Bookpleasures.com welcomes as our guest, Andreas Algava co-author of 600 Days in Hiding.  

Andreas was born in Thessaloniki Greece also familiarly known as Salonika. When he was sixteen months old, Hitler's forces invaded his country of birth and for six hundred days, with the help of some Christian friends, he, his parents and grandparents hid from the Nazis. 

After the war, Andreas was seven at the time, moved to the United States with his parents and grandparents.

Andreas attended college at Cornell University where he earned his engineering degree. This was followed by military service in the U.S. Army including a tour of duty in France. After his military service, Andreas worked with his father in the family export business in the USA and Argentina. Soon after he joined IBM and worked on assignment in Germany where he lived with his wife, Priscilla, and where his two daughters, Alisa and Carin were born. He now lives in Providence R.I. 

Norm: Good day Andreas and thanks for participating in our interview.

What has been your greatest challenge (professionally) that you’ve overcome in getting to where you’re at today? 

Andreas: Thank you Norm for inviting me to speak with you. Never having written a book previously, the greatest challenge was to use my experiences to weave a compelling story.  

Norm: How has your experiences surviving the Holocaust along with your parents and grandparents shaped your character? 

Andreas: It was traumatic; it shaped my nature to be shy, to avoid being noticed, avoid confrontation and to keep a low profile. Our family relationships included great dependence on each other; not just what to do, but what not to do.

Norm: What motivated you to write 600 Days in Hiding and what was the most difficult part of writing this book? 

Andreas: I had a need to write my story, to express my feelings. I had to get it out of my body, my mind; I had to tell what happened.

Norm: How did you share the writing of the book with your co-author Daniel Levine and what exactly was his role? 

Andreas:  Actually, it started years before when I heard my parents and grandparents talk about what occurred in Thessaloniki. I decided to ask questions and recorded their responses in the form of a manuscript which I shared with Daniel. One of his major contributions was to give the story connective tissue and to create a compelling narrative.

Norm: What was the timeline between the time you decided to write your book and publication? What were the major events along the way? 

Andreas: It took years to actually tell my story. And, approximately six years to publish.

It was a process that unfolded over that period of time.

Norm:  What were your goals and intentions in this book, how well do you feel you achieved them?

Andreas: My intention was to demonstrate the effects of what I see arising in our current culture and to give others pause to consider what is occurring in this political environment. 

Norm: What do you hope will be the everlasting thoughts for readers who finish your book? As a follow-up, whom do you believe will benefit from your book and why?

Andreas: I think thoughts are not powerful enough. My hope is we learn the lessons of the past and take actions to prevent it from happening in the future. 

Norm: Did you learn anything from writing your memoir and what was it?

Andreas: Writing this memoir was cathartic and provided an opportunity to enhance awareness to correct and continue so we can stop repeating mistakes of the past.

Norm: I noticed that when you were working for IBM you were on assignment in Germany. How did it feel to live in Germany after surviving the Holocaust? 

Andreas: Great question. Moving to Germany was a professional opportunity. It was exciting to be there. It wasn’t until after I returned to the United States that I experienced emotions from what I knew had occurred there.

Norm: Do you hear from your readers much? What kinds of things do they say? 

Andreas: My book has just recently been published. I look forward to readers response to the book. And look forward to meaningful dialogue via my website blog.

Norm: Are you working on any books/projects that you would like to share with us? (We would love to hear all about them!) 

Andreas: The first book was the adventure story of my experience. My next book, the sequel will describe how I came to be. My next project is to make the book into a movie.

Norm: What will you be doing for promotion and how much of it is your doing?  

Norm: Where can our readers find out more about you and 600 Days in Hiding?

Andreas: MY WEBSITE.   Readers can communicate via the website blog link and if they wish can share their email address.  

Norm: As this interview comes to an end, what question do you wish that someone would ask about your book, but nobody has? 

Andreas: What would I do differently? I would like to be in conversation regarding the blessings I experience.

Norm: Thank you so much for taking the time to answer my questions. It's been an absolute pleasure to meet with you and read your work. Good luck with 600 days in Hiding.

Follow Here To Read Norm's Review of 600 Days in Hiding