I Will Come Back for You: The undercover Jewish commando who helped defeat the Nazis

Description

‘Extraordinary … one of the most moving and uplifting stories of the war’ Keith Lowe, author of Savage Continent

A gripping account of hidden identity, military courage, and an against-all-odds reunion.

Four days after Germany’s surrender in May 1945, a young British officer headed east into Germany. But this was no ordinary soldier.

Manfred Gans was searching for his family. As a Jewish boy in Nazi Germany, Gans had fled to England. As soon as he could, he enlisted, serving in the elite British ‘Three Troop’ unit, comprised of German-speaking refugees, joining the D-Day Normandy landings.

Working undercover, he obtained vital intelligence, liberated occupied France and the Netherlands, and saved countless lives on both sides. All the while, he dreamed of reuniting with his family, still trapped behind enemy lines, and with his childhood sweetheart, Anita.

As the war ended, chaos reigned in Germany: defeated Wehrmacht soldiers faced columns of U.S. and British soldiers, concentration camp survivors crossed paths with SS guards, and Soviet military roadblocks controlled the route east. Manfred overcame them all, finally reaching the place where his parents were last seen: Theresienstadt …

Translated by Rachel Stanyon