WAR STORY by Rolf C. Margenau is a tale about World War II – the most devastating armed conflict in history. The author describes it through the viewpoints of four characters, each of whom has personal stakes in the war with Nazi Germany. Joachim is a child of German immigrants, growing up in the United States during wartime. His uncle Horst Neumann is a German tank commander captured by the Allies and taken to the United States as a prisoner of war. Liesel Mannheim is a female aviator delivering warplanes to airfields in Britain. Finally, there’s Paul Schafer, an engineer who takes part in some of the most significant covert operations of the war.
By all rights, Paul’s story should have been the most exciting one. It involves daring air raids, missions into hostile territory, Nazi rockets, and more. However, historians and writers have thoroughly examined events like these over the last seven decades, ironically making them feel most familiar. Fortunately, other narratives offer a glimpse into less well-known yet equally fascinating aspects of the war. Through Joachim’s eyes, we experience the home front in the US. Through Horst, we learn how the United States treated German prisoners of war. Liesel’s story examines an oft-overlooked history of Allied female pilots – as brave and capable as any of their male counterparts.
If there is a flaw within WAR STORY, it lies in the way it tells its tale. The novel repeatedly explains how characters feel instead of making readers experience their mental state. In turn, this inadvertently produces a certain detachment between the characters and the readers. It is as if the author is in such a hurry to describe all these extraordinary events, he doesn’t have time for us to grasp their full emotional impact. But honestly, who could blame him? World War II was a stage for a million stories – tragic, comedic, horrific, and poignant. Reading Margenau’s novel, you can feel his eagerness to relate at least some of them to his readers. For the most part, he succeeds with plenty of drama, danger, tragedy, and romance.
Using sympathetic characters and brisk storytelling, Rolf C. Margenau’s WAR STORY offers readers a fascinating glimpse into overlooked events of World War II, making history feel immediate and captivating.
~Danijel Štriga for IndieReader