Beyond the Tracks, Michael Reit

Beyond the Tracks, a book based on true events of Nazi concentration camps came highly recommended by a dear friend, who happens to have a personal interest in this subject as an octagenarian Jewish woman. It was an easy sell as I, too, have a great interest in this time in history (my in-laws were children in the Netherlands during WW2 and have asked that I pen their stories).

I was underwhelmed when the book began, its dialogue feeling too forced to "fit" what needed to be said and a bit sophomoric. In honesty, I put the book down for several weeks halfway through. But the cover kept staring at me, my friend's recommendation rattling around in my mind, and simple curiosity forced me to pick it back up on a rainy Saturday and couldn't put it down.

The second half of the book caught its stride and was a page-turner. The book is informative and without gore, telling a harrowing story of loss, endurance, and friendship. When best friends Jacob and Ethan, who have survived four years in a transit camp, suddenly find themselves on a train bound for Auschwitz, the reader is drawn into the world of the Polish Resistance and will find themself staying up late to ensure the story's good ending.

The author's notes, the recount of what was actually true in the book, and his passion for retelling the story as a person from the Netherlands sealed the deal for me - well done, Michael Reit.

Beyond the tracks is a well-written, self-published book that deserves attention. It is edited to the nth degree (read no mistakes!), the cover is gorgeous, and the book looks fabulous on my shelf. You will not regret reading this one.