John and Esther fall in love. It sounds like a simple story line but it is not.

John, American pilot during the Second World War, and Esther, survivor of the holocaust, meet at a volatile time in history, and their love supports and carries them through difficult times beyond their control. But this is not just a love story. It is a look into a time in history that few people understand. The Second World War was officially over but the Cold War was in its infancy, during which time, the Soviet Army blockaded West Berlin, an attempt to force communism on over two million people. Esther refused John's offer to escape the difficulties of this time and insisted on making the one decision that she could make on her own. Up until that time, everything that had happened to her was out of her control. She stayed in Berlin to help the cause, while John flew for the Airlift, transporting vital supplies that would save the lives of many in West Berlin.

Author, Kati Fabian's life had been affected by the Cold War years and her interest in finding the truth about a little talked about subject led her to write Eagles Over Berlin. She has filled the pages of this well written novel with facts that few would know, but softens the pain and fear with a love story that transcends the horror. This is a story of love, devastation, optimism and grief. But in many ways, it is an education. This reviewer better understands the workings of the Cold War and highly recommends Eagles Over Berlin to all those interested in learning more about this period of history. We must again make a stand against terrorism and it is heartening to be reminded that with perseverance, teamwork and love, there will be success.

What a wonderful book! I was born in Germany just after the war. Growing up in postwar Germany, I remember the debris and rubble, which was my playground at the time. Your book describes the circumstances of life in those days very accurately and your story is fascinating. Once I started reading I could not stop until the end of the book. I admire your work for its excellent attention to detail including the description of the last days of communism in Eastern Europe and how it ended.

Great book!

As an American participant in the postwar years of Germany, including the period of the Blockade, I was drawn strongly to the description and experiences of the characters in your book. The book brought back many memories to me of the traumatic times and places described so vividly and yet clearly therein. I couldn't put it down from the moment I started reading until the very end. Thank you for your memorable story.

The Berlin Airlift was an astonishing chapter in history, which grew out of a jostle for power at the end of World War II. The Cold War, in effect, started before the end of the conflict with Nazi Germany. The Allies had long been considering how to carve Europe up.
In October 1944, for instance, Winston Churchill wrote a plan on a scrap of paper which gave 90 per cent of Romania, half of Yugoslavia, half of Hungary and three-quarters of Bulgaria to Stalin.Stalin took the note – they were meeting in Moscow – and put a tick against it. Such are the negotiations among the victors in war. However, Germany was less easy to carve up and what happened in Berlin between 1945 and 1950 set the tone for the next half a century.
The allies – the United States, the British, the French and the Soviet Union - first divided Berlin and Germany into four zones. But it was a tense stand off and, when the three western countries amalgamated their sectors and introduced a new currency, the Deutschmark, Stalin reacted by closing off access to west Berlin. This meant the only way in was by air. Between June 1948 and August 1949 – a period which included a cruel winter – huge quantities of supplies were flown in to keep the more than two million occupants of West Berlin alive. In all the allies made a remarkable 266,600 mercy flights.
It is against the background of this blockade that Kati Fabian has set her love story, Eagles Over Berlin, and her feel for the events seem intensely personal. She is originally from Hungary, where Stalin would later act against a popular uprising. Fabian links in chapters on her main characters, pilot John Carpenter and Holocaust survivor Esther Kohlberg, with glimpses of real life meetings and speeches featuring major allied and German soldiers and politicians. And it was a fascinating time.
However, occasionally the book’s political message gets in the way. In the author’s note, Fabian draws parallels with the current state of Iraq, an analogy which might sit uneasy with many opponents of that conflict in the US and Europe.
And the author notes: “History shows us that wherever the Americans have arrived, democracy, freedom, civil rights and progress flourished in their footsteps.”
That sort of message continues through a tale where all Americans are heroes and the Russians – who had suffered hugely in the war with the Nazis – are all untrustworthy. Fabian’s passion for her subject shines through but sometimes it seems more intense than the love between the two characters at the heart of her story.