Introduction

False Heroes: Held Hostage by Heritage is the true story of Diana, a survivor. It tells of her struggle to free herself from the bondage of her authoritative European heritage and her account of a war-ridden childhood.Her story compels the reader to examine issues from their own past. It asks the question, “Can we be held prisoners within our own souls?” This book is about reconciling the past with the present in one’s life. A liberating experience, it spans continents and conflicts. It resonates with the strength one can find in the midst of adversity, challenges and despair. It’s about forging forward despite all odds, fighting for identity and freedom from a heritage that holds one hostage, as well as the chains within ones soul.Most of us are descendants from other countries and century old cultures, with scars and stigmas, with imprints of wars and limited choices. This story can be a healing experience, and a voice for many that could never speak of their most hurtful secrets. Despite subject matters that are painful to comprehend and hard to read about, this book effectively captures the readers heart. This book was written with the intention to help the reader find strength and resolve, courage, trust in free choices, and a better tomorrow.

EDITORIAL REVIEW:

"False Heroes is a poignant story filled with thought-provoking passages that will move readers and challenge them to question the motives which drive their actions. This novel will speak to anyone who struggles to combat constricting principles that were instilled in them at an early age. Readers of False Heroes will truly understand what it means to find freedom."--The Book Review Directory

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Excerpt

She was eight years old. She heard the war drums of the SS soldiers for many years later, as they were parading through the town then. She remembered the days when they were marching past their house, surrounding their house – stomping, crushing the frozen ground. She would close her eyes and ears and pretend they were horses.

Then they were not marching by. They were stationed around their house for days, weeks, endless weeks… They set up camp right under the old cross in the middle of the three birch trees next to their house, the cross that for ages had humbled people to bend their knees and cross themselves when walking by… From their kitchen window looking out onto their neighbor's higher ground the soldiers looked ten times bigger and scarier to her than they were. For years, in her nightmares, she heard the rhythm of them marching by. Nightmares were a normal thing for her; she thought everyone had them. She knew her mother did. When she dared to look out of their kitchen window once or twice, she saw the boots – and long after, the boots…big almighty boots. They seemed at least as scary as the uniform, the rifle hanging from the shoulders... That far up she didn’t even dare to look. She just saw the boots. They represented everything she feared, so much power, that it was paralyzing... She remembered the sunlight reflecting off the buckles, piercing her eyes… She remembered shivering in bed at night listening to the sound of the boots crushing the snow with threatening determination, just a few feet from her window. She remembered trying to put faces on those boots that belonged to familiar people, guys she knew…in an attempt to lessen he fears of the impending certainty of their fate.

It was absolute law to stay clear of the windows and doors in the first place, and she should have listened. Of course her mother was trying to shield them and protect their home with her life. She was a child, and as frightened as she was, she just had to dare and look out once in a while – with a glimmer of hope that it was not as bad as it seemed or as they said. She was desperately trying to be brave and courageously adult for her mother, who certainly needed her, since she was the only one home with her most of the time.

Diana realized later, after her sister reminded her, that the SS were not the first troops that marched past their house. It wasn’t the first time Diana had heard these drums, and felt the rhythm of war. This is why the impressions were so deep. view abbreviated excerpt only...

Discussion Questions

1. What questions would you ask the author?
2. Seemingly parallel to the distrust, confusion and chaos to Diana's wartime childhood, how will today's pandemic affect our children in their lifetime?
3. Did Diana immigrate to a free country? What makes today different?
4. After reading about Diana’s obstacles, can you relate? What chains have you broken?
5. Did Diana’s story inspire you? Why or why not?
6. Who in your life have you considered a hero that has let you down?
7. Are there secrets you thought you would harbor forever in your mind, who or what may unlock them?

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