Summary of Jack Barsky's Deep Undercover

Everest Media

Description

Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book.
Sample Book Insights:
#1 I was born in East Germany in 1953, just after the end of World War II. The devastation from the war was made worse by the Soviets’ removal of valuable assets that had survived the Allies’ aerial bombardment.
#2 My mother, Judith, was a new teacher in the village of Rietschen in 1948. She had six more years of life experience and six more years of hardship under her belt. She was born in 1922 in Kaltwasser, where her parents worked as head forest ranger and cook at the estate of a German count.
#3 My mother was granted a one-month pregnancy leave in anticipation of my birth. My father accompanied her to his parents’ home in Reichenbach. The plan was that she would give birth there. But the weather was typical for springtime in Germany - gray skies, temperatures hovering around 60 degrees Fahrenheit, and a steady drizzle.
#4 I was born in the GDR, on the Soviet-controlled side of the Berlin Wall. The entire trajectory of my life is rooted in the geographic location of my birth. By the time Stalin died, it had become clear that East Germany would continue to evolve into a Communist dictatorship.

Sujets

• Géographie
• Géographie
• Géographie
• Géographie
• United States
• 20th century

Informations

• Publié par: Everest Media LLC
• Date de parution: 10 avril 2022
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781669383703
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

Insights on Jack Barsky's Deep Undercover
Contents Insights from Chapter 1 Insights from Chapter 2 Insights from Chapter 3 Insights from Chapter 4 Insights from Chapter 5 Insights from Chapter 6
Insights from Chapter 1

#1

I was born in East Germany in 1953, just after the end of World War II. The devastation from the war was made worse by the Soviets’ removal of valuable assets that had survived the Allies’ aerial bombardment.

#2

My mother, Judith, was a new teacher in the village of Rietschen in 1948. She had six more years of life experience and six more years of hardship under her belt. She was born in 1922 in Kaltwasser, where her parents worked as head forest ranger and cook at the estate of a German count.

#3

My mother was granted a one-month pregnancy leave in anticipation of my birth. My father accompanied her to his parents’ home in Reichenbach. The plan was that she would give birth there. But the weather was typical for springtime in Germany - gray skies, temperatures hovering around 60 degrees Fahrenheit, and a steady drizzle.

#4

I was born in the GDR, on the Soviet-controlled side of the Berlin Wall. The entire trajectory of my life is rooted in the geographic location of my birth. By the time Stalin died, it had become clear that East Germany would continue to evolve into a Communist dictatorship.

#5

I had to eat my beets and everything else on my plate, but thankfully no more celery root. I hated celery root. Life was hard in the mid-1950s, and building a new life in the GDR required both intelligence and survival skills.

#6

My mother was well prepared for the difficult task of supporting a family during times of limited resources. She had acquired all the necessary skills during an apprenticeship as a domestic aide.

#7

I was excited to begin school, but my mother warned me to take it slow. I ate the clumpy rye-meal porridge she served for breakfast, and I was ready to go. I joined the Communist youth organization Young Pioneers.

#8

In third grade, I was taught by a team of specialized educators. My favorite was Herr Lehman, our new math teacher. He explained that the beep originated from something called Sputnik, a satellite that could circle the entire earth in about ninety minutes. I couldn’t quite grasp the enormity of the event, but I understood that something big was going on.

#9

I had a difficult time adjusting to Christianity, as it was very different from the pagan traditions I was used to. I remember once overhearing my teacher talking about Jesus, and I was instantly disapproved of by my father.

#10

I was put in charge of dressing up the tree when I was young. I didn’t see any mention of Jesus in the Bible, and I was forbidden to read it. I didn’t open another Bible for the next forty-five years.

#11

When I returned home from the hospital, my mother took me to Dr. Harbers, who cleaned and treated the wound. I walked home from there, and my foot felt like it was on fire the entire way.

#12

My father’s hard work and his commitment to Marxist Leninist principles finally paid off when he was summoned to an after-school meeting by Principal Panzram. The excitement of moving to a better place overcame the sadness of those final good-byes.

#13

I had a close relationship with my grandfather, Opa Alwin, who was the principal of the local middle school and a farmer. When I visited him, he would show me what he was growing in his garden that year, and I would stuff myself with luscious ripe strawberries.

#14

I was 12 when my family got a car. We took our first vacation that wasn’t to one of our grandparents’ homes that summer, to the seaside resort town of Heringsdorf on the Baltic Sea. I was amazed by the sight of ships in the distance.

#15

On August 13, we loaded the Wartburg, said good-bye to paradise, and started our homeward journey. We drove through Berlin, which was now under the control of the GDR, and listened to the radio.

#16

I was one of the last students to arrive in the exam room at EOS Karl Marx, and I finished long before the allotted time. I was one of forty applicants admitted to the school.

#17

The EOS system was a school in East Germany that focused on Communist ideals. It was coed, and classes only lasted until 2 p. m. There were no electives, only a heavy emphasis on the following subjects in order of importance: math, German, chemistry, physics, Russian, English, history, biology, geography, physical education, civics, and music.

#18

I was once asked out on a date by a girl named Rosi. I was shocked, but I went along with it. I had always admired girls from a distance, and now I had the chance to be friends with one.

#19

I had begun to challenge authority. I was spending every possible minute in Rosi’s company, and when we were apart, I daydreamed about her and wrote her name on books, bags, desks, and my hands.

#20

I was put on probation in high school, and my attendance was not good. I was extremely anxious to return to school in September. One Sunday morning, I woke up and heard my parents arguing about divorce.

#21