Tug of War - Softcover

It is late 1944, and the Russian advance is about to sweep across Latvia on its way to Germany. For Professor Lukas Petersons, Russian occupation will mean deportation to Siberia. Although he dislikes the fascist German government as well, he decides to take his family and flee before the Russian advance. Told from the point of view of his oldest children, 14-year-old twins Hugo and Astra, this book illustrates the fear and confusion felt by refugees in war time. In the surge of desperate humanity that greets one of the trains they must take, Hugo is separated from the others. Battered and bleeding, he is helped onto another train that takes him to Hamburg. There he is sheltered by a kindly German family even though his injury and subsequent illness keep him from being able to tell them anything about himself. The story alternates between Astra and the family, living in a refugee camp, scrounging for food, and always hoping to find Hugo; and Hugo's experiences, thinking his family has died, and falling in love with the daughter of his benefactors. After the war has ended and by sheer luck, Astra and Hugo finally find each other, and Hugo is faced with a cruel choice: rejoin his family and travel with them to a new life in Canada, or stay in Germany with the woman he loves. Hugo is the strongest character in a large cast of weak ones. The structure is flawed, with themes abruptly appearing and disappearing. The alternating storyline becomes annoying, and it is easy to resent time spent away from Hugo. Still, books about Latvia and its recent history are rare. Libraries in communities in which there is a strong Baltic heritage may find this book of interest. --Susan M. Harding, Mesquite Pub . Lib . , TX
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

This dramatic, gripping novel focuses on teenage twins in a Latvian family who become separated as they flee the advancing Russian Army during WW II. Ages 12-up.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.