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Full Description
Germany invaded the Netherlands in the spring of 1940. Life in occupied Holland was hideous enough, but for the Dutch the worst was yet to come. After the Western Allies lost the Battle of Arnhem in September 1944, the Dutch provinces north of the Rhine and Waal Rivers were in the hands of the Germans, and to the south fighting raged for months. In the winter of 1944-45, just as other parts of Europe were being liberated, the Dutch seemed forsaken by the Allies, who bypassed Holland on their drive to Berlin. That last winter of the war, with its severe food and fuel shortages, was a terrible one for the Dutch people, who also suffered from episodes of Nazi terrorism. In some provinces there was nothing to eat but tulip bulbs and sugar beets, and eighteen thousand Dutch civilians actually starved to death. Henri van der Zee, who was ten years old that winter, remembers what happened to his people.
Contents
"The Hunger Winter amounts to a general history of the Netherlands and its government during its nine months of waiting [for liberation from the Nazis], with the emphasis often most literally on what it felt like... [The story] moves along well, with much natural tragedy, pathos, and drama." Times Literary Supplement."The author ... makes deft use of his own recollections without letting them upset the balance of his book."--The Economist."Henri Van der Zee's book offers a variety of perspectives on the civilian experience of the German occupation of Holland during the winter of 1944-1945 and the famine that resulted from it. The author himself was a child in Hilversum at the time, and personal memories are accompanied by extracts from diaries and letters written by other civilians, as well as information concerning military and political developments that affected both the food supply to and liberation of occupied Holland... very readable." -- The Wish Stream, Summer 1999
