A Voice for Independent Authors
― E.A. Bucchianeri
REVIEWING TODAY: THE 5K ZONE BY GARY R. HALL
The 5K Zone by Gary R. Hall is a misleadingly arid but keenly knowledgeable and subtly gripping account of provocative, breathless events taking place in the Sudetenland – later known as Czechoslovakia. In 1944, Peter (11) and Trudi (12) two ethnic Germans living in the town of Tachau, described as “mature, pubescent children, full of life and ready to explore,” who experience the rare satisfaction of a perfect childhood friendship within the safe haven of a real but symbolic protective tree – the Blitzbaum – are silent witnesses to the onset of German war defeat, the Russian occupation, and the violent atrocities committed by the Czechs and Russians who expel the local Germans, including Peter’s parents who pre-planned their son’s escape. In 1946, knowing that all the local ethnic Germans will be resettled in a Russian zone or East Berlin, Peter makes his solitary way to find the Americans or the British. He leaves behind the photographic proof of war crimes against the innocent, with a plan to eventually return. Trudi, adopted child of Czech parents, remains behind.
In Gary R. Hall’s meticulously narrated and highly realistic tale, The 5K Zone, the reader feels less personally engaged than he feels himself to be a highly concerned observer, as if the outcome of Peter’s tremendous efforts to accomplish an agonizingly long-term plan is completely pre-determined but inevitably unknown. And so the undeniable tension in this book is mostly beneath the surface, creating an anxiety in the reader that almost feels unconscious. One believes deeply in Peter and his determination to succeed, watching him become an educated man and then a Green Beret assigned to Germany for a covert mission, and as he comes closer to attaining his final goal – recovery of those incriminating records and knowing the fate of his parents and the girl he left behind – the reader apprehensively and expectantly follows Peter one last time on his “run to the Blitzbaum”. And a most satisfying run it is.
Joel R. Dennstedt – Reviewer Author-Journalist-World Traveler
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In concert with the sentiment above, I share my professional reviews of books by Indie Authors. I am an official top reviewer for Readers’ Favorite, a highly-regarded and award-winning online review site. Adhering to their standards of professionalism, ethics, and formatting, I offer my life-affirming voice to a greatly deserving field: Indie Authors.