German to discuss her experience with Berlin Wall

NORTH PORT — Three decades after the fall of the Berlin Wall, a German author will discuss the historic event with patrons of local libraries.

J. Elke Ertle, author of “Walled-In: A West Berlin Girl’s Journey to Freedom,” will discuss the factors that led to the construction of the Berlin Wall in 1961 and the dynamics that brought it down in 1989.

The author will meet with library patrons at 6 p.m. Tuesday at the North Port Library, 13800 S Tamiami Trail. She will also make an appearance at 2 p.m. Thursday at the Elsie Quirk Library, 100 W. Dearborn St., Englewood.

Ertle, born and raised in West Berlin, was 15 when construction of the Wall first began. She will end the discussion by reading a brief excerpt from her memoir.

Copies of Ertle’s book will be available for sale after the event.