Boiling Springs, PA | Sunsbury Press (December 1, 2020)

Paperback.

One Woman’s Remarkable Escape from Nazi Germany.

The peaceful farm life of a teenage girl in Germany is abruptly upended when WWII comes knocking at her family’s door. One month before her sixteenth birthday, Mildred “Mickchen” Schindler and her family are captured by Russian Soldiers. Having already survived life in Hitler’s Nazi Germany, they now face the terror of a new enemy—Stalin’s Red Army.

Driven from their home, Mildred and her family become refugees along with a sad, slow-moving caravan of other families who have suffered the same fate. Cleverly disguised by her mother, Mildred avoids being taken to a work camp until one morning when authorities arrive unexpectedly. Her father has already been taken by Russian soldiers, and now she is taken from her mother and brother.

Mildred recounts, in meticulous detail, her treacherous journey and the roller coaster of raw emotions she experiences —fear, regret, loneliness, humility, perseverance, and defiance. Mildred’s odyssey of making her way home and finding her family in a war-torn countryside takes many riveting twists and turns. The discovery of a secret, hidden document offers hope for a brighter future.

From harrowing to heartwarming, this memoir provides a unique perspective of a Gentile girl’s road to resilience and her fortitude against all odds to forge a life filled with love and laughter.

Surviving Hitler, Evading Stalin is a remarkable testimony to the strength of the unconquerable human spirit and an endearing account of God’s faithfulness in the midst of faithless circumstances.

Mildred Schindler Janzen grew up on a peaceful family farm in the German countryside. World War II came knocking at her family’s door in February 1945, setting in motion a chain of events that would forever change all their lives. Surviving Hitler, Evading Stalin recounts this teenager’s incredible escape from occupied Nazi Germany to America. Once there, Mildred made the decision to look beyond her personal pain, choosing instead to forge a life filled with joy, compassion, perseverance, and love. As a wife, mother, and grandmother, and now an active senior, she has decided to tell her story . . . all of it!

The writings of Sherye S. Green reflect her journey of faith and explore the heart’s inner landscapes. An author, singer, and speaker, she has long been intrigued by the power of words to influence and shape thought and action. A former Miss Mississippi, Sherye has enjoyed two careers—one in business, the other in education. She is the award-winning author of an inspirational novel, Abandon Not My Soul, and a devotional collection, Tending the Garden of My Heart: Reflections on Cultivating a Life of Faith . Her short story, “Setting Sail,” in included in What Would Elvis Think? Mississippi Stories, a collection of stories written by Mississippi authors. Sherye and her husband make their home in Mississippi.