Tag: poland

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Author Interview: Liz Tolsma + Giveaway

The Melody of the Soul (002)

Anna has one chance for survival—and it lies in the hands of her mortal enemy. 

Excited to introduce Liz Tolsma’s The Melody of the Soul and the chance to get to know a few of her characters. Plus, stay tuned for a Rafflecopter giveaway of Liz’s book, as well as winners from last week’s multi-author giveaway!

About The Melody of the Soul

It’s 1943 and Anna Zadok, a Jewish Christian living in Prague, has lost nearly everything. Most of her family has been deported, and the Nazi occupation ended her career as a concert violinist. Now Anna is left to care for her grandmother, and she’ll do anything to keep her safe—a job that gets much harder when Nazi officer Horst Engel is quartered in the flat below them.

Though musical instruments have been declared illegal, Anna defiantly continues to play the violin. But Horst, dissatisfied with German ideology, enjoys her soothing music. When Anna and her grandmother face deportation, Horst risks everything to protect them.

Anna finds herself falling in love with the handsome officer and his brave heart. But what he reveals might stop the music forever.

Why does Horst love art? 

He’s a very creative person. He understands and appreciates beauty, whether it’s in music, architecture, or drawing. It’s God’s gift to him, and he uses it.

What drew him to it in the first place?

His troubled past was haunting him. He knew what he’d done when he was young was very wrong. Like King Saul in the Bible, he was tormented, and the music and the architecture took him away from his demons and brought beauty back into his life.

How does Anna remind Horst of his mother?

Her gentle spirit, her love of music and all thing beautiful, her kind her. All of these are traits that Anna shares with Horst’s mother.

What are you working on next?

I just finished book two of the series, What the Heart Sings, which comes out in August. That one is set in Poland. Next up is book three with the working title of The Music Within. That one takes place in Hungary.

Thanks for coming, Liz, and for telling us about your book and your next projects! I’ve just received my copy of The Melody of the Soul and can’t wait to start reading! Readers, here’s a chance to learn more and Liz and to enter a giveaway for a copy of her latest book.

About Liz Tolsma 

Liz Tolsma headshot (2)Liz Tolsma is the author of several WWII novels and prairie romance novellas. The Rails to Love collection released in October 2016. The Matchmaker Brides collection releases in February 2017, and her next WWII novel, The Melody of the Soul, is scheduled to release in April 2017. She is a popular speaker and an editor. She has lived in Wisconsin most of her life, and she now resides next to a farm field with her husband and their two daughters. Her son proudly serves as a U.S. Marine. They adopted all of their children internationally, and one has special needs. When not busy putting words to paper, she enjoys reading, walking, working in her large perennial garden, kayaking, and camping with her family. Please visit her blog, The Story behind the Story, at www.liztolsma.com and follow her on Facebook, Twitter (@LizTolsma), and LinkedIn. She is also a regular contributor to the Pencildancer blog and the Midwest Almanac blog.

Connect with Liz

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/liz.tolsma.9

Twitter: https://twitter.com/LizTolsma

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/liz-tolsma-64992ab7?trk=hp-identity-name

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/liztolsma/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authorliztolsma/

Book Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aaj5gp7Yvk4

Buy Links

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Christianbook.com

Giveaway Details:

  1. No purchase necessary to enter the giveaway.
  2. Giveaway runs from Friday, January 26, 2018, to Thursday, February 1, 2018.
  3. Winner will be contacted via email.

Click the link below to enter the giveaway:

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/bde8b9369/?

 

Multi-author book winners from last week:

  1. Breanna P. — won Sharlene MacLaren’s Their Daring Hearts.
  2. Becky S. — won Joyce Valdois Smith’s Grandpa Forgot My Name.
  3. Brenda M. — won Daisy Townsend’s Sarah’s Legacy, an e-book.
  4. Connie S. — won Pegg Thomas’s A Bouquet of Brides Collection (my story being “In Sheep’s Clothing”).

Congratulations, winners!!! You have been contacted via email.

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Historical Fiction Author Interview: Marie Sontag

Hello! Thanks for stopping by! I’m pleased to introduce historical fiction author, Marie Sontag, who, in the midst of the unexpected, refused to let her passion die.

Tisha: Hi, Marie! I’m glad you’ve decided to share your heart with us today! What compelled you to write historical fiction centered in WW2 Poland?

when god closes a door

Marie Sontag: “When God closes a door, he opens a window.” A friend had cross-stitched this phrase for me in 1978 when my hopes of teaching ESL in Poland were dashed. The Christian group that I worked with decided not to send me overseas due to health concerns. Having a Polish paternal grandfather, I felt called to touch the lives of those behind the Iron Curtain, knowing that many of them came from the same religious background I had inherited from my parents. Like myself for many years, I knew that many in Poland had “a zeal for God, but not in accordance with knowledge” (Romans 10:2, NASB).

Stas_Alcatraz_1996
Stas’ in CA, 2008

Fast forward to 1996. Married to a wonderful husband and raising two boys, we opened our home for one year to a sixteen-year-old foreign exchange student from Warsaw, Poland.

 

 

 

 

Stas Oct 2016
Twenty years later, he still calls us Mom and Dad.Stas’ in CA, 2016

In 2008 we visited Stas’ and his family in Warsaw, and, in addition to visiting sites such as the Royal Castle. We also toured the Warsaw Rising Museum. That’s where I sensed God opening a window.

 

 

 

Tisha: This sounds fascinating! I love that you didn’t give up when your dream drowned, but that you used a disappointment to feed your desire. How did visiting the Warsaw Rising Museum lead to what you would write?

Stas_Marie_Krakow
Poland, 2008

Marie:  One of the Rising Museum’s exhibits told how the Polish Boy Scouts and Girl Guides, ages 10-20, fought alongside the Polish Underground during a two-month suicidal effort called “The Rising” in order to drive the Germans from Warsaw. They hoped to show the Allies that they did not want their country turned over to the Communists at the end of WWII. Their hope for freedom did not materialize until 1989.

mail carriers
Mail carriers

I immediately knew I wanted to write the story of those brave scouts so that youth here in the US would know the heights of bravery others their age had reached, inspiring them to dig deep within themselves to find similar causes worthy of such courage. I uncovered research that told of brave ten-year-olds serving as mail couriers carrying illegal Polish newspapers through the occupied streets of Warsaw. I learned of courageous twelve-year-old girls sloshing through fetid sewers to carry ammunition to various parts of the besieged city, and twenty-year-old scout leaders blowing up railroad tracks to prevent German tanks from reaching the eastern front. Using this research, I wove the information into a young adult historical fiction novel titled, Rising Hope.

 

Tisha: Thanks so much for sharing your passion, Marie! I’ve learned a bit about Poland, too! Readers, if you’re interested, please check out Marie’s website and follow her on social media. Plus, read the thrilling novel, Rising Hope, that was born out of a simple love trip to Poland!

What are some doors that have closed for you? Have you found your open window yet?

Reviews for Hope Rising

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Rising Hope tells this story through the eyes of fictional scouts whose lives intersect with historical figures. Reviewers have said, “Rising Hope is a thrilling young adult novel that tells the story of the Polish Scouts’ involvement in the Warsaw Rising against the Nazi occupation of Poland in 1944.” – The Sarmatian Review

Julian Kulski, age ten when the Germans invaded Poland in 1939, and twelve when he joined Warsaw’s fight against them, was the son of the Polish mayor of Warsaw in 1939. Now seventy-seven, Kulski states, “Rising Hope is an homage to all Polish teenagers who fought the German evil so bravely during WWII. A must read.” – Kulski, author of The Color of Courage

Rising Hope Book Trailer: http://youtu.be/_AwZhJ9pGBY

 

About Marie Sontag

me_2012 copy

Marie Sontag loves to bring history to life through historical fiction. With a BA, MA and PhD in education, she has taught middle school for over 15 years. She has written a middle grade series “Ancient Elements” that takes place in Ancient Mesopotamia, and book 1 of a young adult series, Rising Hope, placing readers alongside Boy Scouts and Girl Guides who helped the Polish Underground fight the Germans during WWII.

Connect with Marie through her website website

and on Facebook: www.facebook.com/AuthorMarieSontag/