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LissaBeth21 (6 KP) rated Churchill - The Gathering Storm (2002) in Movies
Jan 8, 2018
ClareR (5561 KP) rated Madgermanes in Books
Feb 20, 2022
This is a really interesting period of history (for me, anyway!) and I enjoyed finding out about the ‘Madgermanes” or the Mozambicans who went to work in East Germany. After the wall between East and West Germany was erected, East Germany realised that they’d lost a lot of their workers to the West. So East Germany chose Mozambique as a sister country, and workers were sent to the GDR with promises of education, good work and good wages. Whilst they did get some education (if they largely sorted it out for themselves), the work could be simple and repetitive. What’s more, they only received half of their wages. They never got the half that had been sent back to Mozambique for ‘safekeeping’.
Housing for these visiting workers was usually in basic hostels, shared rooms, and away from the East Germans. Mixing was discouraged, as were relationships. Pregnancies were either terminated or the woman was sent home.
The pictures in the book are a wonderful mix of African and European, and some really big feelings are clearly illustrated. I loved it. I’d be really interested to know how many Mozambicans were able to stay in Germany and become German citizens. The novel implies that life was difficult for those who returned to Mozambique, financially, socially and culturally.
It’s a fascinating read, and one I’d recommend.
Housing for these visiting workers was usually in basic hostels, shared rooms, and away from the East Germans. Mixing was discouraged, as were relationships. Pregnancies were either terminated or the woman was sent home.
The pictures in the book are a wonderful mix of African and European, and some really big feelings are clearly illustrated. I loved it. I’d be really interested to know how many Mozambicans were able to stay in Germany and become German citizens. The novel implies that life was difficult for those who returned to Mozambique, financially, socially and culturally.
It’s a fascinating read, and one I’d recommend.
Heather Heatso Culbertson (295 KP) rated The Oscar Nominated Short Films 2018: Live Action (2018) in Movies
Jul 26, 2018
Alan Hollinghurst recommended The Blue Flower in Books (curated)
Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2067 KP) rated His Majesty's Hope (Maggie Hope Mystery, #3) in Books
Mar 9, 2018
Maggie is dropped in Nazi Germany to plant a bug in her mother's house - the mother she thought was dead. But along the way, she'll meet her half sister and get caught up in the horrors of Germany in 1941. As always with the series, I was pulled into another time and place with very real characters while I was reading. A few flaws (same ones as the two previous in the series), but for the most part I enjoyed this book.
Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2013/05/book-review-his-majestys-hope-by-susan.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2013/05/book-review-his-majestys-hope-by-susan.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
The Chocolate Lady (94 KP) rated Visitation in Books
Oct 5, 2020
This beautifully haunting tale looks at the era before, during and after WWII from a completely different angle - that of a plot of land in Germany. You can read my full review here https://tcl-bookreviews.com/2015/02/20/a-plot-on-a-plot-of-land/
Erika (17788 KP) rated Good Bye, Lenin! (2004) in Movies
Jan 29, 2018
Joao Pedro Rodrigues recommended All That Heaven Allows (1955) in Movies (curated)
