East Wind

Excellent read. Maria wasn't perfect and she readily admits her foibles but her faith in God and His promises are what always brought her back from the edge. It was this saving faith that glowed within her, a warmth that touched many a person from many walks of life. A beautiful testimony of God's faithfulness to use one submitted to His will. My prayer is that if you don't know this awesome God Maria knows, that by reading her story you will desire to possess what can only be gotten by believing in the One Who gave everything so that none should perish. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith... And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession--to the praise of his glory. Ephesians 2:8a; 1:13-14

This incredible true story of Maria Zeitner Linke is one of the most moving books I have read. Imprisoned in the Soviet Gulag, and later, East Germany, on false charges and tortured for years, this courageous woman of faith never gave in to the inhumanity of her captors. In spite of her own suffering, Maria always managed to reach out with kindness to other fellow prisoners.

As a young boy, I had the privilege of knowing Maria Linke as a neighbor of her sister when she lived in the small town of Emlenton, Pennsylvania. She was an amazing woman. She shared her personal war time experiences with friends, neighbors, church groups and all who wanted to know the truth of wars devastating toll on humanity. Her book details the events of her life as a prisoner of the Russians during the war. It is a story of immense faith. After reading the book, you will wish that you had an opportunity to know her and her family first hand.