Mike Bernhardt

Mike Bernhardt

A grandmother’s pressed seaweed. A family’s escape
from Nazi Germany. A story I couldn’t stop researching.

PUBLISHED NONFICTION

Two true stories from the same family history, published in Hidden Compass.

LOWELL THOMAS AWARD

Hidden Compass · 2023

The Tides of War

A grandmother’s mysterious seaweed collection leads to a decades-long search to understand her journey as a refugee during WWII—and to discover what happened to her husband.

Read the essay →

Hidden Compass · 2026

Trusting the Smuggler's Route

While retracing the harrowing escape of a German-Jewish teen from WWII France to Switzerland, I discover the women who risked their lives to save her and confront a legacy of both bravery and trauma.

Read the essay →

IN PROGRESS — THE NOVEL

The Tides of War — A Novel

Drawn from the true story behind the award-winning essays below, The Tides of War follows all four members of the Moser family across five countries and separate fights to survive, after they escaped Nazi Germany believing they were finally safe.

NOTES FROM THE FIELD

Tidbits from the research, award news, and — soon — speaking engagements. Filtered here to the historical & fiction work; everything else lives on the full Blog.

Retracing the Escape Route

Notes from walking the same coastline Ernst and Margaret crossed.

Lowell Thomas Award

"The Tides of War" wins in Special-Purpose Travel

YouTube interview — coming soon

A conversation about the essay and the novel it's becoming.

Mike Bernhardt

 © 2026 Mike Bernhardt. All Rights Reserved.