Official Review: Prague: My Long Journey Home

NadineTimes10 · Post by **NadineTimes10** » 01 Oct 2016, 23:52

[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Prague: My Long Journey Home" by Charles Ota Heller.]

4 out of 4 stars

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There’s value in reading about events in history from different perspectives. The more countries, cultures, and races of people there are involved, then the more sides there are from which to view those events. In his memoir, Prague: My Long Journey Home, author Charles Ota Heller tells a story of World War II, the Holocaust, and immigration to the United States from his unique perspective.

Yet, it might be somewhat limiting to indicate that the perspective is the author’s alone. In the book, Heller gives a rather extensive and insightful layout of history concerning his native country of Czechoslovakia. (The country has since split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia, or the Slovak Republic.) The author also includes many important details of his family’s history.

Hence, one doesn’t only get the sense of reading the story of the author, the man born Ota Karel Heller. One also gets the sense of reading the story of his family, his country, and the WWII experiences of the Jewish people and families of mixed religions. In the Preface, the author conveys how crucial it is for him to share his account; before too long, there will be no more eyewitnesses or people with firsthand knowledge of the Holocaust.

Admittedly, I’m not a reader of many memoirs, but this one pulled me in much like a literary novel. Chapter One begins with a gripping scene, and then the author goes on to paint a charming and rich picture of Kojetice, the village where he grew up right outside of Prague. The chapter opens in present tense as it sets the tone for the story, and the following switch into past tense is fitting and natural. It’s interesting to see how the author views conditions in his country, the initial ideas he has of America, and how his ideas shift the longer he lives in the U.S. Then, even with all of the historical material the author incorporates into the book, he doesn’t fail to bring his personal story full circle. In this way, he not only depicts his outward, international journey but also his inward journey as a person.

In the beginning, I found the reading a bit bumpy due to the awkward usage of commas. Also, as the author makes certain explanations more than once in the book, I wasn’t sure whether or not the repetition is intentional. Otherwise, I didn’t find anything that put a hitch in the flow of the reading.

This memoir is at once informative, layered, heartrending, and inspiring. Therefore, I give Prague: My Long Journey Home a rating of 4 out of 4 stars. I’d recommend it to readers of biographies and narrative nonfiction, as well as to fans of literary and historical fiction. More broadly, I believe that anyone who values remembering and learning from history can appreciate this book.

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Prague: My Long Journey Home
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karolinka · Post by **karolinka** » 13 Oct 2016, 18:18

I really like your review! I come from Prague, so I welcome any books of this topic. This one sounds interesting- even though the dark events that the Jews went through are hard to read.

Moizajani · Post by **Moizajani** » 13 Oct 2016, 18:23

Sounds interesting. Thank you for the insightful review!

AA1495 · Post by **AA1495** » 14 Oct 2016, 10:15

I'm glad you enjoyed reading it. Thank you for the great review!

NadineTimes10 · Post by **NadineTimes10** » 14 Oct 2016, 13:59

karolinka wrote:I really like your review! I come from Prague, so I welcome any books of this topic. This one sounds interesting- even though the dark events that the Jews went through are hard to read.

Yes, books like this aren't light or easy reads, though I'd ultimately find it harder not to read some of them. I'd feel like I was being left in the dark.

How interesting that you're from Prague! I appreciated how much of the city's and country's history the other included in the book, giving a wider scope to his individual experience.

-- Fri Oct 14, 2016 11:00 am --

Moizajani wrote:Sounds interesting. Thank you for the insightful review!

My pleasure.

-- Fri Oct 14, 2016 11:01 am --

AA1495 wrote:I'm glad you enjoyed reading it. Thank you for the great review!

You're welcome! I was fortunate to come across this one.

karolinka · Post by **karolinka** » 15 Oct 2016, 13:15

Yes, definitely not a light read, like you said, but a piece of history nevertheless. People must remember the atrocities that the Jews went through in the hands of the Nazis, so history doesn't repeat itself.

NadineTimes10 · Post by **NadineTimes10** » 15 Oct 2016, 14:02

karolinka wrote:Yes, definitely not a light read, like you said, but a piece of history nevertheless. People must remember the atrocities that the Jews went through in the hands of the Nazis, so history doesn't repeat itself.

I absolutely agree.

CDJ · Post by **CDJ** » 19 Oct 2016, 11:20

This was a good review, I loved that you made reference to the fact that the author made historical references (which I love books that do that). I also like that you mentioned the rich picture the author painted of his town, it makes me want to jump in and read it. Another interesting point you made regarding the book is that it appears to span a few years,which is always good for me when reading. I think I may add this to my reading list. Thanks again for the great review

NadineTimes10 · Post by **NadineTimes10** » 19 Oct 2016, 12:45

CDJ wrote:This was a good review, I loved that you made reference to the fact that the author made historical references (which I love books that do that). I also like that you mentioned the rich picture the author painted of his town, it makes me want to jump in and read it. Another interesting point you made regarding the book is that it appears to span a few years,which is always good for me when reading. I think I may add this to my reading list. Thanks again for the great review

Oh, you're welcome--I'm glad you find it interesting!