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Trautmann's Journey: From Hitler Youth to FA Cup Legend [Hardcover]

Catrine Clay (Author)
3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (27 customer reviews)
RRP: £16.99
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Book Description

Publication Date: 1 April 2010

'He was the best goalkeeper I ever played against.' Bobby Charlton

Every football fan knows the legend of Bert Trautmann. Fifteen minutes from the end of the 1956 FA Cup Final, Trautmann - the goalkeeper for Manchester City - falls spectacularly mid-tackle. He continues to play on to the end of the game, ensuring Manchester City win the cup. An X-ray later reveals a broken neck.

But there is more to this legend than a plucky goalkeeper. Bert Trautmann was born Bernhardt Trautmann in Germany in 1923. Brought up in a country already in the grip of National Socialism, he joined the Hitler Youth at the age of ten and went to fight for the Vaterland when he was seventeen. Despite enduring inconceivable hardships in the name of war, Trautmann continued to believe wholeheartedly in the cause. Until one day he stumbled into enemy territory to be greeted by the words, 'Fancy a cup of tea, Fritz?'

What follows is an extraordinary story of transformation. Bernhardt - a Nazi living in a POW camp in Cheshire - becomes Bert. From an amateur footballer working on a bomb disposal unit in Liverpool, to celebrated Manchester City goalkeeper adored by thousands, Catrine Clay charts Trautmann's conversion from Hitler Youth star to all-England football hero, mirroring Europe's own journey through the horrors of war to a fragile post-war peace.

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Trautmann's Journey: From Hitler Youth to FA Cup Legend + A Life Too Short: The Tragedy of Robert Enke + I'm Not Really Here
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Product details

  • Hardcover: 352 pages
  • Publisher: Yellow Jersey; First Edition edition (1 April 2010)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0224082884
  • ISBN-13: 978-0224082884
  • Product Dimensions: 16.1 x 3 x 24.2 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (27 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 39,072 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Product Description

Review

`absorbing book... excellent' --Daily Telergraph

'a truly remarkable story, uncovered with immense skill by Catrine Clay' -- Daily Telegraph

`sober, detailed, well-told account' -- Guardian

'fascinating' -- The Observer

'simply inspirational' -- Manchester Evening News

`what an extraordinary story this is...fascinating.' --Mail on Sunday

"If ever a life deserved retelling from a new angle, it was surely his"
--When Saturday Comes

a poignant book which is a tribute to the depth of both Clay's research and her compassion
--The Independent

`a gripping story.' --Sunday Times

An intimate history of the Third Reich, the Second World War and postwar Manchester. -- History Today, reviews, Paul Lay

Clay's narrative moves along briskly, ably combining the narrow focus of her subject's life with the brood sweep of events. -- BBC History Magazine, review, Roger Moorhouse

Trauntmann's Journey is a remarkable story, well told. -- BBC History Magazine, review, Roger Moorhouse

`The remarkable life - as paratrooper and fascist - of Man City's famous German goalie'.
--The Sunday Times

"Of the six books shortlisted (for the William Hill Sports Book 2010) I can heartily recommend 'Trautmann's Journey'." --Daily Mirror, November 2010

Book Description

An astounding story of war and football - the first biography of Manchester City goalkeeper and former Hitler Youth star Bert Trautmann
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
3.0 out of 5 stars An okay account but I recommend Trautmann: The Biography by Alan Rowlands 15 Nov 2010
By jenny
Amazon Verified Purchase
The book is well written though compared with the other Trautmann biography it's a bit dry and clinical. The main bulk of the book is focused on his early life in Germany and his experiences as a soldier, which is an excellent account. There are interesting details in this account compared to the other, and new information released such as the fact that he witnessed a mass execution of Jews but had never spoken about it until recently. Alongside Trautmann's experiences are contexts of what was occuring historically at the time, which I think will really help people who don't know much about pre war Germany, WW2 and post war Britain, however, after a while I found it rather tedious and would skip a paragraph so I could get back to Bert's story. I was also severely disappointed in how his amazing football career was squeezed into two meagre chapters. I also find myself doubting Catrine Clay as a historian/biographer as she makes glaringly obviously mistakes about simple things such as Bert's age/birth date yet she has information on this for us all to see in the photo section which shows us Bert's detailed POW records. This makes me think what other mistakes has she made? But I found the information about his family life charming and was introduced to a new character, his cousin Helga who lived with the family as a sort of adopted daughter, which I had never read about before.

It is a decent read overall, but compared to Trautmann: The Biography, I found it too much like a text book. From this account I was left a little cold and disappointed. Trautmann: The Biography is a much more detailed and heart felt account of his life and I would seriously recommend it to all Trautmann fans or fans of football in general. If you are unsure which book to purchase, it is quite simple: if you want a detailed account of Bert's young life and war years, buy this book. If you want an account of his footballing career, buy Trautmann: the biography by Alan Rowlands.
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27 of 29 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars A fascinating look at an intriguing life 12 April 2010
By Lewis Tearle
Catrine Clay has done an excellent job of detailing Bert Trautmann's life, compiled from interviews with a still-sharp Trautmann and a lifetime of documentation. Despite his prominent fame as a legendary Manchester City goalkeeper, here Clay mostly concentrates on the fascinating details of Trautmann's pre-football life - especially intriguing since before being an English goalkeeper he was a devoted Hitler Youth member, a medal-earning soldier for the Luftwaffe and witness to some of the most horrific fighting in WWII, including D-Day and on the Eastern Front. These events are detailed with grim realism and deft if brisk storytelling ability. The movement from soldier to British POW, to small-time footballer and to celebrated goalkeeper is told with endearing charm, and whilst both sides of Trautmann's personality are covered (he could be violent both on and off the pitch) this serves only to make a more interesting and informative character. Following Trautmann's falling in love with England and Lancashire in particular is engrossing (he changes his name from Bernhard to Bert), and Clay tells the story with the right balance of sentimentality and cerebral thought.
Whilst some may be disapointed by the relative lack of in-depth football analysis, this biography serves as a great discussion of an important man and an important time. A real treat to read.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
2.0 out of 5 stars Trautmann's Journey 4 Mar 2011
By Mark the blue
Amazon Verified Purchase
I was very disappointed with this book. Most of the story was taken from archives and news reports from what took place during the second world war, and Bert's own story was small in comparison. I found that i was skipping large parts of the book because it was not interesting. I have read plenty about the second world war and my main interest in buying this book was how Bert Trautmann served his country and became the greatest Goalkeeper ever to grace the game.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
3.0 out of 5 stars Bought as a present, not bad
This was bought as a present for a family member as they have a great interest in Football history. Not a bad read, so I'm told and will be treasured alongside other books
Published 2 months ago by WendyM
5.0 out of 5 stars A great read
A fascinating insight into the life of a young German soldier and the experiences of German prisoners of war held in England at the end of the war. Highly recommended.
Published 18 months ago by TJ
4.0 out of 5 stars Good Read But
I found this a good read with some insight into life in Germany during Hitler's rise to power. The facts about Trautmann were interesting but the rest of it could have been the... Read more
Published 21 months ago by Atkins et. al. Fan
5.0 out of 5 stars Read this !
This book will appeal to anyone looking for an adventure story. The amazing thing is, it's all true ! Read more
Published on 4 Feb 2011 by Paddles O'Maddles
5.0 out of 5 stars trautmans journey from hitler youth to f a cup
this book was bought as a gift ffor my brother ,he says that it was hard to put down ,he said from page one to the last page it was gripping to read
Published on 30 Jan 2011 by Mrs. C. Walker
1.0 out of 5 stars between two stools
Satisfying neither the football enthusiast nor the seeker after historical information, this book falls between two stools. Other reviewers have pointed out some errors (re. Read more
Published on 18 Jan 2011 by doc36
3.0 out of 5 stars Too many factual errors
Bert Trautmann is a boyhood hero of mine. As an eight year old I remember watching the 1956 Cup Final between Man City and Birmingham on our small black and white television. Read more
Published on 10 Jan 2011 by W. Taylor
5.0 out of 5 stars more than just Trautmann's journey
I found this book not just very interesting but also an excellently written account of the every-day lives of the many families like the Trautmanns wo lived through the Hitler time... Read more
Published on 2 Jan 2011 by a long-standing City supporter
1.0 out of 5 stars The first biography ?
Then how come I have a copy of one more than 40 years old ?

Get a grip.
Published on 26 Nov 2010 by Roman Citizen
5.0 out of 5 stars Trautmann's Journey: From Hitler Youth to FA Cup Legend
This is only the fourth book my husband has read since he had to read at school; he couldn't put the book down! Definitely worth buying.
Published on 10 Nov 2010 by jojo
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