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Forum -> Hobbies, Crafts, and Collections -> Reading Room
Please recommend Holocaust books - 1st person accounts only
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metacognizant




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Apr 28 2022, 12:24 pm
This is a little dark, but I’ve decided to read Holocaust narratives for a while. Does anyone have any *first person accounts* of Holocaust experiences to recommend?

(I recently read “Eye to Eye” which is not historically notable in and of itself, but the author knew my grandfather and mentions him by name, which is why I even know about the book… that got me started and then I read “Auschwitz: A Doctor’s Eyewitness Account,” which is a lot. I’ve ordered “Five Chimneys” and “Thanks to my Mother.” Other than that I have nothing on my reading list. A first person account doesn’t need to be the account of a survivor… for example if someone wrote a personal account, hid it, then that person was murdered, but their account was later uncovered and published, that would be relevant too. But I feel I need to read the voices of the people directly effected, so no general histories please.)

Edit: Not looking for fiction. Non-fictional "real-life" testimonies please.
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amother
Lightgreen


 

Post Thu, Apr 28 2022, 12:46 pm
Someday We'll Be Free, by Leibel Sanik
I think this book is exactly what you're looking for.
You can tell while you're reading that every word of this book is true. There are authors that did a terrible thing by distorting facts for their own purposes. This is authentic and unforgettable.
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Debbie




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Apr 28 2022, 1:05 pm
Live Remember Tell The World by Leah Kaufman; she was a hidden child survivor of Transnistra...which I must admit I hadn't heard of until I read her book.
It is quite graphic at times but really worth reading in my opinion.
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Blessing1




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Apr 28 2022, 1:10 pm
The Redhead of Auschwitz is fascinating.
I think she's still alive k'h.
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advocate




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Apr 28 2022, 1:15 pm
The Choice, Edith Eger
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Sunnydays




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Apr 28 2022, 1:15 pm
The Holocaust Diaries
- Dare to Survive by Chaim Shlomo Friedman
-Songs of Hope by David Werdyger
-They Called Me Frau Anna by Chana Banet
-Sisters in the Storm by Anna Eilenberg
-Itzik Be Strong by Yitzchak Pomerantz
-Counterfeit Lives by Avraham Krakowski
-Shattered Crystal's by Mia Kanner
Someday We Will Be Free
Child of War
The Unfinished Diary by Chaim Yitzchak Wolgerlernter hy"d
Behind the walls by Miriam Cohen
The Scent of the Snowflowers by R.L. Klein


Last edited by Sunnydays on Thu, Apr 28 2022, 1:39 pm; edited 2 times in total
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metacognizant




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Apr 28 2022, 1:25 pm
Wow, thank you everyone for this great list. Please keep them coming!
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BrisketBoss




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Apr 28 2022, 1:27 pm
Never the Last Journey by Felix Zandman
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esuss




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Apr 28 2022, 1:48 pm
The unfinished diary. As someone above mentioned.
Scent of snowflowers by rivka Leah Klein
Vanquish the dragon pearl benisch
Go my son by Chaim Shapiro

All first person accounts. All vastly different experiences- different parts of Europe.
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seeker




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Apr 28 2022, 1:52 pm
I came to recommend Edith Eger but I see someone beat me to it.
One that stands out in my memory is To Vanquish the Dragon by Pearl Benisch, the same one who wrote a memoir of the early Bais Yaakov movement, the holocaust book came first but it's the perspective of these first-generation Bais Yaakov girls going through the camps.
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metacognizant




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Apr 28 2022, 1:55 pm
Thank you to all. In particular "the unfinished diary" seems like a unique perspective that I can't wait to read. All of these are amazing.
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EMEN




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Apr 28 2022, 2:04 pm
Between My Father and The Old Fool - Maier Cahan
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Fast Forward




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Apr 28 2022, 2:05 pm
Alone in the Forest by Mala Kacenberg.
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amother
Thistle


 

Post Thu, Apr 28 2022, 2:06 pm
Not exactly about the camps, but it takes places then and is very good - a daughter of two mothers.
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rachelli66




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Apr 28 2022, 2:11 pm
Two excellent books by Devorah Gliksman. A Sun and a Shield. (About the Paneth Family). Nor The Moon By Night. (about the Bobover Rebbe and Family). Both excellent.
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amother
Rainbow


 

Post Thu, Apr 28 2022, 2:14 pm
The scent of snowflowers.
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metacognizant




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Apr 28 2022, 2:17 pm
rachelli66 wrote:
Two excellent books by Devorah Gliksman. A Sun and a Shield. (About the Paneth Family). Nor The Moon By Night. (about the Bobover Rebbe and Family). Both excellent.


Are these two books first person accounts? Or compilations of multiple first person accounts?
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rachelli66




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Apr 28 2022, 2:21 pm
My mistake. Not a first person account. Books by Devorah Gliksman.
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flowerpower




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Apr 28 2022, 2:28 pm
Alone in the forest is another good book
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happytobemom




 
 
    
 

Post Thu, Apr 28 2022, 4:05 pm
Tell the World - story of the Sobibor revolt (Shaindy Perl)

To Vanquish the Dragon (Pearl Benisch)
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