Forgotten Voices of the Holocaust

At first I found this book a little hard to read, because rather than present a complete case study it broke them all up into sections so the snippet of case study related to the chapter topic (such as the ghetto or the camps) but soon I found as I read I picked up familiar threads of people’s stories. Once I finished it, I saw how powerful this was of structuring it was and wouldn’t have it any other way.
The structure and the voices of the survivors took me through an emotional journey. There was raw emotion in the words, and I don’t mean from flowery language. The most moving entry I found was one line long and very blunt. I could hear it being said in my head, flat and without feeling, yet those twelve words brought me to show more tears.
It was still a hard book to read, not for the reason I first mentioned but because of the emotion that poured out of the pages. That said, I think this is a book everybody NEEDS to read and I am very glad I have read it. show less

Utterly heartbreaking and well arranged so that we are taken on a journey into the hell of nazism and see all around us death and yet somehow, inconceivably, we survive. This books highlights the sheer unlikeliness, the luck of survival. This is counter to how most of us think about ourselves and history. This book is also an important testimony. Within a couple of years from now there will be no-one left who can say This Happened I Saw It and it will become easier to say that it didn't happen. Even today, lies are told about the Holocaust, by deniers who pretend it didn't happen, and by people who say for various reasons that it didn't happen the way it did. These can only be countered by facts, testimonies, and historical study. A show more fine book. show less

"Remembering: Voices of the Holocaust" was not done in the style of just a single narrative thread, nor was it done in the common historical narrative of A then B and then C. The book is a collection of narrative pieces from a number of individuals who experienced the Holocaust in a variety of ways. The book's chapters are arranged in a chronological sequence, starting with anti-Semitic activities that began with the rise of Adolf Hitler and continuing through the liberation of death camps and post-war perspectives. Each chapter opens with a very short narrative by the author, which is followed by excerpts from interviews with the survivors, who share their experiences from that particular time period. Each excerpt is typically just a show more paragraph or two at a time, but within any given chapter a particular survivor might be included more than once.

The book is not for the squeamish. As would be expected of any book about the Holocaust, there are gruesome details of murder, torture, enslavement, and deprivation. The stories of these horrific experiences range from inhumane conditions while being transported in crammed cargo train cars, to mass executions, to the outright murder of infants. For the most part, the interview excerpts touch on some of these aspects, but also there are stories that relate the strength of love and humanity, such as mothers deliberately steering their own older children away so that those children might avoid the gas chambers. In other instances, we learn of people risking their lives to help others.

Reading this in 2020, while enduring the inconveniences of COVID-19 pandemic constraints, I was struck by how our current conditions are mere trifles compared to what millions endured at the hands of the Nazis. For example, one family was in hiding and did not see sunlight for a year and a half!

Overall, I think Lyn Smith did a really good job of relating the survivors' experiences, and for anyone with an interest in the World War II era in Europe, or the Holocaust in particular, I definitely recommend it. show less

Wow! Just finished this walking down the road on the way to work.

I think it's the most complete work I've read on the subject. Includes sections on pre-war experience, ghettos, resistance, camps, death marches, liberation, aftermath.

Excellently compiled and gives views of those who were there: Jews and non-Jews, as well as civilians, liberators, soldiers, etc.

To me the case study-like approach paints a very thorough picture. At the beginning of each section is a brief historical introduction, though this doesn't labour the point.

The words of those involved seem to drip feed the historical context into you, so at the end you feel very well-informed about the events that occurred.

Personally I was particularly inspired by the small show more section right at the end entitled forgiving and forgetting. That so many thousands/millions could have endured this and emerge with their spirit intact, and go on to build normal and largely happy lives, is a great example of the strength of the human psyche. show less

Bookseller
'probably the most harrowing book I'll ever read...gripping....its subject matter is something that should never be forgotten'