This book is about the Kurc family, a Jewish family living in Poland during WW2 at the time of the Jewish Extermination by Nazi run Germany. This story follows each family member and their harrowing adventure of survival. This is a fictional imagination of true events so it reads like a first person narrative being told by each member. The author is actually the granddaughter of one of the family members and she did this whole road trip through Europe uncovering everything she could about how her family survived when so many others didn’t. Out of 30,000 Jews living in Poland only 300 made it through the end of the War and they were part of the lucky few.

I had no idea what this books is about when I picked it up, I saw the cover and I read the synopsis and was immediately interested. I love history type books and the holocaust is one of the points in history I find the most interesting. It’s tragic to know what happened to so many people in that time and I can only imagine what it could’ve been like. So when I am able to read a story about survival and how a family lived through such terrible times I can’t help but want to know.

This book plays out during world war 2 as previously said and follows the Kurc family. Their journey takes them to all parts of the world and across continents. Every moment was given special care to try to show the tension of the times they lived in. They were mistreated, starved, beaten, and betrayed yet they continued hoping against all hope they would live to see the next day.

The families love for one another was what glued each story together as they became separated and had no way to communicate. They often thought of being with one another and worried for each other.

What amazes me the most is that they were able to still fall in love and have children all the while living in the worst possible conditions. They had to think each day through and make plans for the what might happen and think of any possible escape plan they could.

No book has moved me for a long time as much as this book did. It made me think about my own family and my own family history. Where my parents came from and how they made it to the US and left their families behind. I would never be able to experience what they experience.

This book also made me realize how blessed we are to live in a place like the U.S. where we are free to express our own individuality. The Kurc family also reminded me of how important family is and not to take advantage of the times we have with one another because time is fleeting. We are not promised tomorrow and there will come a day when those things will be just a memory so its important to soak up all the time you have with the loved ones you have.

This was a great read and I’m surprised this isn’t mandatory reading in schools. this seems like a really good book to go through in school. There’s so much to talk about and to unravel. It’s kinda like the book Anne Frank. I would think it would be interesting to talk about in a classroom setting. With that I will end the blog, God bless!