I have fulfilled a promise to an old friend by translating her father’s wartime memoir into English
Scheduled for publication on Holocaust Memorial Day, 27 January 2026) Beyond the Darkness describes in graphic detail the experiences of an Armenian in the French Resistance who survived three Nazi death camps. With the spectre of fascism haunting the streets of Europe and America it is a timely reminder of the depravity to which the Nazis sank.
Mihran Mavian was a humble cobbler and a Communist Party member. Back in the 1960s I taught English to his daughter Alice who became a lifelong friend. She later translated her father’s memoir from Armenian into French. Alice died 2024 and my translation into English is dedicated to three generations of her family.
In gathering material I visited Flossenbürg concentration camp near the Czech border from which Mavian survived a death march to give evidence against his captors.
The book is illustrated and heavily annotated to provide greater context for those who know little about the culture and politics of Armenia, France and Germany, and what happened 80 years ago.
Beyond the Darkness ISBN 978-1-909382-90-9, costs £20 and is available from https://www.gomidas.org/books
