by Hans J. Massaquoi

This is a story of the unexpected. The son of a prominent African and a German nurse, Hans remained behind with his mother when Hitler came to power, due to concerns about his fragile health, after his father returned to Liberia. Like other German boys, he swiftly fell under the Fuhrer's spell. He was crushed to learn that, as a black child, he was ineligible for the Hitler Youth. His path to a secondary education and an eventual profession was blocked. His account of this lonely struggle for survival brims with courage and intelligence.