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How many times have you wondered: How could the Holocaust have happened? How did the Nazis take power? How did, town by town, a whole country get caught in the charismatic fervor that Hitler's regime inspired? How did neighbor turn on neighbor, friend on friend?

Ursula Hegi's book, Stones from the River, takes you on that journey to seek an answer. She leads you to examine the soul of a small town, and while there, you find yourself examining your own soul as well.

Burgdorf, Germany -- a quiet town, nothing special, just people going about their lives, trying to earn a living. They are uncomfortable, but manage to cope, with things that come along to change the status quo…newcomers, someone going insane, someone being born "different." Thus we meet Trudi, the main character, who can never be "normal." Trudi is a dwarf and she comes to understand the town, its people, and human nature by how she is treated.

As the book opens, the town is dealing with effects of World War I. But that will come to pale in comparison with what lies just ahead…the Nazi movement. Hegi gives you a window on the town through Trudi's eyes, and you come to know the place and its people. But slowly you watch the darkness take hold as the infection of fear, blame, and hatred absorbs the town.

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Stones from the River opens in 1915 in the fictional town of Burgdorf, Germany, not far from the larger city of Düsseldorf. It is a small town with a tradition of order, hard work, and a struggle for survival. The town includes many farmers as well as a doctor, a butcher, a pharmacist, a baker, etc.… Since the 1500s, the religious tradition has been primarily Protestant, but most people have comfortable relationships with their Catholic and Jewish citizens.

As the book opens, the townsmen have been called to service in World War I. Gradually the men return, with wounded bodies and spirits, their country defeated. The loss of life and limb are small compared to the loss of the country's confidence in itself. The empire has collapsed and the Kaiser has abdicated. They feel humiliated by the Treatise of Versailles, which has forced Germany to relinquish control of its territories, limit its army, and make restitution for damage caused in the war. A new government, the Weimar Republic, has been formed.

During these years after the war, Germany stumbles, and as financial hardships increase, so does the need to feel powerful once more. Not surprisingly people start looking for someone to blame. Hitler seizes the moment and provides the scapegoats…the weak, the "different," the Jews.

Inspired by promises of greatness and prosperity, the country rises from the ashes. The youth are particularly vulnerable, and Hitler knows that. He instills confidence, control, and bravado. Soon they are rallied, united in belief…of the Führer's word, of their own greatness. United in hate. Their power grows, until they begin to act, first in their own neighborhoods, ultimately against the world.