Re: please recommend books on the Holocaust

sunala · ‎03-09-2010

@alliswell wrote:

@LoriLori If not recommended earlier, I would like to recommend a book by Anne-Marie O'Connor, entitled "The Lady in Gold: The Extraordinary Tale of Gustav Klimt's Masterpiece, Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer."

As one reviewer stated: "This book is a true story, but it reads like a novel. O'Connor manages to tell the reader a new story of Nazi horror, with this golden work of art at its center.

We care about "The Lady in Gold" because we want justice for Adele and her family. We root for Maria because she says no to any more Austrian lies.

We are swept up in a charming world that no longer exists, but we also learn that, in Vienna, the seeds for another Holocaust are buried just beneath its glowing surface.

I recommend this astonishing book to anyone who is interested in World War II, the Holocaust, painting, or simply the story of a courageous family."

This is the true story that inspired the movie, Woman in Gold, starring Helen Mirren and Ryan Reynolds.

@alliswell I don't think I've heard of this book. I'm going to have to check it out when I go back to reading books about the holocaust. These books take a lot out of me, and although I have a never-ending desire to read and learn more about that time, I don't like the way I feel afterwards.

Thanks for sharing.

"That's a great first pancake."
Lady Gaga, to Tony Bennett

LoriLori · ‎03-12-2010

@alliswell, this is jumping to the top of my list. I like that it's nonfiction. I didn't see the movie. I've been on break from books on the Holocaust but the art angle interests me greatly. I'm going to get the book thanks to you. Love this forum!

walkingal · ‎03-09-2010

Jodi Picoult's The Storyteller.

dawg lover · ‎03-15-2010

Recently, I had the great privilege of attending a speech by 94 year old Holocaust survivor Norbert Friedman. What a remarkable man and what a life he has led! I bought his autobiography "SUN RAYS AT MIDNIGHT" and it is an excellent read. Hearing his story in person was an incredible experience, and I would definitely recommend his book.

Free2be · ‎03-10-2010

Hi, I haven't posted here in a very long time. This topic drew me in because I want to highly recommend a book that I will never forget. It isn't about a camp, it is about a thriving community located in the Ukraine not far from the Russian border. It was a happy place, a real place.

The Heavens Are Empty: Discovering the Lost Town of Trochenbrod

A magical place, a lost history: Trochenbrod, the setting for Everything is Illuminated, is now rediscovered for a new generation.

In the 19th century, nearly five million Jews lived in the Pale of Settlement. Most lived in shtetls—Jewish communities connected to larger towns—images of which are ingrained in popular imagination as the shtetl Anatevka from Fiddler on the Roof. Brimming with life and tradition, family and faith, these shtetls existed in the shadow of their town’s oppressive anti-Jewish laws. Not Trochenbrod.

Trochenbrod was the only freestanding, fully realized Jewish town in history. It began with a few Jewish settlers searching for freedom from the Russian Czars' oppressive policies, which included the forced conscriptions of one son from each Jewish family household throughout Russia. At first, Trochenbrod was just a tiny row of houses built on empty marshland in the middle of the Radziwill Forest, yet for the next 130 years it thrived, becoming a bustling marketplace where people from all over the Ukraine and Poland came to do business. But this scene of ethnic harmony was soon shattered, as Trochenbrod vanished in 1941—her residents slaughtered, her homes, buildings, and factories razed to the ground. Yet even the Nazis could not destroy the spirit of Trochenbrod, which has lived on in stories and legends about a little piece of heaven, hidden deep in the forest.

Bendavid-Val, himself a descendant of Trochenbrod, masterfully preserves and fosters the memory of this city, celebrating the vibrant lives of her people and her culture, proving true the words of one of Trochenbrod’s greatest poets, Yisrael Beider: I beg you hold fast to these words of mine. After this darkness a light will shine

sunala · ‎03-09-2010

@Free2be wrote:
Hi, I haven't posted here in a very long time. This topic drew me in because I want to highly recommend a book that I will never forget. It isn't about a camp, it is about a thriving community located in the Ukraine not far from the Russian border. It was a happy place, a real place.

The Heavens Are Empty: Discovering the Lost Town of Trochenbrod

A magical place, a lost history: Trochenbrod, the setting for Everything is Illuminated, is now rediscovered for a new generation.

In the 19th century, nearly five million Jews lived in the Pale of Settlement. Most lived in shtetls—Jewish communities connected to larger towns—images of which are ingrained in popular imagination as the shtetl Anatevka from Fiddler on the Roof. Brimming with life and tradition, family and faith, these shtetls existed in the shadow of their town’s oppressive anti-Jewish laws. Not Trochenbrod.

Trochenbrod was the only freestanding, fully realized Jewish town in history. It began with a few Jewish settlers searching for freedom from the Russian Czars' oppressive policies, which included the forced conscriptions of one son from each Jewish family household throughout Russia. At first, Trochenbrod was just a tiny row of houses built on empty marshland in the middle of the Radziwill Forest, yet for the next 130 years it thrived, becoming a bustling marketplace where people from all over the Ukraine and Poland came to do business. But this scene of ethnic harmony was soon shattered, as Trochenbrod vanished in 1941—her residents slaughtered, her homes, buildings, and factories razed to the ground. Yet even the Nazis could not destroy the spirit of Trochenbrod, which has lived on in stories and legends about a little piece of heaven, hidden deep in the forest.

Bendavid-Val, himself a descendant of Trochenbrod, masterfully preserves and fosters the memory of this city, celebrating the vibrant lives of her people and her culture, proving true the words of one of Trochenbrod’s greatest poets, Yisrael Beider: I beg you hold fast to these words of mine. After this darkness a light will shine

hi @Free2be it's so good to see you again!

I've never heard of Trochenbrod. Thank you so much for the heads up. This sounds like a book I have to read even though I promised myself I'd lay off the holocaust books for at least the summer. It's now on my TBR list!

I hope all is well with you. Enjoy the rest of your summer, and please stop back again soon.

"That's a great first pancake."
Lady Gaga, to Tony Bennett

slim6 · ‎11-08-2010

Sarah's Key. I just read this blog and you caught me off guard. I cannot think of the Author's name. Look it up. Its a must read. The boy in the Stripped pajamas. Also a movie. Nite, by Elie Wiesel. Their are sooooooooooo many I have read. Shindler's list, etc. Watch the movies.

BornToShop · ‎03-10-2010

@Jannyg wrote:
I just finished Lilac Girls and thought it was very good. It's fiction based on fact. Have lent it to several people who also found it to be a good, although sad, read.

@Jannyg, THE LILAC GIRLS is one of my all-time favorite books. I have championed this book ever since it came out in March. A first time author who crafted a fabulous journey thru one of the most horrific times in our lifetime.

BornToShop · ‎03-10-2010

@BornToShop wrote:
@Jannyg wrote:
I just finished Lilac Girls and thought it was very good. It's fiction based on fact. Have lent it to several people who also found it to be a good, although sad, read.
@Jannyg, THE LILAC GIRLS is one of my all-time favorite books. I have championed this book ever since it came out in March. A first time author who crafted a fabulous journey thru one of the most horrific times in our lifetime.

And please @LoriLori & @JannyG; a great follow-up to the LILAC GIRLS is THE NATZI TITANIC by Robert P. Watson. Trust me, it won't disappoint.

Kalli · ‎03-11-2010

Many years ago when I was still in high school, I read Exodus by Leon Uris. While it's fiction, and more about the creation of Israel, the characters have flashbacks about the holocaust and so you get an idea of their experiences during the war. I learned about the Warsaw ghetto in this book and about life/death in the concentration camps. I remember crying a few times while reading it. The fact that I remember it all these years later tells of the effect it had on me.