This book is basically the US Holocaust Memorial Museum in book form. Full of powerful images and photos, plus condensed history of every major issue or event that took place in the holocaust, this is a wonderful book for general history on the holocaust. Well worth the investment.

This book, published by the US Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington DC, is the museum in book form. Filled with hundreds of photos and illustrations, some of them quite graphic, along with short but descriptive and informative written pieces on everything one would need to know about the holocaust from beginning to end, the book does a quality job of introducing the subject to the reader.

This is not a scholarly text that those looking for historical detail would find useful. It is rather, a "coffee table" type book, and a very moving overview of the holocaust.

Riveting, moving, emotional, and gripping are all apt descriptives of the book. Well recommended for anyone needing the necessary information and knowledge of one of the ugliest times in history. At the quoted price, a great deal!

This is a wonderful learning tool for people just begining to take interest in the holocaust as well for those who are well educated in its matters.The photogaphs are haunting but extremely well taken and truthful.The author, Michael Berenbaum, captured the truth behind the unhuman treatment the Jews recieved throughout the history of the holocaust.I reccomend you read this book because it is difficult to forget it's contents.

This is a unique book that must be read by anyone interested in Jewish life in Poland before the Holocaust.

Jewish Roots In Poland is an incredible masterpiece, full of invaluable information and experiences for both the researcher in the quest for roots and the ordinary reader who wants to visit those roots. It has the careful and elaborate detail necessary for serious research and the beautifully rich illustration necessary for serious visualization and enjoyment. A portion of the book is devoted to explaining and listing exactly what material is available for the genealogist (professional or amateur) who is looking for family. Ms Weiner not only tells what is available and where it is located, but also details exactly how to access it. She has the help of those very experts who are in charge of the archives for these explanations. There are, in addition, illustrations of every kind of record that is available. This in itself - the consideration of the kinds of records that were kept and the various ways of keeping them - is a fascinating dimension. Another substantial segmented is devoted to the uniquest of travel literature. There are a number of pages devoted to each of the 28 cities now within the Polish border that had a pre-Holocaust population of 10,000 or more. For each city there is a remarkable collection of photographs: the city before the Holocaust and now, its synagogue(s), its cemeterie(s), its holocaust memorial. For each there is also a bibliography. The archival holdings in Poland are indexed by town and by repository. The contribution of a number of experts in the field enriches the text, and from beginning to end Ms Weiner's collection of photographs enriches the page. Marching up and down the outer edge of the appendix pages are more towns, cemeteries, archives and synagogues. This is a gift to the Jewish community - worth many times its price.

I just received the newly published book by Miriam Weiner, "Jewish Roots in Poland - Pages from the Past and Archival Inventories."

Upfront, I must say I am an unabashed admirer of Miriam Weiner, since before she "found" four generations of my KUSHNER family going back to the mid eighteenth century in Podolia. I had look forward to the publication of this book for a long time, expecting it to be something special because I know, from experience, just how amazing Miriam's level of detail can be. But, I honestly had no idea how wonderful and valuable the book would be in actuality. It is overwhelming.

First off, this is an incredible book for Poland researchers, wishing to retrieve archival documents for their ancestors who lived in Polish towns and cities. It lists, archive by archive, all the known archival holdings (of genealogical significance) - by type and time period, for each Polish town.

In addition, it offers a wonderful pictorial view of Jewish Poland at both the beginning and end of the 20th century. Especially fascinating were photos of the same place taken "now" and "then."

Even if one never visits an archive or intends to visit an archive, this book is a treasure! " After the first glance, it will probably not be relegated to the genealogy resource shelf of your library; more probably will spend time on the coffee table as well.The artistic detail and printing are exquisite

This book gripped me from start to finish. Melson draws you in to this suspenseful story using the voices of his mother and father to narrate this unbelievable tale of a young couple, baby in tow, outwitting the Nazis and surviving the holocaust while posing as a Count and Countess! I can't believe it's true. A must for anyone interested in WWII, or in a great love story for that matter...

Many books have been written about the holocaust both by impartial observers and intimate survivors. False Papers: Deception and Survival in the Holocaust by Robert Melson will stand out among them because it is more than observation and personal reflection-it is a psychological study of a young man's search for identity and meaning in a world that keeps changing the rules.

False Papers tells the story of the Melson (Mendelsohn) family's escape from the Nazi ovens by posing as Polish royalty, a feat they are able to accomplish because Nina Melson, the author's mother, was able to buy false papers. What is unique about their life during the war was that they not only lived openly among the Gestapo, but also became quite friendly with their neighbors. The story of their deception and survival as told through the eyes of Nina, Willy (the author's father) and Bobi (the author's reflections through his own youthful memory) is compelling enough to keep the reader involved in the book. This is only one dimension of the book-an incredibly true adventure story.

Bt there is another important dimension to the book that cannot, and must not, be overlooked: the search on the part of the author-first as young Bobi and later as American Bob-for his true identity in a world that is constantly changing for him. First he knows himself as Count Boguslaw Zamojski the Catholic; after the war as Bobi Melson the Jew until he is enrolled in Le Rosey, an exclusive Swiss prep school, when he must again become Catholic; next to America where he settles in New York as a young Jewish immigrant; then against his deepest wishes he is dragged to Japan where his father has set up a sewing machine factory. Each time young Melson must learn to survive and question "Who am I this time?". Fortunately, he is clever enough to pick up environmental clues to guide his behavior and survival, but the reader feels his sense of pain as he struggles to find his true self.

What makes this a deeply probing psychological exploration of one's search for identity is Melson's ability to step back from the action to view his family dynamics-his father's struggle with his compulsive need for adoration, his mother's deepening depression and her inappropriate use of the young Bobi as her personal confidant, and the parent's obsession with appearances.

It is in the Epilogue that everything comes together. We are told about the deaths of Willy and Nina, how Bobi becomes Robert the MIT PhD, and how Robert finally realizes who he is. The reader feels at peace at the end of the journey.

Of all the writers on the holocaust, his writing style is closest to that of Primo Levi. However, there is a difference: Levi always keeps the cool distance of a scientist in his descriptions of behavior and events while Melson uses warm, personal description of the behavioral scientist that he is. It is a must reading for those who want to know more about the holocaust, family dynamics or a young man's search for self. No matter what your reason is, False Papers: Deception and Survival in the Holocaust is a book you will read, reread, and pass on to others.

I would like to share what my father, Harry L. Meyer, a B-17 radio operator during WW II, recently wrote me about this book (with his permission): " In the Shadow of the Swastika" is fascinating reading about the exploits of a remarkable individual. Hermann Wygoda was a man of indomitable will who was blessed with courage, ingenuity, resilience and, by his own admission, occasional good fortune which allowed him to escape some desparate circumstances. The horrendous conditions wrought by the ruthless Nazi regime in Poland and wherever it came into power is the stuff of an appalling nightmare. For a man of his ethnic persuasion to escape the suffocating death trap the Nazis created borders on the miraculous. To do so and ultimately become a respected leader of a heroic partisan resistance movement is the material of legends. His normal disposition was not to be a warrior, for I believe by nature and cultural influence he was philosophic, altruistic and tolerant. This is manifested in his just dealings with others even in the trying and dehumanizing conditions of war. I respect him for not passively submitting to his tormentors, but opposing them with determination and fortitude, thereby helping in no small way to defeat them. When the fabric of a decent society is threatened by the forces of an unconscionable tyrrany, it is to be hoped that individuals like Hermann Wygoda will always be there to oppose them. I have always been proud of my combat service in WW II, but by reading works such as this which so graphically portray the consummate evil of a regime that operated outside the scope of human decency, I am more proud than ever to have contributed in some measure to destroy it.

If Wygoda's story wasn't documented, you wouldn't believe it.
"Audacity", he said, "is a prerequisite for survival", and Wygoda had plenty. Escaping occupied Poland, actually travelling into Germany to work under the noses of the Nazis (even those who could "smell a Jew"), and eventually commanding a division of Italian partisans, the author exhibited a rare courage and determination that earned awards from three Allied nations.
His story, written in later life for his children, is recommended for WWII readers, Holocaust students, and anyone else who enjoys true-life action adventures.(The "score" rating is an unfortunately ineradicable feature of the page. This reviewer does not "score" books.)

This is an important and powerful book that responds with passionate complexity to a very difficult subject. Clearly the Holocaust has been addressed many times and in many different ways through the media over the past 50 years, but this approach is unique. The artists represented in this volume have chosen to write and make art as the best means for expressing both pain and hope, anguish and redemption. It's inspiring to see how creativity and self-expression can offer possibilities for healing, and this is a message that is particularly relevant in the face of ever-continuing forms of darkness and despair. Anyone who appreciates eloquent writing and meaningful visual art will find work to be moved and enlightened by in this collection.

This book is a testimony to the towering reaches of the human spirit. In the midst of the horrors of Terezin, surrounded by suffering, deprivation, and death, hungry women recorded recipes of warmth, comfort, and abundance. They remembered cooking delicious meals, serving delicacies and caviar, making aspic, cooking many varieties of dumplings. The hand-written cookbook they put together demonstrates that although the Nazis held their bodies captive, their spirits remained free, drawing strength and nourishment from their memories of happy days and fully-laden tables. Despite the wretched conditions of the camp, these women dared to hope for a time when they could return to their kitchens and once again rejoice in feeding their families.

This haunting book will bless your life.

throughout my life i've read many books and wrote several papers on the holocaust.reading this book not only changed my view on where and how the physical setting took place, but it made me feel as if i were reading something that was not yet released to the public(ie. professors). the visual pictures are graphic and so are the effects on your mind. this book is by far yhe best book w/historical significance and moral significance. I would recomend this book to college and high school students alike. and to the kids who enjoy reading but dont have time, the book is fast paced( the opposite of most books with a lot of meat).

I liked this book. A compilation of many people this details every aspect of the famous death camp. From the design of the ovens to the lives of the women. Yet I think it is missing crucial information. It claims only 1.5 million died at the camp, I think this figure has been dispuited and is low. It also does not detail the resistance as I've understood it. Apparently in 1944 the Sonderkommando rebelled, leaving 70 S.S dead and wounded. In the chapter on resistance the author only says 3 S.S were killed. The reality is that Dr. Miklos confirms the data of 70 dead in his book 'Auschwitz: a Doctors eyewtiness account'. Now the reality is that the rebellion destroyed two cremetoria and that Miklos witnessed these events. I dont think the chapter on resistance focus's on this profoundly heroic act enough. The book is very detailed and examines all aspects of camp life. But I felt that it did not detail the crimes of the Nazi Doctors enough. I felt it glossed over the torture perpetrated on the guinea pigs(humans), Miklos glosses over it too but the reality is other accounts detail the horrors of the experiments. It also glosses over the treatment of women. It does not mention the rape of women(or men). But we know from accounts that during 'selections' many Jewish women were subjected to rape and barbarism. SO why does the book cover this up? I think these issues should have been addressed. But nevertheless this is a great book about the machinery of murder. It will make you wonder how it was all possible.

This book contains several studies by different scholars, about the workings of the Auschwitz killing machine. Very well researched, it addresses different moral, legal, sociological and psychological issues about the people that worked (S.S. and Sonderkommando) and those who died in the camp. It also provides valuable insigths and enough documented information about Auschwitz's infrastructure, that clearly eliminates any possibility to deny the reality of this tragedy.
If you are a historian or a scholar of the Holocaust or the S.S, you should have this book in your library. If you are a Holocaust denier, you must read this book, with an open mind. Then, you will be able to perhaps move on, to deny Pol Pot's killing fields...

There have, of course, been many studies of Auschwitz. However, this is far and away the most comprehensive to appear. The many contributors cover the historical, sociological and psychological aspects in rigorous and scholarly style. This reviewer would pick out as particularly insightful Aleksander Lasik's analysis of the SS at the camp,whose numbers grew steadily as the war progressed,and Nathan Cohen for a gripping account of the diaries of the Sonderkommando which were found near the crematoria at Birkenau. Since the book is over 600 pages of closely argued text, it is in effect a work of reference. Fortunately, the index appears to be very good and following up subjects or characters is not difficult. There are, incidentally, two themes not really tracked here: holocaust revisionism debates nor Auschwitz as portrayed in the mass media. The editors, no doubt sensibly, have instead revealed what made Auschwitz tick and how perpetrators and victims related to their gruesome environment.

I saw the bombers fly over the camps and we waived to them.

At another camp they flew low over us, bombed the factory (BRABAG at Zeitz) just by our fence and sent no bombs to liberate us inside the fence. Even our guards have fled. I ducked when the shrapnels started flying but oh how welcome the attack was.

Lets face it no one in power REALLY gave a... If we were all British or American troups being exterminated THE CAMPS AND RAILROADS WOULD HAVE BEEN BOMBED TO SMITHERENES./

It is a sad chapter, not even the FDR Museum at Hyde Park has
a good explanation except to refer to this book. It was FDR' decision not to bomb, as evidence now emerges in a recent article in NEWSWEEK magazine by Beshloss.

The point is made which I agree with is that the responsibility for the murders should be with the murders.

I found it this the best and quite a readable account of this issue. Its a series of articles which allow the reader to reach a conclusion. It discusses the US and Britain. It makes it quite clear Stalin did not care and did nothing.

There are basically two issue involved.

The first is could it be done. After reading the discussion in the book but its left to you the reader to decide. I think it could have been. There seems to be no reason, why not? The technical, military and intelligence problems seem quite solvable.

The second is if it could have been done, could it have made any difference. This question is more difficult to answer. If the operation had been done its quite possible that the people would have been killed by other methods eg forced marches or bullets. However this was harder and slower then the gas chambers. It goes on to discuss an air raid on Hungary scared the government there into stopping the transportation of Jews. This was purely an accidental effect of timing. The air raid occurred just when the transportation of Jews started. The Hungarian government thought it was because of the transportation and stopped them. It then discusses the effect of this air raid. Leaving the reader with the impression that maybe political action may have helped to stop some of these murders.

The question that I would like to ask the writers "Is if they had been Americans or English being sent to those gas chambers - would they have been bombed?". I think they would have.

I love a good debate and this book is probably the closest one could come to a well thought out debate and not actually participate in it. The authors / editors do a great job of selecting the historians to write the chapters, I do not think you could ask for a more well spoken, knowledgeable and balanced group. I thought the book would have a lot of emotion shading the arguments almost to the point of making the debate fall into a day time talk show format of pushing and shouting, but that never happened. The chapters provided very convincing and detail laden essays on each particular facet of the issue with a for and against article to balance the debate.

To be honest I did not have an opion one way or the other on this topic before picking up the book. What then happened was that I kept bouncing from one side to the next with each article until I sat back and viewed the book in its totality. My opinion really only maters to me so I will spare you, but this book will definitely help you in forming one. The editors also did a good job of making sure that the book had a nice flow, sometimes I find that with books of different articles by different people you can get a choppy book. It also provides a ton of interesting details about the air war in Europe something I was not expecting but came as a pleasant surprise. Overall this is a very well thought out, well written book that will provide you with a great deal of information.

A comprehensive account of the education, career, life as a fugitive, and strange death of one of the most notorious of the Nazi war criminals.

Posner and Ware use thoroughly researched historical sources, including Mengele's own autobiography to tell this story. To his education and strange doctoral thesis in anthropology on "Racial Morphological Research on the Lower Jaw Section of Four Racial Groups," to his bizarre medical career involving his well know human experimentation and his less well known job of interviewing and examining subjects to determine their racial purity, the authors do a fine job of recounting Mengele's early education and career.

Of greater interest, however, is the story of his escape from Europe and life on the run in various South American countries. The story of how he was able to evade for 33 years the most comprehensive manhunt (probably in history), makes for interesting reading. The book recounts how he was able to make and maintain strategic friends and alliances, in South America, and hold onto contacts, friends, and family still living in Germany. Included is the story of a fascinating account of the visit of his son Rolf, about 1 year before his father's death, in a secret rendezvous in Sao Paulo, Brazil, in which Rolf confronted his father and made him justify his involvement in some of histories worst atrocities.

This book shows how the world's most hunted man was able to evade capture, cultivate friends and alliances, and even receive medical care under an assumed identity.

In light or recent events, raises questions in the reader's mind if such a notorious figure (such as Osama bin Ladin) could do as well, escaping capture over a manhunt lasting decades.

A truly interesting story, well worth the moderate time investment to read. ...

Posner delves deep into the life of one of the sickest, most disgusting human beings to ever walk the planet earth. The Angel of Death, as Mengele has been refered to was the chief "medical" officer at the Aushwitz death camp, during its hayday in the latter part of WWII. Posner examines his life from boyhood, through the end of his life, hiding in Peru. The chapters that involve Auswitz are the most horrific I have ever read. This book is an absolute must for anyone who is interested in the war or the Holocust. Mengele is arguably as sick as Adolf Hitler himself, and his life must be examined to ensure it never happens again. I am a huge fan of Posner. I believe this is his most important work.

Though genocide is something that continues to fill evening news and panel discussions on clashes and conflicts in countries that seem like an eternity away, this book explores the dark side to the Holocaust, darker than normal because, in this unbelievable biography, genocide and Nazi evil is given a human face in the form of the smiling and smartly-dressed SS doctor, Josef Mengele.

Known greatly by survivors and Holocaust historians/scholars, there is little literature out there that paints a complete portrait of this man, from his spoon-fed existence in Bavaria to his existence and later death in several South American havens, which, by sheltering this infamous Nazi, unwittingly spat in the face of international justice and law. The full story of his escape and hiding from the international community is described. Everything one could ask for on Mengele is contained within the pages of this book, sometimes shocking, sometimes sinister, sometimes bewildering, and often very thrilling.

Posner's book reads like a fast-paced thriller, in which the reader is transported back into time and placed before the spectacle of Mengele, the "Angel of Death." This is the first book by Posner read by the reviewer, and he admits that he was (and continues to be) very impressed. Meticulously researched and even given access to Mengele's unpublished and largely unused diaries and autobiography (still not released by the Mengele family), this biography stands out over all other 'attempts,' for they all fail miserably to even try to surpass or compete against Posner's masterpiece. He is to be commended on a fine job in painting a vivid portrait of Mengele. Hopefully, readers will begin to see the truth behind the many distortions surrounding the Holocaust and its perpetration - and that the perpetrators of this nightmarish bloodbath were human beings like everyone else, not a label of dissent that brings about a rift between Holocaust (or any other genocidal) perpetrators, and thus ensuring that genocide continues forever. Most certainly, Mengele's deeds were monstrous, but their monstrosity does not change the fact that he was still human, just like us. If we forget this fact, then genocidal forces existing within the souls of us all will continue forever.

Find out all this for yourselves, fellow readers, and read this book.