Category: General
A Lifetime of Travel
In a previous blog I shared my collection of passports —a long line of documents that began when I was sixteen. These booklets, with their photos that reveal my gradually aging face and random visa stamps in red, green, and blue, represent a lifetime of travel. I also have a large box of travel journals,…
Travel Photos to Bring Back Memories
Travel photos can help you remember highlights of your journey long after you are home again. They can remind you of special experiences and people you met along the way. Nothing beats a significant photo for bringing back memories. Too often, travelers limit themselves to photos of tourist views and selfies taken in front of…
Resolutions
Happy New Year! Have you made a 2021 resolution? Years ago, I swore I would never again waste my resolution on “losing weight.” Though I usually succeeded with a dozen pounds or more in the short term, by the time January rolled around again, the efforts I had made would be buried under the joys of…
Readers Can Help Get the Word Out
Trying to launch a new book during the Covid-19 Pandemic calls for special tactics. Normally, I would be setting up in-person author visits at bookstores and giving presentations and talks at libraries and to book groups. Now, with personal appearances impossible, I’m trying to figure out new, digital ways to let readers know about my…
A Mother’s Memories of her Son’s Boot Camp Graduation
Some years ago, I took an emeritus class at U.C. Irvine in Travel Writing. There I learned that a travel essay needs to be more than a travelogue. In order to interest a reader, travel writing should also have attitude. The writer’s voice is essential as it is through their eyes we view the adventure.…
A Jewish Question – Herman’s Friendship with Richard Schulze-Kossens
Recently I have received comments from Jewish readers of Immigrant Soldier regarding Herman’s friendship with the SS Officer Richard Schulze. One of these, an acquaintance and fellow author, wrote, “I understand that your uncle needed the help of Schulze to organize the POW camp, but I’m wondering how he could let their relationship become a close friendship considering…
Family Album
Several of my readers have expressed disappointment that Immigrant Soldier does not have photos. Other than the pictures used on the cover, I decided that because the book was written as a novel, it would be better without photos which might inhibit a reader’s imagination. You will find some pictures of Herman on various pages of this…