Holocaust memoirs | Imamother

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Holocaust memoirs

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amother

OP ↓

Fri, Aug 09 2024, 9:25 am

Can anyone tell me about engrossing holocaust memoirs that you have read? Or second generation and the impact of the holocaust? I would like not frum perspectives as well and I’m ok with very gritty and graphic. This is for my own personal knowledge not research or anything.

DoubleHelix

Fri, Aug 09 2024, 9:31 am

I would recommend The Seamstress by Sara Tuvel Bernstein.

amother

Ghostwhite

Fri, Aug 09 2024, 10:19 am

Frum ones that are tangentially related to the Holocaust and utterly gripping and compelling are: Go My Son and A Daughter of Two Mothers.

Other frum ones: Going Forward by Peska Friedman, The Narrow Bridge by Isaac Neuman, Nor the Moon by Night (I think by Devora Glikman), Lieutenant Birnbaum (he fought for the US)

Others I have read recently: No One Awaiting Me (about an orphan from Romania), Such Good Girls (about children who pretended to be Catholic during the Holocaust)

Other I have read: Maus by Art Spiegelman, Eyewitness Auschwitz, anything by Primo Levi (Italian Jew who went through the Holocaust), the book that the movie Woman in Gold is based on (was excellent), the Endless Steppe (about Jews in Siberia during WW2), The Man in the Sharkskin Suit (about Jews in Cairo at that time), anything by Lucette Lagnado (she wrote an amazing book about the Mengele twins)

My grandparents were Holocaust survivors so I read a ton about Poland and their lives (Łódź Ghetto and so on) and then I started reading about the other side of my family who were from Vienna and Russia. Then I branched out to Hungary, Siberia, and Sephardi experiences.

amother

Eggshell ↓

Fri, Aug 09 2024, 10:32 am

I would recommend the Redhead of Auschwitz. It's published with a secular publisher and I found it really shed a light on certain aspects of the Holocoust that aren't typically explored in books published through a frum company.

amother

Lemon ↓

Fri, Aug 09 2024, 10:36 am

To vanquish the dragon
Nor the moon by night

amother

Hyssop

Fri, Aug 09 2024, 10:40 am

Man’s Search For Meaning

Deenah

Fri, Aug 09 2024, 10:47 am

The Scent of Snowflowers and its sequel, And Morning Has Come, by R. L. Klein. Still one of my favorites.
Night by Eli Wiesel
The Choice, by Edith Eger which I didn't read yet. Saving it for Tisha Baav.

amother

↑ Eggshell ↓

Fri, Aug 09 2024, 10:55 am

Deenah wrote:

I second The Choice! I've read many Holocoust memoirs, this was a riveting read.

amother

↑ OP

Fri, Aug 09 2024, 11:16 am

Tysm. It seems I’ve read a lot of the frum ones. The choice is incredible.
I feel funny saying this but sometimes I find that the frum ones are a bit sanitized. I think I would like to read ones that aren’t.

amother

↑ Lemon

Fri, Aug 09 2024, 11:35 am

amother OP wrote:

I don’t think chasidic tales of the Holocaust is sanitized. And to vanquish the dragon has some pretty horrific scenes.
A non frum Holocaust book I thought was good was Treblinka.

amother

Clover

Fri, Aug 09 2024, 11:59 am

amother Lemon wrote:

I don’t think chasidic tales of the Holocaust is sanitized. And to vanquish the dragon has some pretty horrific scenes.
A non frum Holocaust book I thought was good was Treblinka.

I haven't read the 3rd, but the 1st two you mention are definitely sanitized to a certain extent. They do not contain certain graphic details that are included in others.

amother

Celeste

Fri, Aug 09 2024, 12:02 pm

The happiest man on earth

The diary of Anne Frank

amother

↑ Eggshell ↓

Fri, Aug 09 2024, 12:20 pm

amother OP wrote:

Agreed, that's why I recommended The Redhead of Auschwitz.

amother

Lightgreen

Fri, Aug 09 2024, 12:26 pm

The most memorable book I’ve read about the holocaust is “The escape artist “.. totally gave me a new angle that resonated with me. Fascinating!

Ruchel ↓

Sun, Aug 11 2024, 3:45 am

Sephardic ones
Ode to Salonika
Sarinka
And the world stood silent
Something beautiful happened
Undesirable, north African journey to holocaust
Miracle at zakynthos
One hundred Saturdays
Which ones do you have?

Last edited by Ruchel on Mon, Aug 12 2024, 10:08 am; edited 2 times in total

amother

Wandflower

Sun, Aug 11 2024, 4:39 am

The halocaust diaries (they called me frau anna, susters in the storm, counterfeit lives, there are a few more, forgettheir names)

To vanquish the dragon

The scent of sunflowers

There are some recently translated diaries

Not frum
Maus, night (fictionilized account of eli weisel experience), leleichka

I try to stay away from fiction because the memoirs are so horrifically hard to believe (even the "sanitized" ones) I dont want them contaminated by someone's imagination.

amother

Mistyrose

Sun, Aug 11 2024, 4:55 am

Lily’s promise

My friend Anne Frank

The Nazis knew my name

The happiest man on earth

Miracles

Out of the depths by chief Rabbi Lau

I am Ella

amother

NeonBlue

Sun, Aug 11 2024, 5:53 am

Mala's cat is on Amazon.
Amazing first hand from a v special lady who I was privileged to meet IRL
Republished by her family after she was nifteret.
She remained frum despite everything and had a v unusual experience

↑ Ruchel

Sun, Aug 11 2024, 6:00 am

Mala is incredible

amother

Heather ↓

Sun, Aug 11 2024, 6:54 am

amother Eggshell wrote:

Agreed, that's why I recommended The Redhead of Auschwitz.

This one was amazing . I’ve read many many Holocaust memoirs , this one was very special to me , since I followed her on Instagram until she passed away . Such a sweet woman.

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