“Border Crossings is the well-told and dramatic story of a young man whose comfortable life is abruptly transformed by the savagery of World War II. Forced to rely on primal
instincts and his familiarity with the rugged highlands of Moravia, Charles Novacek casts his lot first with the anti-Hitler Underground and then with the resistance to the Nazis’ Communist successors. ‘My recollections pain me,’ he writes, ‘still, they have made me who I am.’ Novacek’s experience as a Hungarian-speaking Czecho-Slovak patriot demonstrates the folly of petty nationalism and the resilience of human decency and love.”
― Madeleine Albright
“Exceptionally well written from beginning to end, Border
Crossings: Coming of Age in the Czech Resistance reads like a best-seller novel but is a true life memoir of a remarkable man who lived in horrific times and came through them to create a successful life despite what he had to overcome — or perhaps because of it! Border Crossings is an extraordinary and highly recommended read. Simply stated, a copy deserves to be in every community library 20th Century Biography collection for the sake of new and future generations of readers.”
― Midwest Book Review
COMING EVENTS FOR 2014
BORDER CROSSINGS will be at EASTERN MARKET
“SUNDAY STREET MARKET” in DETROIT, MI, 48207
10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m., Sundays through August, 2014
www.detroiteasternmarket.com7/21 – Warren Public Library - Presentation/Signing, 6:00 p.m., Civic Center Library, 12 Mile & Van Dyke, Warren, MI 48093, www.warrenlibrary.net
7/24 – “Book Marked on Cass Avenue: Talk + Walk: Happy
313 Birthday, Detroit!” 11:00 a.m. A walking tour covering a slice of history with a slice of birthday cake. Starts @ Source Booksellers, 4240 Cass Avenue, Ste. 105, Detroit 48201, www.sourcebooksdetroit.com8/13 – Huntington Woods Public Library – Presentation/Signing, 7:00 p.m., 26415 Scotia, Huntington Woods, MI 48070, www.huntington-woods.lib.mi.us
9/4 – National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library – Presentation/Signing, 7:00 p.m., 1400 Inspiration Place SW, Cedar Rapids, IA 52404, www.ncsml.org
9/7 - Kerrytown BookFest - Exhibitor/Vendor, 11:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., Ann Arbor Farmers’ Market, Ann Arbor, MI 48104, www.kerrytownbookfest.org
9/20 – Berkley Public Library – Presentation/Signing,
2:00 p.m., 3155 Coolidge Hwy., Berkley, MI 48072, www.berkley.lib.mi.us10/8 – Scarab Club – Presentation/Painting & Textile Exhibit/Signing, 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m., 217 Farnsworth, Detroit, MI 48202, www.scarabclub.org
10/15 – “Study Group on “Border Crossings,” University of Michigan, Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI), 10:00 a.m., Turner Resource Center, 2401 Plymouth Rd. Suite C, Ann Arbor, MI 48105, www.olli-umich.org
10/27 – “Authors Live Luncheon,” Sponsored by Novi Public Library – Presentation/Signing, 11:30 a.m., Fox Run, 41000 13 Mile Rd., Novi, MI 48377, www.novilibrary.org
11/2 – “The 24th Annual Slovak Heritage Festival.” University of Pittsburgh, Cathedral of Learning Commons Room, Pittsburgh, PA, 1:00 – 5:00 p.m. Features folk dancing groups, singers, cultural displays, lectures, Slovak food, vendors. Free admission.
RECENT EVENTS FOR 2014
5/9 – Paintings of Charles Novacek Art Show – “Border Crossings Revisited” Show runs through first week in June., Cromaine District Library, Hartland, MI 48353
6/4 – “Cass Corridor Conversation,” Panel Discussion, University of Michigan, Semester in Detroit Students @ Source Booksellers, 4240 Cass Avenue, Ste. 105 Detroit 48201
6/21 – Ann Arbor Book Festival: Street Fair - Exhibitor/Vendor, 1:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m., Washington St. between 4th Ave. & 5th Ave., Ann Arbor, MI, www.aabookfestival.org
AN EXCERPT from Border Crossings: Coming of Age in the Czech Resistance by Charles Novacek
