Book Review: Jan by Peter Haden

About:
Jan by Peter Haden is a fictional account, based on the author’s uncle, which takes place between 1918 – 1940.

• 448 pages
• Publisher: Matador
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1788039106

My rating for Jan  – 4
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More Books by Peter Haden*

Thoughts:
Jan by Peter Haden is a solid book, which incorporates solid fiction with solid history (as much as can be allowed to move the story forward). I enjoyed the accuracy of the military tactics and weaponry which made the story much more believable.

This book has everything one wants, intriguing characters, action, espionage and some romance. The author somehow manages to pull off a complicated story without losing the reader’s attention.

For much of the book the author uses Polish (and maybe some German) sentences to add authenticity to the characters, which was great but sometimes was a hinder and disturbed the flow of reading. I didn’t mind it though and it was easy to skip to the next sentence for the translation.

I enjoyed the scope of the work and the characterization. The author did his uncle justice even if half of the book is based on his experiences.

Synopsis:
Jan, a Polish national, seeks work in Germany, across the border from his house. When World War II starts, Jan finds out that his father and sister were killed by the German invaders and remains on the farm in Germany. The Nazis threaten the household, since the owner’s wife and half Jewish and Jan is asked to escort their daughter to safety.

Eventually Jan manages to escape England where he wants to join the military. But English Intelligence has a different idea of how Jan could help the war effort.

Buy Jan from Amazon.com*
More Books by Peter Haden*

Zohar — Man of la Book
Dis­claimer: I got this book for free.
*Ama­zon links point to an affil­i­ate account