Ulrich Alexander Boschwitz wrote The Passenger in 1938 at the age of 23 just after Kristallnacht in Germany. The story is about Otto Silbermann, a respected businessman, who fought for Germany in World War One. His home was raided by the Nazi storm troopers and he snuck out the back door. Over the next three days, as Otto tries to process and accept the situation in his own country, he starts taking train rides from Berlin to Hamburg and to other German towns. He is turned away from establishments he once patronized. Although he looks Aryan he fears being discovered as a Jew. His world is collapsing around him. The book was published when it was written but was not well received. Boschwitz planned to make changes and have it reissued but he never got the chance because, as a German Jewish refugee, he was sent to Australia by England and on his way back his ship was sunk by a German submarine. His editorial notes (in letters to his mother) were recently found and the changes were made and his story rereleased in 2021. The story was painful to read at times but I think it is necessary for all of us, a citizens on this planet, to ready and study historical fiction.
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