In the fall of 1965 the Israeli newspaper Haaretz sent a young journalist named Elie Wiesel to the Soviet Union to report on the lives of Jews trapped behind the Iron Curtain. “I would approach Jews who had never been placed in the Soviet show window by Soviet authorities;†wrote Wiesel. “They alone; in their anonymity; could describe the conditions under which they live; they alone could tell whether the reports I had heard were true or false—and whether their children and their grandchildren; despite everything; still wish to remain Jews. From them I would learn what we must do to help . . . or if they want our help at all.†What he discovered astonished him: Jewish men and women; young and old; in Moscow; Kiev; Leningrad; Vilna; Minsk; and Tbilisi; completely cut off from the outside world; overcoming their fear of the ever-present KGB to ask Wiesel about the lives of Jews in America; in Western Europe; and; most of all; in Israel. They have scant knowledge of Jewish history or current events; they celebrate Jewish holidays at considerable risk and with only the vaguest ideas of what these days commemorate. “Most of them come [to synagogue] not to pray;†Wiesel writes; “but out of a desire to identify with the Jewish people—about whom they know next to nothing.†Wiesel promises to bring the stories of these people to the outside world. And in the home of one dissident; he is given a gift—a Russian-language translation of Night; published illegally by the underground. “‘My God;’ I thought; ‘this man risked arrest and prison just to make my writing available to people here!’ I embraced him with tears in my eyes.â€
#261908 in Books Holt Paperbacks 2004-06-01 2004-06-01Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.31 x 1.75 x 6.29l; 1.93 #File Name: 0805076239928 pages
Review
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. Paragon of history booksBy EarlBFor mostly any type of reader; this is an excellent work: curious readers will learn much; researchers will find it an invaluable resource; and anybody will gain a pertinent knowledge of this war - the greatest (in scale) of all wars in history.Unfortunately; and very surprisingly; there is no historical preface whatsoever: the book begins with the invasion of Poland; 1 September 1939; pronto. Thus; with no foundation; the reader might be quite irritated; especially if (s)he doesn't already have a fairly good knowledge of the events leading to the Second World War. This will not; however; impede the ability to read the book: still; the first two chapters or so concentrate primarily on the Nazi atrocities within Poland during and in the months after its conquest.Past that point; however; the narrative removes itself from any particular perspective or base; and the reader is put in view of the war from all perspectives - Allied; Axis; and of the agony of occupied Europe; the Holocaust; which is not ignored by this history; and nor does its tragic story interfere with the flow of history itself.This book is rather lengthy; which may be the delight or dismay of a potential reader: if you prefer longer; more extensive; comprehensive work; you will not be disappointed. If you had in mind a short; brief history just to fill you in on the basic happenings of the war; you might want to look elsewhere. But either way this book is a paragon of excellence in the career of historians.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. An good overview; not a reference book.By carrollkIt is impossible to cover WWII in less than 800 pages. 100;000 pages seems like a more likely venue. Nevertheless; Mr. Gilbert has done it remarkably well. He arranged the topics by date and covered the whole world of events very briefly; skipping from a few well written; informative sentences on the Pacific war to more sentences in Europe or elsewhere to provide complete; but not detailed information or everything. If you want detailed information on a specific topic like Hamburg or Peleliu or the Bismarck or anything else you can buy whole volumes on the that topic. This book presents the 'tip of the iceberg' very well. It is not an uptight resource on any time or event.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. GoodBy Al SinghExcept perhaps for Iris Chang's *The Rape of Nanking*; no other book I have read captures the horror and brutality of World War II like this one. Martin's trademark style is historical narrative intermingled with individual stories and anecdotes; and it is the individual accounts; replete with documented proper names and direct quotes; that convey the proper note of atrocity committed by the Axis Powers. There are daily accounts of Holocaust victims that should be enough to refute any Holocaust denier; and there are also recorded acts of selfless courage and heroism. No other book I have read on this subject expresses to this extent the madness perpetrated in the last century by two of the most powerful and advanced nations in the world. This is not a book for students of tactics and military strategy a la John Keegan; this is a memorial of human suffering in the most horrendous war ever fought. It is not exactly exciting; but it is appropriately appalling.
