#1 New York Times BestsellerEdith Hahn was an outspoken young woman in Vienna when the Gestapo forced her into a ghetto and then into a slave labor camp. When she returned home months later, she knew she would become a hunted woman and went underground. With the help of a Christian friend, she emerged in Munich as Grete Denner. There she met Werner Vetter, a Nazi Party member who fell in love … Nazi Party member who fell in love with her. Despite Edith’s protests and even her eventual confession that she was Jewish, he married her and kept her identity a secret.
In wrenching detail, Edith recalls a life of constant, almost paralyzing fear. She tells how German officials casually questioned the lineage of her parents; how during childbirth she refused all painkillers, afraid that in an altered state of mind she might reveal something of her past; and how, after her husband was captured by the Soviets, she was bombed out of her house and had to hide while drunken Russian soldiers raped women on the street.
Despite the risk it posed to her life, Edith created a remarkable record of survival. She saved every document, as well as photographs she took inside labor camps. Now part of the permanent collection at the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C., these hundreds of documents, several of which are included in this volume, form the fabric of a gripping new chapter in the history of the Holocaust—complex, troubling, and ultimately triumphant.
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This book gave an interesting look into the times and happenings of WWII when the Nazis were trying to take over Europe. It is written about a young woman and the many ways she had to endure the Nazi regime, but also how incredibly lucky she was to escape Poland. At times it was breath taking wondering what would happen next. Other times it almost …
This book was great and sparked a lot of discussion at book club.
I am fascinated with any survivor of Nazi regime. This book is not always easy to read due to the life this woman had to live during a horrid time.
Several weeks ago, I read The Last Jews in Berlin, about Jews who managed to hide for the duration of the Holocaust under Hitler’s nose. Edith Hahn is not included in Leonard Gross’s book (perhaps for reasons of geography, perhaps he did not know her story, or perhaps he was interested in telling the stories of those who were not included to …
An unusual story that shows the strength and determination to survive under the most dire of circumstances. Where is the best place to hide? An Italian saying is “In the mouth of the wolf,” and that this heroine did. An excellent and compelling story.
Very moving, both difficult to read about such terrible events in our world at that time but so important to fight against such present and future atrocities. No excuse for such atrocities to happen!
This is a gripping story. I have read many books about the Holocaust. But this was a very compelling tale about a particular population of in Austria. It was quite intense but also reads like a novel
A true account of a Jew living in Austria during the Nazi reign. I had to admire this woman’s courage and bravery.
This book is a first person narrative from a Jewish woman who hid her identity during Nazi rule, becoming for a time, the wife of a Nazi officer. While her experiences bring to life many of the realities of such an experience, it didn’t portray the emotional aspects of the experience to my satisfaction.
I certainly applaud any survivor’s …
if you want to know about what went on in Germany in ww 2 this true story will give you a whole new perspective of the side we never hear of.
bittersweet
I listened to the whole book while driving back from TX (12 hr dr). I learned things about the Holocaust and Germany from a unique perspective. It sparked a renewed interest in the history of this era.
Naive. Disappointing.
There are so many stories out there about WWII, written from so many vantage points. The main character is Jewish, but her story is much different from many other autobiographies of Jewish individuals who survived Europe during the war. That, plus the very good presentation of the story, makes this a must read for those who enjoy a good true story …
Particularly fascinating in that it’s a true story that reads with the fluidity of good fiction.
This is a true story about a Jewish woman who married a Nazi SS Officer during the time of Nazi control in Germany. What else can I say? In reality, what else is there to say?
I have not read anything about the Holocaust in 30 years. I decided to try this one. It was so easy to understand and feel what she was going through. Not gory at all. It probably helps if you have some prior knowledge of the atrocities that occurred. Excellent book.
This book gives a heartbreaking picture of what the Jewish people in Germany really experienced as everyday life. How frightening to have to hide your culture, your voice and your personality for a period of years as your family disappears never to be heard from again. Horror in an everyday life.
A testament to the human spirit, both to she who lived it and those whose common decency aided her along the way.
Perhaps I’ve read too many memoirs by Holocaust survivors. I wanted to rank this one somewhere between a 3 and a 4. The three would have been because I didn’t find the book exciting since the author escaped the harrowing experiences of so many others. The four would have been because her hiding as an officer’s wife was unique compared to the other …