Another great memoir of what a very strong girl endured as a polish jew in the Holocaust. Gerda and her family endured a lot from the time the Germans invaded Poland 1939 to VE Day in 1945. The thing that gripped me about her story, is her detailed story of how the Germans seperated her family, first with demanding her brother to report to the middle of Poland to serve the Germans, and then when she and her parents were forced to move into a Ghetto, and finally when her father was seperated from her and her mother, and then when Gerda was placed in a different line than her mother. It really is heart wrenching what she had to endure, as is the story of millions of others persecuted by the Nazi regime. Gerda tells about the many places she worked, the camps, living conditions, and eventually when the Nazi's knew they had to run for it- the death march. Through out all she endured, one positive thing came from her tragic story, the love of her life ended up being her American Liberator.
This is a great memoir, and after I finished this book I kept thinking about Gerda and her family. Always when I read Holocaust books, I ask myself how could anyone ever do what the Nazi's did to the Jews. How and Why? I feel I can do my part to never forget the Holocaust by keeping their stories alive, by reading their memoirs, and by telling others whenever I get a chance about WWII, and the Holocaust. Someday I will meet Anne Frank, Gerda Weissman Klein, Oskar Schindler, Elie Wiesel, Viktor Frankl and the many other people whose story hasn't been told. For now I will always remember them, and always have a profound love and respect for the victims of the Holocaust.
