By the time WWII ended in Europe, the Blumenthal family–Marion, her brother Albert, and their parents–had lived in a succession of refugee, transit, and prison camps for more than six years, not only surviving but staying together. This memoir is written in spare, powerful prose that vividly depicts the endless degradation and humiliation suffered by the Holocaust’s innocent victims, as well as the unending horror of life in the camps.
- ISBN: 9780688142940
- Authors: Lazan, Marion Blumenthal; Perl, Lila
- Published: 1996, Greenwillow
- Themes: Childhood and youth, Concentration camps, Courage, Hardship, Holocaust, Hope, Jew, Nazi, refugee, Survival, World War II
- Descriptors: Biography - Autobiography- Memoir, Germany, Intermediate (ages 9-14), Netherlands
- No. of pages: 144
When I was going through a big box of books after my sister cleaned out her room, I came across this book. I sifted through the pages and found lots of pictures of co-author, Marion B. Lazan’s family along with copied documents such ID cards and discharge papers. This story is an incredibly interesting story, that chronicles the hardships and struggles faced by 9 year old Marion and her family in a World War II world. It is told in third person and yet you still cannot help but feel close to Marion. The things that are described are things no 9 year old should see or experience. The family, finding themselves in and out of concentration camps, is desperately trying to find a way to America to escape the persecution and danger. Along the way, Marion tried to distract herself by finding 4 identical pebbles. Each pebble represents a family member (mom, dad, her brother Albert and herself) and if she can find the 4 perfect pebbles, then she’ll know her family will one day escape and live together in a world of peace and acceptance. While there are many books out there that are under the heading of historical fiction, this story is real and can be held up against novels such as The Diary of Anne Frank and Night by Eli Weisel. It is not overly factual, but ties together a nice mix of historical background and narrative. No matter how much I study, read and research the Holocaust, I always find myself learning something new about the time period, often disturbing information. This book would be great for middle school age students studying global history. Finally, what made this book so amazing is when I turned to the title page, I discovered it was signed by Marion Blumenthal Lazan, herself and addressed to my sister. This book is a living piece of history and definitely worth the read.