All But My Life - Gerda Weissmann Klein

All But My Life

By Gerda Weissmann Klein

  • Release Date: 1995-03-31
  • Genre: History
4.5 Score: 4.5 (From 253 Ratings)

Description

All But My Life is the unforgettable story of Gerda Weissmann Klein's six-year ordeal as a victim of Nazi cruelty.

From her comfortable home in Bielitz (present-day Bielsko) in Poland to her miraculous survival and her liberation by American troops--including the man who was to become her husband--in Volary, Czechoslovakia, in 1945, Gerda takes the reader on a terrifying journey.

Gerda's serene and idyllic childhood is shattered when Nazis march into Poland on September 3, 1939. Although the Weissmanns were permitted to live for a while in the basement of their home, they were eventually separated and sent to German labor camps. Over the next few years Gerda experienced the slow, inexorable stripping away of "all but her life." By the end of the war she had lost her parents, brother, home, possessions, and community; even the dear friends she made in the labor camps, with whom she had shared so many hardships, were dead.

Despite her horrifying experiences, Klein conveys great strength of spirit and faith in humanity. In the darkness of the camps, Gerda and her young friends manage to create a community of friendship and love. Although stripped of the essence of life, they were able to survive the barbarity of their captors. Gerda's beautifully written story gives an invaluable message to everyone. It introduces them to last century's terrible history of devastation and prejudice, yet offers them hope that the effects of hatred can be overcome.

Reviews

  • All but my life.

    5
    By more books to read
    Beautifully narrated, in the midst of such pain and inhuman treatment. I would recommend this book. It moved along and kept my attention. Strength, endurance, vision and faith are very clear....And a true love story blossoms along with long awaited freedom!
  • All but my life

    4
    By SANDYWALKERC
    A different, well written account of survival. Her optimistic approach to life was amazing. Each of the characters she interacted with were so well described.
  • Best book I've ever Read

    5
    By DollyHailey
    I liked this book, and being around her age really connected me to how she felt during that time with love and her decisions to do what she thought was best. I would really recommend anyone interested in this topic to read this book cause it changed me, and I'm sure anyone else who read this book.
  • 👌🏼

    4
    By Britton perry
    I would recommend this book to others
  • Best book I've ever read

    5
    By Meaggg_13
    Most saddest but yet meaning book I've ever read. The story behind this women is absolutely unexplainable,she describes everything so well, by the end of the book I felt like I witnessed everything with her and was he best friend. You will not regret paying $9.99 for this book because it is so worth it!
  • A true inspiration

    5
    By Skeeter Rompus
    I loved this book! It is a great read and gave me great joy. I felt like a was living Gerda's life. I strongly suggest this book.
  • Unbelievable

    5
    By Shak1n Bak1n
    When I started to read this I had no idea the amount of suffering Jews during the Holocaust era faced from the persecution of the Nazis. This is a great book to read and taught me a lot about what the Jews had to face. A great read and very captivating.
  • All but my life

    5
    By Friday morning John
    I heard a friend talk about meeting Gerda and the impact that she made, her writing was spellbinding. I so enjoyed reading her addition to her book some 50 years later describing what has been her motivation to her wonderful legacy. I am so happy I picked up this title and will refer back to it often.
  • All But My Life

    5
    By silver swan
    I could not put this book down! Her bravery, strength and determination were given to her by her parents and their words to her on "those boring evenings by the fire". I am a Christian but have always enjoyed reading personal stories of the Hollocaust and Jewish survival. Patricia Matthews
  • Amazing

    5
    By Bixbeyh
    A truly incredible novel depicting Gerda Klein's struggles as a teenage Jew in Occupied Poland during WWII, this book captures the reader and refuses to let them go until the very last page.

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