Nina Willner

Nina Willner
Nina Willner
Born	March 1, 1961
Nationality	American
Alma mater	James Madison University
Occupation(s)	Author, Nonfiction
Website	https://ninawillner.com

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Nina Willner (born March 1, 1961) is an American nonfiction author, a former intelligence officer and human rights activist. Her first book Forty Autumns A Family’s Story of Courage and Survival on Both Sides of the Berlin Wall (HarperCollins William Morrow, 2016, ISBN-10: 0062410318) is the true story of Willner's own mother's escape from communist East Germany at age 20, the large family she left behind the Iron Curtain, and their four-decade journey to reunite. During the Cold War, at age 22, Nina Willner, a U.S. Army intelligence officer, was sent into the heart of Soviet-controlled East Berlin to run secret spy missions. Willner uses her personal story to tell the broader story of the Cold War and the fall of communism in Eastern Europe, providing a unique and highly readable historical narrative of these incredible events.

Forty Autumns was named “Top 15 Nonfiction Books of 2016” by Christian Science Monitor and Kirkus Reviews praised it as a book that “celebrates the resilience of the human spirit.”

Biography

Willner grew up mostly in Northern Virginia. Her father Eddie Willner, an Auschwitz and Buchenwald survivor, emigrated to the U.S. after WWII and served a career in the U.S. Army. Her mother, Johanna Willner, is a teacher. Willner has five siblings.

Willner began her career in Berlin. After a career in U.S. intelligence, she worked in the fields of human rights and rule of law, in education and for women’s and children’s charity causes. She has spent three decades living and working for the U.S Government, for non-profits and humanitarian outreach programs in Russia, Belarus, Czech Republic, Germany, Japan, Canada and in Turkey.

References:

“15 Best Nonfiction Books of 2016,” The Christian Science Monitor, Dec 20, 2016
“11 Works of Nonfiction to Rival Any Great Thriller Novel,” by Keith Rice, Signature, Aug 17, 2018
“New memoirs trace identity, exile and exclusion in Germany, Latvia and India,” by Diane Scharper, National Catholic Reporter, Dec 6, 2017
“Forty Autumns: The Perfect Christmas Gift for Millennials Tempted by Marxism,” by John Zmirak, The Stream, Dec 6, 2017
“Forty Years of Family Life Lost Behind the Iron Curtain,” by Giulia Rhodes, The Guardian, Oct 8, 2016
“The Sadness of Partisan Polarizing,” by Loretta G. Breuning Ph.D., Psychology Today, Feb 7, 2017
“18 Books You Should Read this October,” by Bethanne Patrick, Literary Hub, Oct 4, 2016
“A Year of Reading: My Favourite Books of 2016,” by Bob Douglas, Critics At Large, Jan 7, 2017
“Eddie Willner: A Survivor,” by Nina Willner, USO On Patrol, Sep 19, 2015
“Nonfiction: Forty Autumns,” by Rebecca Hill, Library Journal (starred review) Sep 15, 2016
“Forty Autumns,” Publishers Weekly
“Forty Autumns,” Kirkus Reviews, Aug 15, 2016
“Book: Forty Autumns,” by Roger Bishop, BookPage, Oct 5, 2016
“Forty Autumns: A powerful family history covering both sides of the Berlin Wall,” by Julia M. Klein, The Chicago Tribune, Oct 7, 2016
“Editorial Content,” by Alexis Burling, BookReporter
“Biography and Memoir,” by Julia McMichael, Manhattan Book Review
“Brings the Cold War to Life,” Booklist
“The Iron Curtain Rises Again,” by Maureen McCarthy, Star Tribune, Nov 11, 2016
“Western girl's emotional journey east to adulthood,” by Marina Gerner, The Jewish Chronicle, Dec 1, 2016
“A Rare Perspective,” by LTG (Ret.) Thomas Griffin, Oct 7, 2016

External Links