Elisabeth Seltzer's story begins in Wognum, North Holland in 1950, five years after the war. In 1952, her family immigrated to Canada, leaving the aftermath of World War II behind them and embracing a new beginning. Growing up, Elisabeth was fascinated by her parents' unique background, sparking a lifelong curiosity about their untold story. 

Brad Seltzer's journey led him to a career in law enforcement with the Ontario Provincial Police. Balancing his police work with part-time studies, Brad pursued a Bachelor of Arts degree, later transitioning to a role as a faculty member at Conestoga College. Married to Elisabeth, he was intrigued to share her personal quest to uncover her family's past. 

For more than five decades, Brad and Elisabeth have shared their life together. They now live in Goderich, Ontario, finding joy in their family of three adult children and five grandchildren. 

​GOODREADS / AMAZON / INDIGO

Purchase books locally at: 

-The Bee's Knees Books & Emporium (Goderich) 

-The Dutch Store (Clinton)

-The Village Bookshop (Bayfield)

-Fanfare Books (Stratford)

-Contacting the author directly 

In May 1940, Nazi Germany invaded and occupied the Netherlands. Thousands of young men were rounded up and sent to Germany to support the war economy as forced labourers. Peter Manshande from the small North-Holland town of Wognum was one of them.

Soon after his 19th birthday, Peter received the notice that would derail his life for the next two and a half years - he had to go to Germany. Forced to work as a civilian mechanic and driver in a German military transport unit, he witnessed horrific sadism inflicted on political prisoners and other 'undesirables' imprisoned in SS-camps. Hungry and scared, Peter experienced the ferocious Allied bombings of Hamburg, where under the command of German soldiers, he was forced to dig up the bodies of civilian casualties buried in the rubble.

Peter saved the memories of his experiences and hid them, locked away in his old wartime suitcase. One day, many years later, in a new life in Canada, his daughter asked him what was inside. He told her the story of the painful events that had haunted him for a lifetime.

This is Peter's story.