"An extraordinary tale. . . . Beck's stories of secret meetings, backstabbing betrayals and Nazi interrogations are the stuff of spy novels--only here they are real, with a hauntingly young protagonist." --Wayne Hoffman, Washington Post

"An inspiring tale that should serve as a reminder that straight people don't have a monopoly on courage." --Deborah Peifer, Bay Area Reporter

"Born to an interfaith couple, Beck . . . discusses the near-simultaneous embrace of both his Jewish and his gay identities in the most unlikely of settings: a Nazi Germany that was intent on eliminating both groups." --Publishers Weekly

"Despite the grim backdrop, Beck's reminiscences are sensual, passionate, and strangely joyful." --Out Magazine

"The person you meet in the pages of An Underground Life is far from pitiable. [Gad Beck] is instead a proud, insouciant man. . . . His involvement in the traumatic events of his time is so intense and authentic that his narrative pulls you along."--Christopher Lehmann-Haupt, New York Times

"There may be other books by other Jewish Berliners, but surely none as riveting as this one." --Frontiers