Gundel's story takes place at a time of great upheaval and social change. She is born into a comfortable middle class family in pre -war Germany. She is bright, articulate and talented and looks forward to a promising career. That is, until Hitler rises to power. Because her mother is Jewish, she loses her home, several members of her family are forced to flee and her parents do not survive the war. When peace comes she is at last able to marry and despite struggling to make a living, she enjoys a brief period of happiness. Then another personal tragedy strikes.
Hoping to leave those memories behind, Gundel agrees to move to Australia. It is not the way she imagined. Life is hard. Homesickness, loneliness and culture shock take their toll and like many of that first generation of post war migrants, she dies before her time . Nevertheless, Gundel's writing and drawings show that she never lost her sense of humour or her delight in the beauty of nature and the small joys of everyday life.
There has been a long silence about this period in Australia's history. Newcomers were not encouraged to voice their opinion or express their feelings. They were obliged to sustain the collective myth articulated by John West in his 1983 book, Social Inequality in Australia, that "Australia was the best of all possible worlds, and that the migrant should be grateful for the opportunity of becoming Australian."
Australia has grown up a lot since then and as new waves of migrants sweep the world, it is time their story was told. Although every migrant's story is unique, Gundel's story still has much in common with all those who have dared to embark on a new life in a distant country.
As one reader wrote:
"Sometimes you go along with your life and it is easy to forget the struggles as an immigrant. Even though l came from a different part of the world (El Salvador), at a different time (1985) and for similar, yet different reasons a lot resonated with me. When I read Sabi Buehler's book "A LIFE IN TWO SUITCASES" l was so moved by the way it was so poetically written. It left an impact on me in many different ways. It made me remember my own migration experiences except it was in someone else's shoes. The sadness leaving behind family, friends and places that I was so attached to; this book reignited my own experience, the uncertainty of going to another country that I did not know; the language barrier and the hardship of the early days in Australia. Sabi has written so eloquently about her family journey and her beautiful memories of her family's migration. Thank you Sabi for this great read. It has brought back many memories that deserve to be on paper and retold to the next generation. You have really written a book which is painful, sweet and enjoyable."
- Rodolfo Valenzuela.
