As Flowers Go: Escape to Homeland Amazonia (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9781613700693)

While Licco Hazan, the narrator of this novel, was held captive at a Bulgarian labor camp in World War II, he could hardly imagine that one day he d have a much brighter future in the far-off, frightening Amazon.

Accompanying the lives of this character and his family and people, Ilko Minev reconstructs the little-known and intriguing story of how Bulgaria's 50,000 Jews were saved from the gas chambers during the heinous Nazi domination of Europe. Torn apart from his brother as a young prisoner, Licco is fortunate enough to count on people who help him flee to the neutral nation of Turkey Help comes from an improbable source: Albert G ring, the brother of Hermann G ring (a top Nazi party leader and designated successor of Adolf Hitler). Albert G ring is instrumental in helping Licco and other jews escape from a sure death. On this journey Licco meets another escapee, Berta - the woman of his life. By several twists of fate, the young couple ends up building a new life in an unknown land, the hot and humid Amazon. Meanwhile, Licco s brother is still in Bulgaria, which has been transformed into a Soviet satellite under the dictatorship of Stalin.

The title of the book takes its inspiration from the world s pacifist hymn "Where have all the flowers gone", first made famous by the sensual voice of Marlene Dietrich. A must read.