What it was really like

A life story closely intertwined with the history of our republic, from its inception (almost) to the present day.

A boy who experienced the madness of various patriotisms before, during, and after the Second World War; a man whose life path led him from the spectacle of one totalitarian regime to another.

Otto Peschka never lost faith and hope, and found creative strength and love.

This work speaks to us not only of personal history – it also contains the history of our entire state and its connection with the German people who lived, worked, and created here for centuries, only to become victims of the Czechisation that accompanied our state's formation, and the de-Germanisation that was unleashed after the Second World War.

Otto Peschka, born in Děčín, experienced these historical tribulations very directly, being three-quarters Czech and one-quarter German.

However, he does not tell his life story from the perspective of being Czech or German, but from the perspective of humanity.