Bílý pramen - CDmp3 (Čte Petra Bučková)

The German name Aš recalls ashes. Its destiny almost came to fruition, but hope lives on... In the westernmost tip of our state, which joined the Czech territory as one of the last corners, Sudeten Germans have always farmed almost exclusively. For the Czechs from the lowlands, it was too harsh. Hedvika Wunderlich from the village of Wernersreuth – today's Vernéřov near Aš – loves it nonetheless with the fervor of a teenage girl, as she feels that despite all ambitions, one cannot betray the landscape of childhood. The gifted girl dares to bid farewell to the village's smallness like no other woman from her landowning family, but it is precisely her stubbornness that invites trouble. And in what the mournfully patriarchal conditions, her distant father, and an unsuitable fiancé do not hinder her, the oak club of great history will later accomplish between the fateful years of 1914 and 1945. A club that particularly targeted ordinary people and crushes their hopes regardless of how much they have sinned in their desire to live better. An impressively raw debut from a native of Aš pays tribute to the native soil and the people who used to be its salt. So little can be gained here – and so much lost, but only respect for historical memory might finally change that.