“The Mushroom Girl is a touching memoir of a little girl’s life as refugee during and after World War II. Through her eyes we relive hardships, curiosity, and wonder as her family finds ways to survive. There is sweetness and compassion, triumph and resignation in Grieder’s voice as she describes landscapes of scarcity and precarity. Her honesty and courage in facing obstacles of every sort endear us to Dagmar, both the child and the adult, as she captivates us with her storytelling."

—John R. Clarke, author of Art in the Lives of Ordinary Romans