Overview

""Reminds us that even when memories fail, the heart remembers."" Angela Findlay, author of In My Grandfather's Shadow Born out of wedlock in post-war Germany, a child enters the world between two people seeking escape and renewal-Susi, a young woman desperate to break free from the drudgery of her life, and a POW yearning to start over. When Susi refuses his offer of marriage, a court order severs him from his daughter forever. Determined to chase her dreams, Susi joins a dance troupe, leaving her infant daughter, Maddie, in the care of her mother, Katharina - a resilient woman who has already raised six children, three with different fathers. Six years later, Susi returns, now engaged to an American Army officer. Maddie is taken from her grandmother and adopted to be raised in America. As Maddie grows, she wrestles with her fractured identity and, decades later, finds her way back to her German roots. Just before her 60th birthday, a shocking confession from her Aunt Sieglinde shatters everything she thought she knew: her beloved grandmother once participated in a Nazi eugenics program that encouraged ""racially correct"" unions to produce children for Hitler's vision. That revelation ignites Maddie's quest to uncover the truth about her own father - a journey that intertwines generations, secrets, and the unyielding need to belong. ILLEGITIMATE is the true story of two women who had to uncover the identities of their fathers in order to truly understand themselves.

Full Product Details

9783988322227

Table of Contents

Reviews

""Maddie Lock's memoir quietly opens some of the closed doors of family life as it struggles to return to normalcy in post-World War II Germany-and ventures further... In confronting both of those forms of illegitimacy in her family's and her own life, Lock seeks a resolution to the questions of Who am I? and Where is my Home? that always underlie the lives of many of the children of any war."" Chris Dickon, co-author of Dutch Children of African American Liberators ""It takes immense courage to unearth deeply buried family truths-especially those hidden for good reason. In Illegitimate, Maddie Lock undertakes a brave and deeply personal journey to uncover the identity of the father she never knew. Her search for answers to questions of identity, abandonment, and belonging becomes even more complex when entwined with the chilling legacy of Nazi Germany. Lock's story is not hers alone. Several of her mother's siblings were born under the Lebensborn programme, a sinister initiative designed to promote the Aryan ideal. This dark historical backdrop casts a long shadow over the family's history, shaping lives in ways both overt and silent. Themes of shame, guilt, Zerrissenheit-the German word for a sense of being torn apart-permeate the memoir. Yet so too do love, resilience and healing. With raw honesty and emotional depth, Lock reminds us that even when memories fail, the heart remembers."" Angela Findlay, author of In My Grandfather's Shadow: A story of war, trauma and the legacy of silence ""Illegitimate offers readers a glimpse into Maddie Lock's vulnerable journey as she confronts German history during the Second World War through the lens of her family lineage. This memoir is deftly rendered and illustrates the value of exploring uncomfortable and painful truths. Lock's quest for connection and rootedness takes us from disillusionment to a greater promise, uncovering the beauty and potential of human resilience."" Jen Knox, author of We Arrive Uninvited and Radicals ""A moving and beautifully-written memoir of lives shaped and shattered by the Nazi creed - and caught in the trailing tendrils of Hitler's obsession with blood and an Aryan future."" TIM TATE, investigative journalist, filmmaker, co-author of Hitler's Forgotten Children ""After the revelation of a long-held family secret, Maddie Lock embarks on a lengthy journey to excavate the truth about her family and build a relationship with the Papa she never knew. As she traverses two worlds, Germany, the land of her birth, and the United States, her home-an outlander in each-she discovers how generations of her family were shaped by a diabolical Nazi program. Illegitimate is, ultimately, a deeply compelling story of love, forgiveness, and redemption."" B.K. Jackson, Founder of Severance Magazine and editor of Relative Strangers ""ILLEGITIMATE is the heartbreaking story of a woman who wants to know her origins and discovers they lead straight to the heart of darkness of the 20th century: the Nazis' Lebensborn project to create the perfect Aryan race. Her story is also proof of how fearless exploration of history can be rewarding, as she connects and solidifies her family ties."" Thomas Geiger, editor, publisher, magazine editor, and former curator and moderator at Literary Colloquium Berlin ""A true exploration of the past and of self, Lock digs at scars of self, family, and history, taking the reader on a personal journey that does not flinch in the face of what Illegitimate finds. Lock digests her family history and intimate tie to what history does not want to admit to in this stunning, eye-opening, and revelatory-to the author and to the reader-memoir."" Kase Johnstun, MA, MFA, author of Cast Away, editor of Label Me Latina/o Literary Journal

Author Information

German-born and adopted by an American Army officer, Maddie Lock graduated with a BA in English Lit from the University of South Florida. She began a freelance journalism career before sidetracking into the corporate business world. After founding and selling a successful multi-million dollar enterprise, she returned to her first love of writing. Maddie is the author of two children's books, including the RPLA award-winning Ethel the Backyard Dog. Her essays have been published in various journals and anthologies, including the Unleash Conversations anthology in which her essay ""The Stranger"" won Editor's Pick. On a trip to her homeland in 2013, Maddie discovered a long-held family secret with tentacles reaching back to Hitler, which began a journey of research, revelation, and redemption. Visit: www.maddielock.com.

Tab Content 6

Countries Available