Born in Italy in 1898, Ludwig Bemelmans captivated children with the seven books of the
Madeline series. According to Wiki, he is considered Austro-Hungarian. When his dad took a hike, his mom moved to her home town, Regensburg, Germany, which Bemelman hated. He apprenticed at a hotel, where he shot and wounded a headwaiter who beat him. He was given a choice between reform school and deportation to America. He became a citizen of the USA in 1918, and went on to write scores of books.
The Blue Danube came my way via a recent donation. It is not a children's book. It's set in Regensburg, in southeast Germany, just before the full brunt of the allies might hit it. The story involves an old farmer, his two sisters, and a niece, who occupy an island in the Danube that pops up once the river goes down in late spring. They live in a house the farmer built himself, and grow radishes in the rich soil and sell them to locals. The old-timer humiliates a local Nazi bureaucrat, who subsequently plots against him with the aide of an underling. He disappears for a while, and the local bishop enlists a young French POW to help the women. The farmer returns on the QT, and the situation eventually comes to a head. Generally, I prefer gray when it comes to stories of the human condition - the struggle of the average Joe to be good in a world where temptation lurks at every turn. When it comes to Nazis - and terrorists - it's a different matter. To this day, more than 70 years after the end of WWII, which raged well before I was born, I derive visceral satisfaction in seeing Nazis dispatched in films and TV shows. I will say nothing else about the plot. Although the story is rather simplistic, it is effective. All the locals but the farmer say nothing about the abuses they suffer - an all too common factor among the citizens at that time, even those who were appalled by Hitler's actions. They have no idea their country is about to be crushed, as the propagandists have kept them in the dark. A lot of the action takes place at a beer garden, the Blue Danube, once owned by the farmer, who sold it when red tape made it impossible for him to earn a living. The setting is idyllic save for the presence of the monsters. Today the population of Regensburg is 142,000+. Bemelman sprinkles German words and phrases throughout the narrative. The bureaucrat is called
Gauleiter, which translates to "party leader." The slime refers to Christians he despises as
phaffe.
The Blue Danube provides an interesting aspect of German life during WWII not seen in films and TV. Three users have rated it at Amazon, each giving it the maximum five stars. I rate it 3.5. Published in 1945, the hardbound copy I read has illustrations by the author. Bemelmans died in 1962, but his work lives on. Here's the title page from the book:
GetTV is a channel, 68-3, that has popped up since I went to an indoor antenna. Last night it aired an episode of
The Johnny Cash TV Show, which ran two seasons, 58 episodes, 1969-'71. I was 19 at the time of its debut and ignorantly believed Country music was produced by hillbilly hacks. While I still do not consider myself a big fan of the genre, I recognize the wonderful artistry of those who crack the charts, and the session musicians who back them. Last night's program, Episode 30 of Season One, featured Loretta Lynn, Ricky Nelson, fiddler Doug Kershaw, Chet Atkins and Kris Kristofferson, and the house band was manned by the Statler Brothers and Carl Perkins. Lynn was in great voice, and Nelson performed two songs I'd never heard, which sounded real good. He is one of the most under-appreciated artists of his heyday. Unfortunately, I nodded off, as I frequently do these days, and missed Atkins, who was regarded as one of the world's greatest guitarists. According to the summary page at IMDb, the shows were shot at three locations. Last night's was at the legendary Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, home to the Grand Old Opry for decades. Of course, Cash performed. I look forward to other episodes.
My thanks to the gentleman who purchased a book in Russian, and to the elderly Latina, who bought
Impulse by Catherine Coulter on my recommendation, not my cup of tea but the type of novel she eats up. I don't understand how, but it seemed hotter today than during that brutal heat wave a couple of weeks ago.
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