The Missing Peace of a Heritage Puzzle: A Memoir Uniquely Set in a Vanished Sudetenland (Paperback)

~ Frank Koerner (Author)
Key Phrases: missing peace, Heritage Puzzle, World War, Aunt Marie (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Frank Koerner sought to demystify the homeland of his parents, which “vanished” when he was a child. He journeyed there and what he found was magically fascinating. This book recounts his discoveries, flavored by their intriguing happenstances. The vignettes are written with a commendable command of language and style. Mr. Koerner smartly balances personal emotions and reactions with historical information, while presenting a clear depiction of his trip overseas. Each recounted tale occurred during less than a week’s stay in that faraway land which no longer “exists.” Why is he drawn to a region from which people of his heritage are vengefully banned in perpetuity? His marvelous ability to depict a personal anecdote or memory to highlight its timelessness and universality is remarkable. Most of this book’s chapters have been separately published in seventeen separate publications in Canada, Germany, and the United States. The articles have appeared in English and German.

“No article speaks louder or clearer about how closely we are rooted to our old homeland, the land of our forefathers! Please read the serialized ‘Talk of the Town’ and read it many times in its connected entirety! And please take the time to ensure that your grandchildren do the same!”—Erich Eichler, former Editor-in-Chief, Heimatbote Magazine, Nuremberg, Germany

“The well-written article about ‘Evangeline’ touched me deeply.”—Juri Klugmann, Publisher, Deutsche Rundschau, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

“I’m glad (The Journal of Religion and Psychical Research) published your ‘Déjà Vu’ article. Rarely does one find such good documentation with the great photos!”—Rhea White, Editor, Exceptional Human Experience Network (www.ehe.org), New Bern, North Carolina

“The ‘Beat of a Different Drummer’ is a fascinating account; you’ll enjoy the lively writing style taking you into a vibrant Moravian town 80 years ago.”—Lois Edwards, Editor, Germanic Genealogy Journal, St. Paul, Minnesota

“A most extraordinary presentation, not the least of which is that the ‘Talk of the Town’ article contains passages that will really grab the audience by serving a correspondingly representative role (i.e., one can replace Benke with (the name of) any other village in Sudetenland).”—Gernot Wildt, former Chief Editor, Sudetendeutsche Zeitung, Munich, Germany

About the Author

Frank Koerner (B.S. Physics, Juris Doctorate) was born and raised in New Jersey, but his heritage lies in Moravia. He is a cyber security analyst, having published many technical articles in that arena. He lives in San Diego, CA with his wife Elke and their two cats, Fussi and Missy.

Product Details

• Paperback: 196 pages
• Publisher: iUniverse, Inc. (March 29, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0595333443
• ISBN-13: 978-0595333448
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #163,435 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Barbara Smith, July 25, 2005

By	Barbara Smith "Barb" (California) - See all my reviews

I sat down on Saturday morning around 11:00am to read all my mail, etc. that had piled up over the week and there was your book. I started to read and couldn't put it down. I finished it around 7:00pm. It was absolutely wonderful. My mind was consumed for several days just thinking of my childhood and how it "connected" to all that went on in my life during that timeframe. I remember it vividly, the blackouts, the air raids. But like you I couldn't understand because I was too young.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Missing Peace of a Heritage Puzzle, July 13, 2005

By	Marshia Osterhus - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

In "The Missing Peace of a Heritage Puzzle", Frank Koerner brought alive, via chronological stories, his parents' heritage and homeland, which had vanished in 1946. To recapture his parents' homeland, these spellbinding stories include history and emotion from a trip that was made fifty years after the Sudetenland's extinction. No one before has taken on this task in such great detail and with such insight and storytelling ability. "A Flight of Fancy, The Talk of the Town, A Sampler of Ethnic Cleansing, and The Plot of the Mystery" are only a few of the many unique stories where the reader can appreciate the author's unique writing ability. This is a deeply human story of bravery and love, and lost heritage to be sure, but also of the struggle to carry on and function despite the anguish of despair. If you are tempted to read this book, you will certainly love it and will want to curl up by a cozy fire, not putting it down until "the very end".

By,
Marshia Osterhus

5.0 out of 5 stars An honest and frank memoir, October 9, 2009

By	Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

One week can make all the difference in the world. "The Missing Peace of a Heritage Puzzle: A Memoir Uniquely Set in a Vanished Sudetenland" is the reflections of a single week in Frank Koerner's life where everything about his life seemed to change. An honest and frank memoir that Koerner hopes will inspire other readers, he holds fast that you don't need to be famous to have an autobiography, and "The Missing Peace of a Heritage Puzzle" is his evidence.