Cold Crematorium: Reporting from the Land of Auschwitz
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- Create Date：2024-01-04 13:22:22
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：József Debreczeni
- ISBN：1250290538
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Summary
The first English language edition of a lost memoir by a Holocaust survivor， offering a shocking and deeply moving perspective on life within the camps—with a foreword by Jonathan Freedland。
József Debreczeni， a prolific Hungarian-language journalist and poet， arrived in Auschwitz in 1944; had he been selected to go “left，” his life expectancy would have been approximately forty-five minutes。 One of the “lucky” ones， he was sent to the “right，” which led to twelve horrifying months of incarceration and slave labor in a series of camps， ending in the “Cold Crematorium”—the so-called hospital of the forced labor camp Dörnhau， where prisoners too weak to work awaited execution。 But as Soviet and Allied troops closed in on the camps， local Nazi commanders—anxious about the possible consequences of outright murder—decided to leave the remaining prisoners to die in droves rather than sending them directly to the gas chambers。
Debreczeni recorded his experiences in Cold Crematorium ， one of the harshest， most merciless indictments of Nazism ever written。 This haunting memoir， rendered in the precise and unsentimental style of an accomplished journalist， is an eyewitness account of incomparable literary quality。 The subject matter is intrinsically tragic， yet the author’s evocative prose， sometimes using irony， sarcasm， and even acerbic humor， compels the reader to imagine human beings in circumstances impossible to comprehend intellectually。
First published in Hungarian in 1950， it was never translated into a world language due to McCarthyism， Cold War hostilities and antisemitism。 More than 70 years later， this masterpiece that was nearly lost to time will be available in 15 languages， finally taking its rightful place among the greatest works of Holocaust literature。
József Debreczeni， a prolific Hungarian-language journalist and poet， arrived in Auschwitz in 1944; had he been selected to go “left，” his life expectancy would have been approximately forty-five minutes。 One of the “lucky” ones， he was sent to the “right，” which led to twelve horrifying months of incarceration and slave labor in a series of camps， ending in the “Cold Crematorium”—the so-called hospital of the forced labor camp Dörnhau， where prisoners too weak to work awaited execution。 But as Soviet and Allied troops closed in on the camps， local Nazi commanders—anxious about the possible consequences of outright murder—decided to leave the remaining prisoners to die in droves rather than sending them directly to the gas chambers。
Debreczeni recorded his experiences in Cold Crematorium ， one of the harshest， most merciless indictments of Nazism ever written。 This haunting memoir， rendered in the precise and unsentimental style of an accomplished journalist， is an eyewitness account of incomparable literary quality。 The subject matter is intrinsically tragic， yet the author’s evocative prose， sometimes using irony， sarcasm， and even acerbic humor， compels the reader to imagine human beings in circumstances impossible to comprehend intellectually。
First published in Hungarian in 1950， it was never translated into a world language due to McCarthyism， Cold War hostilities and antisemitism。 More than 70 years later， this masterpiece that was nearly lost to time will be available in 15 languages， finally taking its rightful place among the greatest works of Holocaust literature。
Reviews
book_bear
，
A memoir of the Holocaust， as dark as you would expect。 It tells the tale of a man who was drug from one concentration camp to another and the horrible scenes he saw。 It did get a little bit repetitive and wordy at times。 Some things are explained more than once。 Overall， a good read。
Dick Whittington
，
Translated memoir of Auschwitz survivor。 The first-hand account of his capture， transport， entry and day-to-day life in the camp。 This isn't a book you enjoy because of the subject matter。 But it is well written， with good descriptions and characters。 Brings it all to life。 And I know it must have been much worse then anything I could imagine。 Translated memoir of Auschwitz survivor。 The first-hand account of his capture， transport， entry and day-to-day life in the camp。 This isn't a book you enjoy because of the subject matter。 But it is well written， with good descriptions and characters。 Brings it all to life。 And I know it must have been much worse then anything I could imagine。 。。。more
Book Club of One
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First we are in a train crammed full of people， the destination unknown to any of the passengers， though they have some guesses as to their location。 So begins Hungarian journalist and poet Josef Debreczeni’s Cold Crematorium， an account of his survival in the Auschwitz Concentration Camp system from May 1944 to liberation。 Debreczeni’s narration is divided into two sections， each of ten or 11 chapters。 Many of these are short， reflecting time spent in a different camp or the day to day vagaries First we are in a train crammed full of people， the destination unknown to any of the passengers， though they have some guesses as to their location。 So begins Hungarian journalist and poet Josef Debreczeni’s Cold Crematorium， an account of his survival in the Auschwitz Concentration Camp system from May 1944 to liberation。 Debreczeni’s narration is divided into two sections， each of ten or 11 chapters。 Many of these are short， reflecting time spent in a different camp or the day to day vagaries of differing assignments and casual cruelty of the Germans and camp life。 His narration is clear and concise， not a diary， but instead a chronology of his experience centered on important and demonstrative anecdotes。 There is the journey of the individual in their own clothes， to a sheered， numbered body in clothing scraps spoiled by visible paint splashes。 The Killing of camp inmates reduced to numbers to serve as examples。 The pilfering of food， further speeding up death by starvation。 The fragility of a body to temperature， lack of food， hard work and the threat of disease and sickness。 But there is also the hope， the doctors doing all they can to save patients， sharing of tobacco and occasional updates of where the war fronts are and how close liberation might be。 Those who share what food scraps they can find。 Initially published in 1950， this book was lost to the climate that received it， now newly translated in to English， Debreczeni’s account of his survival demonstrates a humanity resilient in the face of unfathomable hatred and cruelty。 It was a system designed to dehumanize and kill， but Debreczeni’s writing unravels the process as he learned what was behind the first impressions。 A starkly clear eyed view of the concentration camp from human to haftling （prisoner）。 Recommended reading to those learning or researching the Holocaust。 I received a free digital version of this book via NetGalley thanks to the publisher。 。。。more
Jean Blankenship
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Cold Crematorium by Jozsef Debreczeni is a very realistic story that will show you all the horrors of the Holocaust。 This author has the best information that I have read about the life in the camps。 Jozsef avoids going to the gas chambers， but he suffers so many horror in the camp。 He miraculously survived and lived to tell his story。 His voice is finally being heard， even if it took many years for it to come to America。
Marianne K
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I've read a fair amount of books on the Nazi era and the Holocaust and this was the most informative and realistic feeling one yet。 I learned a lot about the running of the camps and the horrific conditions。 It's depressing， heartbreaking， sad， and an abhorrent study in human nature， and quite necessary to read especially after the October 7 Israel massacre。 Thank you to Netgalley and St。 Martin's Press for providing me with a copy to read。 I've read a fair amount of books on the Nazi era and the Holocaust and this was the most informative and realistic feeling one yet。 I learned a lot about the running of the camps and the horrific conditions。 It's depressing， heartbreaking， sad， and an abhorrent study in human nature， and quite necessary to read especially after the October 7 Israel massacre。 Thank you to Netgalley and St。 Martin's Press for providing me with a copy to read。 。。。more
Meredith
，
As a journalist， Jozsef had a very raw and unique account of his time through the network of concentration camps。 I’ve read several different books on this subject but none gave such glimpse into how the camps hierarchy were established and worked。 Everyone should read this， especially with the way our world is now。 It’s sad to see how humans treated each other so horribly and how we still do。 I won this in a giveaway through goodreads。
Lee Husemann
，
I have read a lot of books on the Holocaust and all the horrors that happened related to it， but this is by far the best account ever。 Author Jozsel Debreczeni is a journalist and a poet who spent three years in various work camps until he was sent to Auschwitz in 1944。 From there， he was sent to several subcamps ending up at Dornhau and then he was sent to the "cold crematorium" to await the end。 There was so much new information about life in the work camps in this book that I had never come a I have read a lot of books on the Holocaust and all the horrors that happened related to it， but this is by far the best account ever。 Author Jozsel Debreczeni is a journalist and a poet who spent three years in various work camps until he was sent to Auschwitz in 1944。 From there， he was sent to several subcamps ending up at Dornhau and then he was sent to the "cold crematorium" to await the end。 There was so much new information about life in the work camps in this book that I had never come across before which made for an unputdownable read。 Thank you NetGalley and St。 Martin's Press for the ARC of this eye-opening book that was hard to put down。 。。。more
David Jonescu
，
Instantly this reminded me of Night and its trilogy。 The brutality of Nazi Germany is ever present throughout this book。 But it is a great example of survival and the conditions of camp。 It’s a tough read but one I hope many get to！I received a free advanced copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。
Jean Mader
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 “Cold Crematorium” is the memoir of József Debreczenia， published in 1950 in Hungary。 Jozsef was a journalist and poet。 He had been in a camp for Jewish people in Hungary for 3 years and then was sent to Auschwitz in 1944。 Reading a memoir of the Holocaust is far different from reading a fictional account of the atrocities。 In fiction， there can be a love story， or a fearless prisoner or a good-hearted camp official。 There is none of this in “Cold Crematorium”。 This is a stark， clearly written a “Cold Crematorium” is the memoir of József Debreczenia， published in 1950 in Hungary。 Jozsef was a journalist and poet。 He had been in a camp for Jewish people in Hungary for 3 years and then was sent to Auschwitz in 1944。 Reading a memoir of the Holocaust is far different from reading a fictional account of the atrocities。 In fiction， there can be a love story， or a fearless prisoner or a good-hearted camp official。 There is none of this in “Cold Crematorium”。 This is a stark， clearly written account of nothing but suffering， extreme forced labor， incredibly horrible food- when there was any- revolting living conditions， dreadful epidemics of diseases such as typhus or infestations of bed bugs and lice。 All horrific。 Few positive things happen to Mr。 Debreczenia。 The first was- at his brief stop in Auschwitz， he chooses the correct line to be in and thus avoids the gas chamber。 （He is sent to an industrial work camp， where he experiences all the depravity。） Another positive is that he did have friends， including a doctor who cared for him。 And the third good thing is- he survived。 This book is only now being published in America。 I’m glad that his voice is being heard。 Thanks to NetGalley and St。 Martin’s Press for an advance review copy。 This is my honest review。 。。。more
Jena Henry
，
“Cold Crematorium” is the memoir of József Debreczenia， published in 1950 in Hungary。 Jozsef was a journalist and poet。 He had been in a camp for Jewish people in Hungary for 3 years and then was sent to Auschwitz in 1944。 Reading a memoir of the Holocaust is far different from reading a fictional account of the atrocities。 In fiction， there can be a love story， or a fearless prisoner or a good-hearted camp official。 There is none of this in “Cold Crematorium”。 This is a stark， clearly written a “Cold Crematorium” is the memoir of József Debreczenia， published in 1950 in Hungary。 Jozsef was a journalist and poet。 He had been in a camp for Jewish people in Hungary for 3 years and then was sent to Auschwitz in 1944。 Reading a memoir of the Holocaust is far different from reading a fictional account of the atrocities。 In fiction， there can be a love story， or a fearless prisoner or a good-hearted camp official。 There is none of this in “Cold Crematorium”。 This is a stark， clearly written account of nothing but suffering， extreme forced labor， incredibly horrible food- when there was any- revolting living conditions， dreadful epidemics of diseases such as typhus or infestations of bed bugs and lice。 All horrific。 Few positive things happen to Mr。 Debreczenia。 The first was- at his brief stop in Auschwitz， he chooses the correct line to be in and thus avoids the gas chamber。 （He is sent to an industrial work camp， where he experiences all the depravity。） Another positive is that he did have friends， including a doctor who cared for him。 And the third good thing is- he survived。 This book is only now being published in America。 I’m glad that his voice is being heard。 Thanks to NetGalley and St。 Martin’s Press for an advance review copy。 This is my honest review。 。。。more
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cold crematorium reporting from the land of auschwitz