Chiune "Sempo" Sugihara is one of the little known heroes of the Holocaust. This is rather unfortunate, as Mr. Sugihara was probably responsible for the saving of more Jews than any other individual! While serving as Japanese Vice Consul in Lithuania in 1940, Mr. Sugihara, against the express orders of his government, issued some 6,000 visas to people (individuals and families) desperately seeking to avoid the Nazi death machine. This book is the story of Chiune Sugihara, from youth to honored old age, and also the story of two young Jews, one whose parent took the visa and ran, and one whose parent waited too long.

This is a great and exciting story! I got this book for my twelve-year-old daughter, but found that I liked it just as much as she did. I really enjoyed this story of one man standing up and doing what was right, in spite of the costs. If you are looking for an uplifting story, one that teaches an invaluable lesson, then I highly recommend that you get this book!

Dear Amazon.com You mention a gift cerf for the person who writes the first review. I see mine is the only review up there, so do I get a gift cert? Sheelagh O'Connor Sheelagh@visto.com (a reader from LA)

Alison Gold has documented with elegance the selfless humanity of Sempo Sugihara, a Japanese diplomat of the World War II era. Against the orders of his superiors, Mr. Sugihara wrote 6,000 visas in an effort to spare the lives of Polish and Lithuanian Jews. Through Alison Gold's brilliantly crafted accounts, we learn of the horrors and atrocities of the Holocaust, of the mixed fates of several families who were granted visas, and of the injustices to which the Sugihara family was subjected as a result of Sempo's courageous response to human torment. In several places throughout this magnificent book, Ms. Gold introduces Japanese phrases that do much to enrich our understanding of cultural concepts at the core of the Sugihara's way of thinking and living. We learn of the considerable influence that Mrs. Sugihara had on her husband's decisions. While this book was written for a young adult audience, most adults would find its content engrossing.

Glen Grant has done it again! This time it is a story of Mrs. Sugihara who runs a shave ice store. Every night people would gather around her store to hear uncanny tales of ghosts and monsters in hopes of seeing the spirit of Miss Yanagi. The dead Japanese language teacher. Highly reccomended for those dark lonly nights when the wind is howling and shadows lurk on the walls.

This is the Spanish version of Passage to Freedom, a 30-page picture book. A remarkable and inspiring story of a Japanese diplomat who disobeyed his government by writing hundreds of visas to Jewish refugees trying to flee Lithuania. With compassion and courage, Sugihara places his own future in jeopardy to save others. Excellent! Don't miss the afterward to see what happened to the Sugihara family.

I'm a 6th grade student who likes to read. I thought the book was interesting. It had good illustrations. If you don't know what a visa is in this story it's like a passport. I don't want to spoil the story for you so I won't tell you anymore of the story.

It should be required reading for U.S. immigration and consular officials. Having lawful orders to obey (Sugihara's instructions from his government were lawful, and no different from instructions given to US officials) does not absolve one from responsibility for others. This is an important lesson for children and adults.

The illustrations are haunting.

It is a book that you and your children will not soon forget.

A wonderful book, with an important story. Mr. Sugihara was one of those Japanese who do not follow sheepishly every instruction given to him by his government, and thank God! Using his conscience and humanitarian spirit, he helped saved the lives of many Jews, and he did this by disobeying instructions of his own government, which at that time in history was allied with the Nazis. Not only does this story deserve to be told, it needs to be told to an international audience. Mr. Mochizuki has written one of the most important children's books of the 20th century! Bravo!

A remarkable story that deserves wider recognition. In many ways much more fascinating than the Wallenberg or Schindler stories because unlike either, he put himself at great personal risk and very much unlike Schindler, he stood to gain absolutely nothing. This is a highly personal and direct account by Yukiko Sugihara's wife that covers not only the events surrounding the issuing of the visas, but also follows the family through the rest of the war and its aftermath...

A great book for jews to read or just somebody of any religion. An insporational book

It's an odd book.

According to the book's review is in between the formality of many papers and a picture oriented book.

The first two lines of its table of contents are:

chapter. 1 Our view of nature page. 7... chapter. 2 Fractals and power law scaling 15...36

The chapter 1 is what any picture intended book on fractals has. The chapter 2, where the fun begins and basic concepts as "power law", "fractal dimension" are introduced is incomprehensible.

Nevertheless it seems to be an interesting book about applications of fractals. I'm talking about "Part III", page > 80 to 233 (the end).

It's curious and inconsistent book at the beginning: it talks to beginners in a way that is incomprehensible for a beginner!.

If you are a beginner in fractals as I am, you need another book!.