Citizen of the World: The 1950s - A Decade of Reconstruction

The Twentieth Century was undoubtedly the most murderous period in human history, with approximately a hundred million people perishing during wars, hunger, and revolutions. Erik Meyer, born in 1940 in Hamburg, Germany, at the outset of World War II, experienced half of this century of death and destruction. Growing up in an environment where his parents had lost everything they owned and lived for nearly a decade with five people in two small rooms, the primary daily task was finding enough food to eat and fuel to heat and cook. Even the most basic items of a civilized world, such as clothing, household items, and furniture, were scarce and unaffordable.

Germany, a highly developed and civilized country, was utterly destroyed and bombed back into the stone age. "Risen from the ashes...to a citizen of the world" is an account of a seemingly hopeless beginning, which has led to the author becoming a multi-lingual global citizen, having lived and worked in seven countries and visited all five continents frequently.

The account of seven decades was initially written as personal memoirs for the author's children and grandchildren, but several people who have read and proofread the manuscript strongly suggested publishing this historical account, as it will make interesting reading for anyone with an interest in the history of the Twentieth Century. The entire account is too large to publish in one book, and is therefore available in seven sections, each covering a decade from the 1940s to the 2000s. Each section is richly illustrated with photos, graphs, and maps of the time to supplement the text and make the reading more engaging.

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