A Place to Hide
A Place to Hide by Ronald H Balson
304 Pages
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Release Date: September 17, 2024
Fiction (Adult), General Fiction (Adult), Historical Fiction (Adult), World War II, Amsterdam
Karyn Sachnoff is out with her grandchildren when they literally drops a doughnut on a man’s stack of papers. Burt Franklin hears Karyn’s her accent and asks if she is Dutch. He begins to ask about her childhood and her family. Karyn tells him that she was not raised by her parents. She also tells him about her missing sister, Annie. He tells her about his cousin, Theodore “Teddy” Hartigan, an American who worked for the State Department in Amsterdam during the second World War. He suggests that maybe she could talk with Teddy and maybe he would be able to help her locate Annie. Karyn meets Teddy, an old grouchy man. He makes a deal with her. He will look for her sister if she will listen to and publish, his memoir so he can pass it on to his grandchildren.
Teddy begins his story as an analyst working in a basement in Washington, D.C. engaged to his childhood sweetheart Betty. He is called to the State Department headquarters and told there is an opening in Amsterdam, and he is the perfect candidate. The catch is he must leave within two weeks. Betty is not interested in going. She tells him he is being selfish making the decision to go without consulting her. He really did not have a choice – go to lose his job in the State Department.
Once he arrives in Amsterdam, he is overwhelmed with the long lines of people trying to get visas to the United States. There are so many trying to flee Europe since Hilter’s rise. His coworker, Julie, suggests he goes out with her friend, Sara, for New Year’s Eve. There is an instant connection between them. Sara is Jewish and with the German’s proceeding across Europe, tensions begin to grow. Teddy is frustrated by the lack of aid he can provide. He begins work helping Jewish families escape before they are taken to camps.
The book has a steady pace, and the characters are very developed. The book is written as Teddy tells Karyn his story. This is a powerful story that will grab you from the first page and will not let you go until you reach the last. If you like historical fiction, you will enjoy reading this.
