Based on conversations between the author and Charlotte von Mahlsdorf (1928-2002), a German antiquarian and collector who created the impressive Gründerzeit Museum. Charlotte was born a man but was always a woman, and thanks to her free spirit and passion for beauty, she survived the two most repressive regimes the Western world has ever known – the Nazis and the Communists – all while wearing a pair of heels—winner of a Pulitzer Prize and three Tony Awards in 2004.
