The Last Year of the War

By: Susan Meissner

Narrated by: Kimberly Farr

From the acclaimed author of Secrets of a Charmed Life and As Bright as Heaven comes a novel about a German American teenager whose life changes forever when her immigrant family is sent to an internment camp during World War II.

In 1943, Elise Sontag is a typical American teenager from Iowa - aware of the war but distanced from its reach. Then her father, a legal US resident for nearly two decades, is suddenly arrested on suspicion of being a Nazi sympathizer. The family is sent to an internment camp in Texas, where, behind the armed guards and barbed wire, Elise feels stripped of everything beloved and familiar, including her own identity.

The only thing that makes the camp bearable is meeting fellow internee Mariko Inoue, a Japanese-American teen from Los Angeles, whose friendship empowers Elise to believe the life she knew before the war will again be hers. Together in the desert wilderness, Elise and Mariko hold tight the dream of being young American women with a future beyond the fences.

But when the Sontag family is exchanged for American prisoners behind enemy lines in Germany, Elise will face head-on the person the war desires to make of her. In that devastating crucible, she must discover if she has the will to rise above prejudice and hatred and reclaim her own destiny, or disappear into the image others have cast upon her.

The Last Year of the War tells a little-known story of World War II with great resonance for our own times and challenges the very notion of who we are when who we’ve always been is called into question.

©2019 Susan Meissner (P)2019 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

“Meissner has created a quietly devastating story that shows how fear and hatred during World War II changed (and even ended) the lives of many innocent Americans.”—Kirkus Reviews

“Vivid historical detail and elegant prose bolster this rewarding story of profound friendship, family, fear, and the pain that arose for American-born children of immigrant parents.”—Publishers Weekly

“There's no shortage of books about World War II and internment camps coming out right now, given events in the news over the last year. Meissner's latest novel presents a more interesting, untold account than others.”—Real Simple

WWII from the eyes of two adolescents in U.S. internment camps!

WWII from the eyes of two adolescents in U.S. internment camps! Within the confines of barbed wired walls, a German-American girl and a Japanese girl. Internment takes its toll on these two girls, creating a friendship that lasted a lifetime. An insightful, historically accurate book from Author Susan Meissner, Great narration. Recommend!

Loved It!

It was a great listen. Not exactly what I was expecting but I was pleasantly surprised.

Amazing from the start

There are a lot of books out there that take a long time to get into, this is not one of them. I was engaged from the start and loved it through the finish.

Highly recommend

Fantastic! Great story and great performance.
I had no idea civilian Germans in America were also in camps like the Japanese. So sad and unfair…

Another sad part of American history

This story was very well done while revealing a part of WW2 history most people are not aware of including myself. I knew of interment camps but not of trading those in the camps for POWs. It was also the story of a young girl’s problem with self identity under very adverse conditions. Overall a very well done story

fantastic

This was a wonderful book. I highly recommend! One of the best I have read in a long time. also, great narration!

Breathtaking

Wow! I could not stop listening. What a story!
For me, this was a poignant book that I bought on a whim without really looking at the story line or reviews.
I am German, born in 1957....I am married to the son of a Japanese scientist and my last name is INOUE....
How about that?
Those are just coincidences....I highly recommend this book.
The only thing I did not care for was the narrators TERRIBLE pronunciation of most of the German words she had to read. YUCK.

Beautiful Story

A wonderfully written, historically accurate “chick flick” of a book that’s takes you through all the emotions. I’d compare it in some ways to Kristen Hannah’s, The Nightingale. If you lived that book, you’ll live this one. You “feel” this book and pine for the characters on many levels. Couldn’t put it down.

Historical fiction

Excellent intertwining of the past and present. Characters are engaging. One becomes invested in the storyline.

Great story

New learnings about WWII interment camps for German citizens and American born children compelling story telling over a period of 50 years