I was drawn to this book because her married name is the same as my maiden name. Could there be a connection...?
Aside from that, I loved this book. It deserves a 5 in all my categories. I could not put it down. I was scared, I was disgusted, I was so many things! I am amazed that 18 people survived. The perseverance of the human spirit!
I am so happy that Mama made Clara write a diary! ( )

A piece that can stand with other great holocaust literature. Clara describes her life and Polish town a bit before Sept. 1, 1939, but most of the book describes her Jewish family's struggle to survive for the next 6 years. Some members of her family and neighbors end up spending nearly 2 years below the floor of a house. Clara records much of what is going on during this time in a diary, which is the basis for the book. I like the fact that there isn't a lot of "day XX, same as day YY," kind of daily descriptions of their horrible situation. She does spend a lot of time discussing her feelings with the reader, and lauding the family who is protecting them, as well as giving us descriptions of the challenges they are facing. Worth reading for anyone interested in the holocaust.
( )

I ofte question why I read so many memoirs by Holocaust survivors; I'm not longer ensconced in the academic world (therefore no longer required to read books that are often depressing and intellectual), my family has been out of Europe since the late 1800s (and therefore not involved in the War efforts), and we're not at all Jewish (at least not to my knowledge). But in reading this story of a family's miraculous survival I finally found my answer laid out in front of me; I read for the same reason that Clara wrote hre diary in the first place: for her story (and that of her people) to be remembered and for these attrocities to never happen again. Of course other racial genocides occured after the Holocaust (most memorably in Sarajevo and Rwanda), but eventually the message of the survivors must sink in that we must all learn to get along on a global and multi-ethnic scale.

I loved this book. It was an amazing account of this woman, her family, her community, and what happened during the Holocaust in her area.

At the beginning of the book is a family free and a floor plan of the hiding place. Both were very helpful and I frequently referred to both of them. There were a few pages in a bunch more toward the back of the book than the front of black and white photos of Clara, and some of the people important in her life. I wish there had been more but appreciated the ones included.

This story worked so well. It was the best kind of collaboration, written by a man, but using a girl’s diary and the story that grown woman relates to him. He used her input and often her words, and it works beautifully.

The immediacy of the story makes things feel so clear and so incredibly suspenseful. It might be the best non-fiction account I’ve read about Jews hiding from the Nazis.

While the family tree informs the reader of who lives and who dies during the Nazi occupation, I felt great tension not knowing details of what would happen and how re the lives/deaths of non-family members too.

Every single one of the people in this book is fascinating and it made reading Clara’s story completely riveting. Even without the Holocaust or other extreme times, this would have been an interesting looks into this family and their community.

It was such a grueling read that I was very glad there was some humor at times.

I did envy the extremely close extended families and the close neighbors/community, while it lasted.

I love how much Clara loved books and reading so much.

I was impressed that even the youngest children knew what was going on and what grave danger they were in.

I thought it was amazing that these people had such a strong will to survive. I guess I can understand it because of some of them having children to try to protect, but honestly the conditions and uncertainty were so terrible, I don’t think it would have been worth it to me sans children, and the strong family ties and community ties and their faith did help.

I had to read yet another moldy musty library copy but it was worth it.

Highly recommended to any reader interested in reading this type of book. ( )

Clara has to escape her little polish town. So her only hope to escape is to dig a bunker under a Nazi sympisizer's house. But these people have been age old friends to them. So when they move in with two other families a bunch of cousins, and their little cousins must live in the bunker until the war is over with no way to get out. Tempers rise when one of the woman is having affair with the man of the house, and the wife finds out. Find out more about Clara's War coming soon to your local library. ( )