About the Book:
In the summer of 1941, 11-year-old Wolf is growing up amidst the rubble and antisemitism of war-torn Nazi Berlin. Destitute and facing deportation, he must leave behind his sister and travel across a continent entrenched in war. With nothing in hand but expired visas to the US, Wolf and his family must figure out how to sneak aboard the Spanish freighter the Navemar, a ship that will gain its reputation as the “Hell Ship of Death.” But Wolf’s odyssey is just beginning.
“American Wolf: From Nazi Refugee to American Spy” is an electrifying true account brimming with last-minute rescues and life-and death struggles that defy the impossible. This gripping narrative is not just a tale of survival, but a profound coming of age story, delving into the complexities of family dynamics and the search for national identity. Wolf’s remarkable return to Germany as a US intelligence officer during the Cold War serves as another powerful testament to his indomitable spirit. Drawing from her father’s notes, author Audrey Birnbaum vividly recreates Wolf’s childhood in Berlin, his harrowing escape from Nazi Germany, and the relentless challenges he confronted on his path to freedom.
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Author Interview:
1: Tell us a little about yourself and what got you in to writing?
I got into writing by accident, not by design. I spent my career as a physician specializing in pediatric gastroenterology, and while I did some writing, (mostly academic articles), I hadn’t done anything creative since the sixth grade! I opted to retire in 2020, and had a lot of plans to reawaken the right side of my brain with creative ventures, but writing was still not one of them. However, the pandemic came, and with it, the end to my plans…no art classes, no dance classes, no chorus or travel. What I did have, though, was a great gift…my father’s written memoirs of his childhood in Nazi Germany, his ultimate escape in 1941, his dangerous immigration and his extraordinary return to Germany as a US intelligence officer. My father had died in 2018 and I had found these memoirs hidden away in my attic. All the hard data was there; I just had to figure out how to turn it into a readable book for the general public. That story turned into American Wolf which was published in October 2023.
2: Do you have a favourite time and place where you write?
I enjoy writing on my couch. I have an L-shaped couch and I have claimed the corner spot, much to the chagrin of other family members. Anytime that I have a long chunk of uninterrupted time and a good cup of coffee, is when I write. I’m not one to put in an hour a day consistently; rather, I need to be fully immersed in my story.
3: Where do your ideas come from?
In the case of American Wolf, I was bound by facts because it was a true story. That can be harder to write than fiction because you can’t control the narrative arc, and you don’t want the book to read like a list of facts and events. I had to work hard to make it feel like a novel, give it perspective, and make the characters feel real and have motive. But even when writing fiction, I usually write from some lived experience.
4: Do you have a plan in your head of where the story is going before you start writing or do you let it carry you along as you go?
I have a general plan, and I know my characters to their core. Once the characters are well-fleshed out, they speak for themselves and often carry a plot along. But I don’t use an outline. I’m not that organized!
5: What genre are your books and what drew you to that genre?
American Wolf crosses a few genres. It is a memoir of sorts, but it’s my father’s story, even though I wrote it. It reads like a novel but it’s not fiction. It’s historical. In the end, I settled for “true story.” It’s 100% true, but I did take artistic liberties.
6: What dream cast would you like to see playing the characters in your latest book?
Oh no! Everyone asks me that question and I’m afraid I fail epically! Well, there are two time periods, before the war in Nazi Germany, and after the war here in America. I feel like the first half of the limited series might be best served with German-speaking actors and an untrained German child playing my father as a young boy. Vicky Krieps (Das Boot, Bergman Island) and Jonas Nay (Deutschland 83, 86, 89) are two amazing German-speaking actors who would be perfect. But choosing someone to play my father here in America as an adolescent/young adult? That’s where I am stumped! I think it should be an American (or Englishman playing American, as they do so well) actor, but I’m at a loss. Maybe I’m too close to the main character (my Dad) and no one will seem just right. I will take suggestions!
7: Do you read much and if so who are your favourite authors?
I read a lot. I’m a fan of Zadie Smith, Chimimanda Adichie, Philip Roth, John Irving, and Jonathan Franzen to name a few.
8: What book/s are you reading at present?
I am re-reading “God of Small Things” by Arundhati Roy. It’s my third go around with this terrific book.
9: What is your favourite book and why?
Is it possible to have one favorite? We change over time, we reread books at different ages, with different perspectives. I recently re-read “Love in the Time of Cholera” (Marquez). Reading it again as an “older” adult definitely gave it a different, richer meaning for me, and I loved it. I remember loving “A Prayer for Owen Meany” (Irving) when I read it, but would I feel that way today? Who knows. Have you ever watched your favorite movie from the 80s or 90s only to find that it seems dated or silly? Favorites apparently have a half-life.
10: What advice would you give for someone thinking about becoming a writer?
Don’t just think about it, do it! Definitely keep a notebook and/or notes on your phone (or wherever) to write down thoughts, ideas or words as they come to you. If you find yourself in a funny situation, just jot it down. Otherwise, I swear, you won’t remember it. Ask people you trust to read your work critically. If that is a writing group, great… it can be informal with just a few friends or something more formal. Give yourself time to rewrite before you judge yourself harshly. When writers have great sentences, I suspect they don’t come out that way on round one. There’s plenty of time to perfect it.
11: What are the best Social Media Sites for people to find out about you and your work?
Website: www.audreybirnbaumauthor.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/audreybirnbaumauthor
Instagram: www.instagram.com/audreybirnbaumauthor
About the Author:
Growing up in New York in the late 1960’s, Audrey Birnbaum assumed that watching Holocaust documentaries was a perfectly normal family activity. On her first day of elementary school, Audrey sat in the cafeteria, unwrapped her liverwurst sandwich, and excitedly told her new classmates about her public television proclivities. Her Brady Bunch-watching peers had never heard of PBS, but they had heard of PB&J (and they weren’t too keen on liverwurst either). They made it abundantly clear: Audrey’s childhood was, in fact, not normal at all.
We will never know whether it was schoolyard bullying or watching tragic Shoah documentaries that was responsible for Audrey’s acute sensitivity to others; but that empathy may have helped pave the way for her choice of medicine as a career. Audrey chose to specialize in Pediatric Gastroenterology – for who needed more help than children; and where could anyone feel more suffering than in one’s gut? Day in and day out, she watched intricate family dynamics play out in the context of fragile health. Audrey listened to each patient’s story until she could retell it with clarity and give it meaning. Through witnessing and recording these tender dramas, the seeds of writing had been planted.
Shortly after her father’s death in 2018, Audrey stumbled upon his extensive notes detailing his childhood escape from Nazi Germany. Audrey felt compelled to start writing his riveting story – a story addressing themes that are pressingly relevant today. While “American Wolf” deals with tragedy and loss, it punctuates the triumph of the human spirit. It is a memoir of Holocaust survival, a family drama, an immigration tale, and an often funny coming-of-age story that is sure to have an impact on anyone who has experienced prejudice, displacement, or questions about their identity.
With her cherished medical career in the rear-view mirror, Audrey now enjoys singing, writing, reading, and being with friends who also had quirky childhoods. She lives with her husband in Westchester County, New York, and has three marvelous grown children. Audrey is currently working on her second book.
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