1945

The author, a physician in private practice in Illinois, was born in Pécs, Hungary. He has a first-hand knowledge of the plight of Hungarian refugees in the spring of 1945. Their choice was clear: Soviet occupation and years of oppression or freedom in the West. 1945 is the story of this mass exodus of Hungarians to the West, narrated by following the journey of Dr. János Nándor. Every event in the book is true. The time sequences and the connections of actions and spces to the characters was been altered to present a more cohesive and comprehensive story.

Well written story about life and death decisions suring war time.

The story is excellent. The authors words and descriptions paint visual images of the experiences of people during wartime and the desperation and total calamity they faced when bringing invaded. I recommend this for anyone who has an interest in WWII or would like insight into the dangers faced by people in wartime and the desperate decisions and circumstances refugees are compelled to make.

My biggest criticism is the narrator. Her mispronunciation of Hungarian words and names is egregious and her awkward pauses compromises this dramatic story. For goodness sakes, she should have invested time to listen to Hungarian names, towns/cities on a translator app and practiced reading aloud. If not for the story, I would have stopped listening to this book and going forward, I will be careful not to listen to books she narrates.