holocaust survivors

Abrashe Szabrinski used the Yiddish typewriter given to him by his son Joe to record his unique story of survival and courage during the dark days of World War II. But it was only after his father's death that Joe found out the extent of Abrashe's exploits as a leader of the partisans who fought the Nazis in the forests of Lithuania. An officer in the Polish army, Abrashe fled ghettos and forced labor camps, joined the resistance in Vilna, and became not only a fighter, but also commander of partisan units serving under the Red Army. Alongside well-known figures such as Abba Kovner, he helped blow up bridges, railroad tracks, and munitions convoys, slowing down the Nazi war machine. An outspoken critic of those who headed the Judenrat as well as leaders of ideological movements, his straightforward, unpretentious style makes his descriptions of heroic deeds riveting. Like many Holocaust survivors, Abrashe did not divulge the entire story of his survival to his children while he was alive.

Fanya Gottesfeld Heller was born into a traditional Jewish family in a small Ukrainian village. She was able to evade the Nazi death squads with the help of a small group of Christian rescuers. Beset by hunger, and faced with the constant threat of execution, she miraculously survived. Today she shares her story and dedicates her life to furthering the cause of tolerance and hope.

The story of a child who, at the age of twelve, lost everything: hope, home, and even his own identity. Like so many Holocaust victims, Felix Weinberg's early childhood years were idyllic. That changed in 1938 when his father traveled to England, hoping to arrange for his family to emigrate there. His efforts came too late. Over the following years Felix survived five concentration camps. He lost his mother and brother in the camps and was liberated at Buchenwald. At the age of seventeen he was finally reunited with his father in Britain where they built a new life together.

Dounia shares with her granddaughter her story of childhood in Paris during the Holocaust and how she was hidden in order to save her life.

"Poland, 1941. Sixteen-year-old Harry Haft is sent to Auschwitz. When he is forced to fight against other inmates for the amusement of the SS officers, Haft shows extraordinary strength and courage, and a determination to survive. After the war, having escaped the Nazis, Haft again puts his strength to good use, establishing a career as a prize fighter in the USA." -- Provided by publisher.

"Discusses the liberation of Europe and the aftermath of the Holocaust, including the displaced persons camps, primary source accounts from Holocaust survivors, and how those survivors started new lives in new countries"--Provided by publisher.

A woman recalls how she was thrown from a train headed for a Nazi death camp in 1944, raised by someone who risked her own life to save the baby's, and finally found some peace through her own family.

In the sequel to "I have lived a thousand years," Livia Bitton-Jackson continues her stoy of life after Auschwitz.

Never shall I forget those moments which murdered my God and my soul and turned my dreams to dust. Never shall I forget these things, even if I am condemned to live as long as God Himself. Never. For many months, fifteen-year-old Elie tries to ignore the rumors he is hearing. Surely Jews aren?t being locked up like prisoners in their own neighborhoods. And no soldiers, no matter how brutal, could really execute an entire trainload of prisoners. Or could they? When Elie and his family are marched onto a train bound for Auschwitz, he finds out for himself what human beings can do to each other. In this harrowing, personal account of his time in a concentration camp, Elie Wiesel conveys a powerful message about how we relate to each other that pertains as much to the present as it does to the past. This complete study edition of Elie Wiesel?s Night includes photographs from the concentration camps, historical background, questions, writing ideas, and projects to help you understand this dark period in history. Related readings by Paul Celan, Art Spiegelman, and others illustrate and expand on themes from Wiesel?s memoir.

The true story of some of the brave people in Europe who helped to hide and evacuate Jews during World War II, at the risk of their own lives.