DOC 81 Days Below Zero: The Incredible Survival Story of a World War II Pilot in Alaska's Frozen Wilderness by Brian Murphy in History

Description

Months before the outbreak of World War II; Heinrich Himmler—prime architect of the Holocaust—designed a special concentration camp for women; located fifty miles north of Berlin. Only a small number of the prisoners were Jewish. Ravensbrück was primarily a place for the Nazis to hold other inferior beings: Jehovah’s Witnesses; Resistance fighters; lesbians; prostitutes; and aristocrats—even the sister of New York’s Mayor LaGuardia. Over six years the prisoners endured forced labor; torture; starvation; and random execution. In the final months of the war; Ravensbrück became an extermination camp. Estimates of the final death toll have ranged from 30;000 to 90;000. For decades the story of Ravensbrück was hidden behind the Iron Curtain. Now; using testimony unearthed since the end of the Cold War and interviews with survivors who have never talked before; Sarah Helm takes us into the heart of the camp. The result is a landmark achievement that weaves together many accounts; following figures on both sides of the prisoner/guard divide. Chilling; compelling; and deeply necessary; Ravensbrück is essential reading for anyone concerned with Nazi history.