.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eChristian Science Monitor, Top 15 Nonfiction Books of 2016\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"A poignant and engrossing, occasionally harrowing, family memoir.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“A page-turner\u003ci\u003e.”\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“A family frozen in time.”  - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003e“Heart-wrenching … life-affirming.”\u003c\/i\u003e - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Jewish Chronicle\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“A family story of living through the worst of times.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eManhattan Book Review (5 Star Review)\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Incredibly well-written, and important, a testament to humanity and courage.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eLitHub\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“An informative and timely read. In this increasingly tumultuous modern era when borders, both theoretical and physical, have once again become the front lines of critical issues such as immigration reform, pervasive prejudice and terrorism, stories like Willner’s are especially important.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBookReporter\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“A must read.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eLieutenant General Thomas Griffin, USA (Ret.), Commander, Berlin Brigade during Cold War (1983-86)\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e[A] moving account of one family’s life under tyranny… Willner’s sensitive and well-written account causes us to reflect on what is really important to us and how we would react in a similar situation.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBookPage\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"William Morrow","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44888316412133,"sku":"NP9780062410313","price":27.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780062410313.jpg?v=1730228807","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/forty-autumns-a-familys-story-of-courage-and-survival-on-both-sides-of-the-berlin-wall-isbn-9780062410313","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}