Rhidian Brook : « The book is partly based on the memories of my father and uncle »

Hamburg, 1946. Thousands remain displaced in what is now the British Occupied Zone. Charged with overseeing the rebuilding of this devastated city and the de-Nazification of its defeated people, Colonel Lewis Morgan is requisitioned a fine house on the banks of the Elbe, where he will be joined by his grieving wife, Rachael, and only remaining son, Edmund.

 Rhidian Brook's Interview

Micmag.net : Your book is about a relatively forgotten period, the postwar Hamburg. Is it based on personal memories ?

Rhidian Brook : The book is partly based on the memories of my father and uncle who were both boys (9 and 16) at that time. I did not know my grandfather, but I have some idea of what he might have been like and I've projected these ideas into the character of Lewis. That said, the novel relies much more on imagination than memoir.  I had to make these characters my own for the novel to work. 

M. : How has the book been received in Britain ?

R.B. : The press has been glowing with maybe four or five 'rave' reviews. The pleasing thing has been the way the book has connected with the both literary (Literary Review, Guardian) and mainstream (Mail on Sunday) reviewers. The book has also garnered great and passionate reviews on Amazon with some readers going into great detail in their responses.   


M. : Is « The Aftermath » translated in German ?

R.B. : It is being translated and will be published in Germany in March 2014. I am very curious about the German response. Already I have received messages from Germans who have read the book in English and they have been favourable - many seem grateful that I have focused on a period that is largely undiscussed and a side to the story rarely told.