I decided it was time to name my book. It isn’t finished yet, but the title has been a thorn in my side for a while now. I started with a working title of “Tutti & Popje.” It was cute and it worked in my mind. I thought the book would be told from theContinue reading “In Search of a Title”
Tag Archives: Holocaust survivor
Research Dreams
Recently I have been delving into new questions related to my book. I want to know more about the falsified passport that saved my grandfather from being sent to Auschwitz. This is what I know so far: It was obtained from the Paraguayan Consulate in Bern Switzerland. I say “obtained” because I do not knowContinue reading “Research Dreams”
Perseverance in Research or the Importance of Good Spelling
One of the leads that I have not found an answer to in my research has been how my grandfather was able to get a falsified passport that helped to save his family. What my mother has told me is that someone who my grandfather did business with in Switzerland somehow obtained two dozen copiesContinue reading “Perseverance in Research or the Importance of Good Spelling”
Walking through the “isms”
During my visit to Holland to do research for my book I visited the different places my mother lived in Amsterdam during the war. Each one had a different feel and a different set of circumstances in the 1940’s and also now in 2014. Please come with me for a “walk” from house to house.Continue reading “Walking through the “isms””
Surviving Jews were Asked to Pay Back Taxes after the Holocaust
Yesterday I came across this article, which I urge you to read for yourself. The surviving Jews of Amsterdam were apparently charged property taxes and utilities during the time that they were either in hiding or deported by the Nazis. They were fighting for their lives. Only 5% of the country’s Jews came home, andContinue reading “Surviving Jews were Asked to Pay Back Taxes after the Holocaust”
Stuck
Like many writers, I have hit a spot where I am stuck. This isn’t writer’s block. It isn’t due to a lack of imagination or time or effort. I am stuck because I can’t quite fit together the pieces of history that I have unearthed. I have my mother’s memories and the stories she hasContinue reading “Stuck”
Why I’m Writing about the Holocaust – Part 2
This is a powerful piece (click on the link below) by Naftali Bendavid that appeared in the Wall Street Journal last week. It is about the last survivors of the Holocaust telling their stories. According to the popular press there were only 100 child survivors of Theresienstadt. My mother was one of them. I don’t knowContinue reading “Why I’m Writing about the Holocaust – Part 2”
Why I’m Writing about the Holocaust
Please watch this short video. It is short and speaks for itself. We are raising a generation of students who don’t know about the Holocaust. If they don’t know, it is because nobody taught them. If they don’t know, G-d help us all in the future. We all need to know what has happened toContinue reading “Why I’m Writing about the Holocaust”
Connecting to Anne Frank
I was playing around on a genealogy website and I came across an interesting discovery: Anne Frank is my second great uncle’s uncle’s wife’s sister’s husband’s nephew’s wife’s first cousin once removed’s wife’s great-niece. Now, I wasn’t sure I believed this so I took out paper and pen and drew out the family connection. HereContinue reading “Connecting to Anne Frank”
Oberländer Overseas
Yesterday was quite exciting for me. I decided to look into the fate of the 7 Jews (of which my grandfather was one) who were named in the documents that Eichmann‘s office and Speer‘s office were discussing. This is what I came up with: Broder was sent to Westerbork in February 1944 and then Theresienstadt laterContinue reading “Oberländer Overseas”