The Bootmaker of Berlin

‘The Bootmaker of Berlin’ is an epic tale spanning the years 1938 to 2010. The lives of the main characters – Kathy, Alice and Horst – are bound by what occurred in the Second World War in Germany, England and Australia. Though some events will be familiar, a central storyline explores the lesser-known fate of German and Italian citizens who, overnight and as a consequence of war, became ‘aliens’ in their adoptive countries.

We meet Kathy Guiliano in 2010, in Berlin, on a quest to find Horst Schuhmacher thereby fulfilling a promise she made to her dying sister, Alice. Until Alice gave her Horst’s address, Kathy had assumed Horst to be a figment of her sister’s declining mind. She doesn’t know how or where they met, the nature of their relationship but suspects he is part of Alice’s life during the war years, years she refused to speak of. With some difficulty, Kathy finds Horst and the story unfolds.

And what a story it is! The sheer scale of the novel is astounding. Kathy’s unfamiliarity with Berlin allows her, and with Horst’s assistance, to gain knowledge about the Nazi regime; the everyday lives of people during that period; the ethics of allegiances both good and bad; as well as the geopolitical events post-war in terms of the division of Berlin, reconstruction etc. And, by finally getting access to Alice’s memories, she learns about what happened during that period to Italian communities in Australia. The description of the camp at Tatura, Victoria, is both detailed and fascinating. Whilst the human story of Horst and Alice is at the heart of the novel, it doubles as a history lesson. It is clear that extensive research has gone into this book.

Yet, for all the wartime drama, it’s the actions and secrets of other family members that rock the lives of Kathy and Horst. Both are left to make sense of, and make peace with, those revelations.

Review by Diane Clarke