The Boy Between Worlds

A Biography

By: Annejet van der Zijl, Kristen Gehrman - translator

Narrated by: Coleen Marlo

From the Amazon Charts bestselling author of An American Princess comes the true story of an unconventional family divided by war and prejudice during WWII.

When they fell in love in 1928, Rika and Waldemar could have not been more different. She was a thirty-seven-year-old Dutch-born mother, estranged from her husband. He was her immigrant boarder, not yet twenty, and a wealthy Surinamese descendant of slaves. The child they have together, brown skinned and blue eyed, brings the couple great joy yet raises some eyebrows. Until the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands explodes their promising life.

What unfolds is more than the astonishing story of a love that prevailed over convention. It’s also the quest of a young boy. Through the cruelty of World War II, he will fight for a connection between his father’s South American birthplace and his mother’s European traditions. Lost and displaced for much of his life, but with a legacy of resilience in his blood, his life will be a struggle to find his place in the world.

Moving deftly between personal experience and the devastating machinations of war, The Boy Between Worlds is an unforgettable journey of hope, love, and courage in the face of humanity’s darkest hour.

©2019 Annejet van der Zijl; translation copyright Kristen Gerhman (P)2019 Brilliance Audio, Inc., all rights reserved.

Excellent Audio

Very good writing of what people have gone through. What the WWII did to people. Very sad but people need to here about this history.

Not enough detail

Very short, just over 200 pages—not long enough to fully develop the book in my opinion. Anna and Waldemar were true heroes in the fight against Nazi oppression in The Netherlands, a setting rarely written about. They both experienced discrimination, she as a divorced woman who fell in love with a much younger man, and him as a biracial man from Suriname. This book reminded me that Black Europeans were persecuted and interned in the Nazi concentration camp system. It could have been fascinating, but the author didn’t tell it with enough detail and passion. The book would have been better written as historical fiction. 3 stars. To read more of my reviews, google my name.

One of the best books I have ever heard!

This book was so beautifully told and such a heart wrenching story. A must read

the reality of war and all that was never told.

I enjoy the entire story! The mixed couple that showed that race, or age matter when you have true love.

Well written. Thoroughly enjoyed.

The author clearly dedicated a lot of time , research and compassion into this book. She wonderfully interweaves the lives of two very interesting (and previously unknown to me) people into a historical context. The outcome is a very compelling and personally enriching story. One of the best books I've read in 2019.