Following Shadows reveals how a father’s hidden past in World War II’s concentration camps shapes—and ultimately redeems—his family.

In this sweeping WWII family saga inspired by true events, a daughter waits. In 2004, 40-something Luce Vanderveer is driven to uncover the lost childhood of her elderly father. She knows that Japan invaded the Dutch East Indies (Indonesia) in 1942. Families were torn from their homes and imprisoned in brutal concentration camps. Starvation, forced labor, and silence about the past left deep scars across generations.

Seventy-something Jakob Vanderveer worries mightily about his three adult children. Long quiet about his past, he vowed to never reveal the events of his concentration camp youth. Speaking could tether his family to the darkest corners of humanity.

When Jakob’s worries explode due to his son’s near-death overdose, the family unites. Truths spanning decades begin to surface. Confronted with his son’s near death, he can no longer claim that secrecy created a healthy family. He begins with general reflections on the horrors of war and countless deaths. He haltingly recounts the day the Japanese declared all boys ten and older “men”—the day that set in motion events leaving Jakob and his brother alone among thousands of men.

Through the telling of his story, a seemingly cast-iron wall begins to crack. Jakob’s real-life account of what happened in the concentration camps leaves Luce with a deeper understanding of her own—and her brother’s—struggles. By coming to terms with their challenging past the Vanderveers embark on a journey of healing, proving that the human spirit can and will endure against all odds in the search for forgiveness, understanding and unconditional love.

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