In a world full of wrong, one family did all they could to survive and stay on the right side of humanity.
Amid the chaos of the first World War, a young German soldier, Adolf "Adi" Dindinger, stationed in Berlin and head of the Kaisergarde, falls in love with Tatjana Wiczewski, a Russian Jew living in Bialowieza. As the Bolsheviks burn Tatjana's village, Adi and Tatjana flee to Poland, with forged German citizenship papers for Tatjana that disguise her Jewish heritage. Adi and Tatjana make a life in Poland, raising four children, while aware of the dangers for them both as tensions build between Germany and Poland.
When World War II breaks out, the children-now young adults and teenagers-have talents of value to the Reich. The young men are conscripted, the oldest daughter is a proficient chemical engineering student in Berlin, and the youngest daughter is a talented figure skater and pianist. As the war tightens its grip, the Dindingers face impossible choices: protect themselves or protect others; remain silent or risk everything. In a world where morality is distorted by power, even small acts of conscience carry deadly consequences.
Author Dr. Ruth Hillelson is the daughter of the youngest Dindinger sibling. In The Right Side of Wrong, Dr. Hillelson draws from inherited letters, official documents, and family testimony to reconstruct the story of her mother's family and weaves a beautiful story of trials and triumphs that is both poignant and extremely relevant today.
Hillelson, Ruth L.: - A native of Rhode Island, whose early years included the study of piano and competitive figure skating, Dr. Ruth Leanna Hillelson went on to devote her life to the art and science of plastic and reconstructive surgery. She was among the first female undergraduates of Johns Hopkins University, where she directed a National Science Foundation research grant at the age of eighteen. She completed her medical education at Harvard University, authoring a seminal research paper on tissue flap necrosis and salvage.Dr. Hillelson's surgical training included residencies and postgraduate fellowships in general and plastic surgery at the University of Virginia, Johns Hopkins, and the University of Kansas, along with advanced training in craniofacial and maxillofacial reconstruction at the University of Virginia. She achieved international acclaim for her techniques in breast reconstruction after mastectomy and her innovations in radiofrequency skin tightening, lecturing in this field across three continents. Drawing on her background in chemistry and skin physiology, she also developed a line of bioactive skin products, Iridesse Skin Care. She currently serves as Chief of Plastic Surgery and Aesthetics at the Hillelson-Whipple Clinic in Richmond, Virginia.Both memoir and history, this book continues Dr. Hillelson's lifelong pursuit of knowledge into a more personal dimension, reconstructing her family's journey through terrible tragedies, narrow escapes, resistance efforts, and the lasting scars of survival. Reflecting years of tireless effort and dedication, it chronicles the extraordinary courage of her grandparents, her uncles, her aunt, and her mother, who risked their lives to resist the Third Reich and aid the Allies during World War II. The book stands as both a tribute to her family's bravery and a testament to Dr. Hillelson's ability to intertwine personal narrative with academic depth as only a scientist can do.Dr. Hillelson lives in Richmond, Virginia, with her husband, Dr. Terry L. Whipple, their two charming and affectionate dogs, and their two beloved horses.
