The Bielski Brothers: The True Story of Three Men Who Defied the Nazis, Built a Village in the Forest, and Saved 1,200 Jews

Amazing story of survival by the Bielski brothers. Not only did they save themselves, family, friends... they INSISTED on their fellow Jews to come join them throughout their ordeal. An exiled, but FREE community existed by helping each other in the God blessed forest. AND... they even fought back against the Nazis.

Another wonderful person deserves a lot of credit, and that is the author himself, Peter Duffy in his passionate, dedicated work to deliver the details. Think this is best exemplified in his prologue:

"And so I felt honored, and a bit undeserving, as I stood in the huge puscha at the site of the Bielski brothers' greatest triumph, one of the most sacred spots of World War II... a place not of Jewish death but of Jewish life. show more When I closed my eyes and listened to the voices of the survivors, I could almost see the place that so many of them came to call Jerusalem." show less

A detailed description of the untold story of Zus, Asael and Tuvia Bielski, three Jewish brothers who, after having their families killed by the Nazis, decided to fight back. Their became a partisan fighting group in the forests of their homeland with a twofold goal: rescue as many Jews as they could, and kill as many Nazis as they could. Author Peter Duffy used personal interviews, written histories and memoirs from those who were part of this historical group of Jewish fighters to put together a well researched history of what it took for a band of brothers to save almost 1200 Jews from sure annihilation while surviving for two and a half years in the forest and carrying out a well thought out partisan battle against the Nazis. It's a show more great companion book to "Shindler's List." show less

I found it quite interesting, but the author inserted so much history that it became tedious at times.

This was a good book,making a harsh reality clear to me. I think I had romanticized the period somewhat, thinking of the bravery of those that survived and ignoring the brutality that was sometimes necessary to ensure that survival. It is a hard book to read but it leaves you wiser

An outstanding and unbelievable true story of three men who defied the Nazis, built a village in the forest, and saved 1,200 Jews. This book reads like an action novel. It is fast paced and so deeply moving. It is inspiring in its representation of the heroism of ordinary people. Although this book is obviously devasting due what it is about, its ending is magnificent. The motivation and strength that they had to live in the concrentration camps for two and a half years is incredible, especially after seeing what they saw and losing multiple relatives.

In Belarus during the Holocaust years of World War II, three brothers rescued over 1200 Jews by building a village in the forests that were well-known to them. While only a small portion of these survivors were armed and considered to be fighters, their watchfulness and resourcefulness saved many Jews that would have otherwise fallen victim to the madness created by Hitler and his supporters. It's a remarkable story demonstrating courage in the face of adversity.

I found it quite interesting, but the author inserted so much history that it became tedious at times.