Nonfiction

Signs of Survival: A Memoir of the Holocaust

Signs of Survival: A Memoir of the Holocaust

  • Downloads：8215
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-11-21 01:21:26
  • Update Date：2025-09-07
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Renee Hartman
  • ISBN：1338753355
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle

Reviews

Ms。 Yingling ，

E ARC provided by Edelweiss PlusBased on an interview with both Renee Hartman and her sister Herta for the Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocause Testimonies at Yale University， this book is a good overview all too common experiences during the Holocaust。 The two girls lived in Bratislava， Czechoslovakia。 Due to a hereditary condition， Herta and the parents were deaf， and Renee acted as a translator for them。 Herta briefly attended a school for deaf students， but when the Nazis took over， Jewish E ARC provided by Edelweiss PlusBased on an interview with both Renee Hartman and her sister Herta for the Fortunoff Video Archive for Holocause Testimonies at Yale University， this book is a good overview all too common experiences during the Holocaust。 The two girls lived in Bratislava， Czechoslovakia。 Due to a hereditary condition， Herta and the parents were deaf， and Renee acted as a translator for them。 Herta briefly attended a school for deaf students， but when the Nazis took over， Jewish children were not allowed to go to school。 As conditions in the city worsened， the girls were sent to a farm to be cared for in exchange for a hefting boarding fee。 When the parents stopped writing， the girls were turned out of the house and left on their own。 They turned themselves into the local law enforcement， not knowing what else to do， and were supposed to be sent to be reunited with their parents at Auschwitz。 Instead， they ended up at Bergen Belsen， and endured many hardships。 Renee managed to keep Herta safe from guard as well as the medical establishment that wanted to experiment on her。 After the war， it took some time to regain their strength， but eventually relatives in the US brought the girls over， and they made lives for themselves here。 Strengths: Like Ruth Gruener's Out of Hiding and Rena Finder's A Girl on Schindler's List， this memoir offers a less greaphic overview of one experience of the Holocaust that is a good introduction to the era for younger readers。 Herta's deafness adds another layer of interest; the only other book I can think that covers this topic is LeZotte's T4: A Novel in Verse （2008）。 The Holocaust is a perennially popular topic， even though our eighth grade curriculm might no longer cover it。 Weaknesses: Perhaps I didn't see it in the E ARC， but a map of the areas the girls were in would have been helpful。 What I really think: Somehow this cover is really appealing， and I probably need to go through and do a refresh on my Holocaust books even though the 8th grade may not be covering it。 While this was a bit simplistic for me， since I have read hundreds of Holocaust novels and memoirs， I do think it will be informative for younger readers， and I love the fact that it is based on actual interviews with Herta and Renee。 。。。more

Jennybeast ，

This is a really extraordinary story of survival， and the adaptation from oral history to book is very well done。 I loved the spare storytelling style， the context offered at the end of the book， and the sheer emotional impact。 Loved that the story incorporates both sisters' points of view as well， and the different burdens they carried -- Renee in translating， Herta in isolation from deaf community。 We so rarely get to see deaf community in the larger context of history， and it's good to see th This is a really extraordinary story of survival， and the adaptation from oral history to book is very well done。 I loved the spare storytelling style， the context offered at the end of the book， and the sheer emotional impact。 Loved that the story incorporates both sisters' points of view as well， and the different burdens they carried -- Renee in translating， Herta in isolation from deaf community。 We so rarely get to see deaf community in the larger context of history， and it's good to see that diversity， even against the horrific backdrop of the Holocaust。 Advanced Reader's Copy provided by Edelweiss。 。。。more

Amanda Morian ，

Such an important piece of history that should never be lost or forgotten。 Heavy content carefully crafted for ages 8-12 with pictures that help humanize during a time when a major goal was to dehumanize。

Tiffany ，

ARC provided by Scholastic。 All thoughts and opinions my own。Renee and Herta are the children of a Jewish couple living in modern day Slovakia。 When German soldiers march in and begin announcing new laws， the family is nervous especially since they are all deaf except for Renee。 The family attempts to continue to live their lives as usual but the changes are unsettling and it seems that they don’t even recognize their small town anymore。 The fear comes when they are ordered to sew yellow Star of ARC provided by Scholastic。 All thoughts and opinions my own。Renee and Herta are the children of a Jewish couple living in modern day Slovakia。 When German soldiers march in and begin announcing new laws， the family is nervous especially since they are all deaf except for Renee。 The family attempts to continue to live their lives as usual but the changes are unsettling and it seems that they don’t even recognize their small town anymore。 The fear comes when they are ordered to sew yellow Star of David on their clothing that designate them as Jewish。 Renee and Herta are sent out of their town to live with a couple that are hiding Jews。 The couple kicks out Renee and Herta after their parents stop paying and when Renee and Herta return to their town their parents are no where to be found。 Exhausted and scared they turn themselves into the Nazi soldiers and their nightmare gets worse。Packed in horrific conditions， Renee and Herta are put on a train to a concentration camp。 Renee must be the ears for Herta who doesn’t understand what’s going on。 After a long and arduous journey with little food and little water， the girls arrive at the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp。 While in the camp the sisters witness horrific conditions and actions by the Nazi guards。 Just as Renee gets sick with typhus， Herta catches the eye of a Nazi doctor and the two struggle to hold on until the end of the war。Signs of Survival is a compelling story of two sisters surviving the Bergen-Belsen concentrations camp during World War II。 The book is written in conversation format which makes it quite easy for children to follow along the story。 There isn’t much historical background given on the circumstances of the Nazi’s being in their country， so some knowledge of World War II is helpful。 Signs of Survival should be required reading especially since it’s important part of history that should never be forgotten。 。。。more