Vande Steeg

The Dutch Winter is a fictionalized history of the Nazi occupation of The Netherlands during WWII told by an author who lived through it. The characters are fictional but the story is real, beginning in Arnhem’s city square that had once been a vibrant center of activity. Shops bustled with shoppers. Cafes and beer gardens filled with hungry thirsty people taking time to visit with friends. The historic brick church stood open for tourists and the needy souls who needed prayer and sought a blessing. The clock in the tower showed the time of day and its bell clanged on the hour and half hour. People scheduled lunch by the bell and closed businesses when it rang six times. Now the clock is stopped. The bell no longer tolls. Shoppers no longer roam the streets. The city square is empty, cold, dreary, and dark. Only a few windows have lights. Nazis occupy the rooms that have lights. The few people still living here get by with what has not been conscripted by Nazi Germany’s soldiers. Their windows are dimly lit by candles and kerosene lamps. This once vibrant city on the Rhine has lost hope. A small group of people are huddled in the square. Clustered in a small area, they seek comfort in their closeness but also to have a view. Their husbands, fathers or in some cases, mothers or sisters are in custody of the enemy. Thirty cold, scared people hope to find comfort or warmth from each other this cold January morning. Sixty eyes look at the corner window of the fifth floor of the burnished brown brick building on the south end of the city square. Fear brings tears to their eyes. Distraught they gaze at the window hoping to see the face of the person they love, taken prisoner for harboring Jews. The Dutch Winter is a journey inside the mind and heart of a young lad who experiences extreme hunger, loss of freedom, and fear of death. The stalwartness of the Dutch and the strength of their faith are evident as they struggle against and eventually occupation by the Third Reich.The Dutch Winter will warm your heart as you share in the victory of good over evil and read the tribute Herve’ pens to The Statue of Liberty.