What an astounding story! And so beautifully and movingly crafted. Admittedly I may be partial. That first cousin of Frank Crimbchin's - John - the one he had begged to punch him after he had gotten his leg caught in the belt planner - had been my father. And Roberta Rennekamp, his other cousin who had collected clothes to send to Pega, is my aunt. And although I haven't seen Pega herself in a good many years, I remember her well. And her husband Frank. And her kids who used to come and visit our family and play with us when my siblings and I were kids ourselves. But I had never known any of this.
And from very early on, I knew Pega as a very self-effacing, kind, loving woman who was devoted to her family, worked harder than just about anyone else I knew, could grow the biggest and best just about anything on that farm, and made the most delicious donuts I ever had and believe ever will have in my entire life. But I had never known any of this.
I had known Frank had a bum leg and that he had been in the Korean War where he had met Pega and they had fallen in love and that he had returned to get her after. But I had never known any of this.
As I grew older I had also come to know that Frank had his problems and had heard he was a pretty tough disciplinarian and had a temper on him. But I had never known any of this.
Now I know all this. And now that I know all this, it amazes me that the woman can be the woman she is. But then again, maybe it doesn't amaze me at all. Time passes; wars come and go. Each new generation forgets the prior generation's war. And even when remembered, rarely are the people of the country in which it had been fought much remembered, their suffering given any consideration. But this is much more than a story of suffering. It's also a story of survival, sometimes even miraculous survival. No doubt it is heart wrenching. But at the same time it is heart lifting because most importantly it's a story of "Love Beyond Measure." It's a story of how love, perhaps even more so than faith, can move mountains. And it's a story of how two people's belief in love can keep hope alive against seemingly insurmountable odds. And maybe that's not so amazing after all. Maybe that's something we already know. Or at least should know because it's something we need to know.
It's not at all necessary for the reader to have known Frank and Pega Crimbchin to be deeply touched by this book, to actually learn from this book. And there is much to learn from this book. War is hell, appreciate what you have. Those things are in there, no doubt. You'll find it hard to complain about much of anything after reading this book. But I think maybe an even more important lesson is that when we look at a person, what we actually see is who that person has become over time. And that is the result of so many, many things - some of which the person might have had control over, some of which the person might not have.
Katie Schell has given a great gift to Frank and Pega Crimbchin, her parents. She has told a part of their story that perhaps many people didn't know. I certainly didn't, and clearly those who never met them don't. I truly hope that her mother finds joy in knowing that many more people will know Frank as she knew Frank. I think he deserves that; I know she does.
I also hope that many, many people do read this book because it well merits the read; and anyone with a loving heart will not be disappointed. It's a story rarely told. And while it takes you to places you have never been and will most assuredly never want to be, it also introduces you to a woman you will fall in love with as well as the man who fell in love with her. They are two very rare yet very real people - and unquestionably worth meeting.
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- Reviewed in the United States on October 5, 2013
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