Clara KramerRezensionen

Tínhamos os corações partidos. Era o fim. O fim do mundo.
Estas palavras foram escritas por Clara Kramer quando tinha 15 anos, e nelas está contida a agonia de um povo.
No dia 21 de julho de 1942, os Nazis conquistam a cidade polaca de Zolkiew e dão início à deportação e massacre de milhares de judeus. Clara e a sua família conseguem esconder-se num bunker apressadamente escavado à mão. A viver por cima deles e a protegê-los está a família Beck. Embora se diga antissemita, o Sr. Beck arrisca diariamente a vida pelas pessoas que acolheu. É um dos rostos secretos da resistência à barbárie.
No bunker, as condições de vida são inumanas, os relatos da morte de familiares e amigos são diários, o terror é constante. Mas os laços de amor e solidariedade que se estabelecem entre todos dão conta da grandeza que faz pulsar o coração humano. Clara escreve para sobreviver, para testemunhar, para se impedir de esquecer que a vida é, acima de tudo, um milagre.
Dos cinco mil judeus que habitavam Zolkiew antes da guerra, sobreviveram menos de sessenta.
Uma história tão tocante quanto O Diário de Anne Frank e A Lista de Schindler. É assim que a imprensa internacional define este livro baseado na vida extraordinária de Clara Kramer. O seu diário está exposto no Museu Memorial do Holocausto, em Washington. O bunker ainda existe.

I was drawn to this book because her married name is the same as my maiden name. Could there be a connection...?
Aside from that, I loved this book. It deserves a 5 in all my categories. I could not put it down. I was scared, I was disgusted, I was so many things! I am amazed that 18 people survived. The perseverance of the human spirit!
I am so happy that Mama made Clara write a diary!

A piece that can stand with other great holocaust literature. Clara describes her life and Polish town a bit before Sept. 1, 1939, but most of the book describes her Jewish family's struggle to survive for the next 6 years. Some members of her family and neighbors end up spending nearly 2 years below the floor of a house. Clara records much of what is going on during this time in a diary, which is the basis for the book. I like the fact that there isn't a lot of "day XX, same as day YY," kind of daily descriptions of their horrible situation. She does spend a lot of time discussing her feelings with the reader, and lauding the family who is protecting them, as well as giving us descriptions of the challenges they are facing. Worth reading for anyone interested in the holocaust.

I ofte question why I read so many memoirs by Holocaust survivors; I'm not longer ensconced in the academic world (therefore no longer required to read books that are often depressing and intellectual), my family has been out of Europe since the late 1800s (and therefore not involved in the War efforts), and we're not at all Jewish (at least not to my knowledge). But in reading this story of a family's miraculous survival I finally found my answer laid out in front of me; I read for the same reason that Clara wrote hre diary in the first place: for her story (and that of her people) to be remembered and for these attrocities to never happen again. Of course other racial genocides occured after the Holocaust (most memorably in Sarajevo and Rwanda), but eventually the message of the survivors must sink in that we must all learn to get along on a global and multi-ethnic scale.

Nel luglio del 1941 i nazisti arrivano nella piccola cittadina di Zolkiew, in Polonia, e la vita per la giovane Clara cambia per sempre (fonte: Google Books)

I loved this book. It was an amazing account of this woman, her family, her community, and what happened during the Holocaust in her area.

At the beginning of the book is a family free and a floor plan of the hiding place. Both were very helpful and I frequently referred to both of them. There were a few pages in a bunch more toward the back of the book than the front of black and white photos of Clara, and some of the people important in her life. I wish there had been more but appreciated the ones included.

This story worked so well. It was the best kind of collaboration, written by a man, but using a girl’s diary and the story that grown woman relates to him. He used her input and often her words, and it works beautifully.

The immediacy of the story makes things feel so clear and so incredibly suspenseful. It might be the best non-fiction account I’ve read about Jews hiding from the Nazis.

While the family tree informs the reader of who lives and who dies during the Nazi occupation, I felt great tension not knowing details of what would happen and how re the lives/deaths of non-family members too.

Every single one of the people in this book is fascinating and it made reading Clara’s story completely riveting. Even without the Holocaust or other extreme times, this would have been an interesting looks into this family and their community.

It was such a grueling read that I was very glad there was some humor at times.

I did envy the extremely close extended families and the close neighbors/community, while it lasted.

I love how much Clara loved books and reading so much.

I was impressed that even the youngest children knew what was going on and what grave danger they were in.

I thought it was amazing that these people had such a strong will to survive. I guess I can understand it because of some of them having children to try to protect, but honestly the conditions and uncertainty were so terrible, I don’t think it would have been worth it to me sans children, and the strong family ties and community ties and their faith did help.

I had to read yet another moldy musty library copy but it was worth it.

Highly recommended to any reader interested in reading this type of book.

Clara has to escape her little polish town. So her only hope to escape is to dig a bunker under a Nazi sympisizer's house. But these people have been age old friends to them. So when they move in with two other families a bunch of cousins, and their little cousins must live in the bunker until the war is over with no way to get out. Tempers rise when one of the woman is having affair with the man of the house, and the wife finds out. Find out more about Clara's War coming soon to your local library.

The grim setting of most of this true story allows the characters deepest and strongest beliefs and personality traits to show through. The reader learns what is fundamental, what is most important, and how close the good of human nature is to the bad of human nature in the real world. A few of these books should be read by late high school to college age people so they are aware of the full breadth of human nature, and the consequences of cultural division and war and the value of cultural diversity and peace.

The author follows her story with the later lives of many of the characters who survived. This too is well worth reading, especially by our young people who may not sense the long lasting affects of earlier mistakes or successes.

Unlike fiction, this story shows real events, real mistakes, and real long lasting outcomes. This is what happens when cultural differences are turned to fear and hate instead of embraced. Good reading for the period 2017 to 2018 in America.

This is an epic survival story of a teenaged Jewess named Clara. When the invasion starts, her family is forced to wear stars on clothing. Finally her family hatches a plan: to dig a bunker and hide in it with 4 other families. Living over them are the Becks, to supply food and provide cover. In Auguest her cousins move in, and her sister, Mania is murdered while running from a fire. Germen solders move in above with the Becks. In the end her diary is published.

I got this book at the Dauchau concentration camp. Once I read chapter 1 I could not put this book down. You will enjoy every last part of the book except Mania's death.I suggest you bring this book wherever you are going. After you read this take a moment to soak in that these struggles wheir real.

Many books have been written about the Holocaust, but few so touching and unbelievable as Clara's War. This book is a must for anyone interested and fascinated by war history. This is Anne Frank's story with a happy ending.

As always, when I read a book from a foreign country that contains unfamiliar names and places, I am temporarily thrown off, and it takes some time to get adjusted. Unfortunately with Clara's War, I experienced the same uneasiness. Thankfully it didn't last long, and I was drawn in.

Every Holocaust survivor story, even though they have their similarities, are totally unique. Clara's story shows the depth in which one will reach to remain alive and even amongst the horrors of war, the depth of humanity. The deplorable conditions, lack of food, and the entrapment of the bunker didn't kill the spirit of Clara and the group. However, their survival could not have been accomplished without the help of the German family. It was remarkable to see (and vicariously feel) the love and compassion of this family when it would have been easier and to their benefit to not harbor Jews (understatement, of course).

I was bothered by a variety of errors in this ARC. Hopefully, it has been tweaked and polished up for the final publication. I would hate for the strength of this book to be diminished due to editing errors. I'm curious as to whether there are pictures in the published version. I need to check that out!

Originally posted on: Thoughts of Joy½

A riveting tale of hardship and endurance under desperate conditions during WW11. In this modern age it is difficult to imagine how Clara and most of her immediate family survived against all the odds. As a gentile, I found the constant references to Jewish religious practices quite irritating but was impressed by their desire to persevere with their traditions and beliefs. The names of individuals were hard to remember and the family tree was a useful checklist to refresh one's memory.
Considering the publisher, I was amazed at the number of typo and grammar errors. On the whole, I found the book interesting but not one that I would ever read again.

When World War II came to their small Polish town, Clara's family was taken in by a Catholic family and hidden in a dug-out bunker underneath the house. Eventually, the bunker came to hold 18 Jews in total and they lived in squalid conditions, praying that they would survive to see the end of the war. Using details from her diary, Clara relates this gruesome tale of her family's determination to survive and the kindness and generosity of the family that risked their own lives to hide them for so many years. Although the writing is sometimes repetitive, any survivor's story is a precious resource and it's wonderful that Clara Kramer and Stephen Glantz have preserved this account. I particularly appreciated the chapter on celebrating Yom Kippur, the Jewish day of atonement, while in the bunker. It's evident how much their faith helped Clara's family hold on.

Moving narrative of a young Polish girl in the wealthy Jewish town of Zolkiew, Poland, Clara Kramer, and her family and friends who were rescued from the Nazis during WWII. Eighteen people were hidden beneath a trap door....llittle food, little water, enduring excruciating heat and cold for two years. Originally when going into hiding, they planned for two weeks.½

Kramer's heartwrenching memoir of survival--hiding from the Nazis in an underground bunker with 17 other people--coincides with the observation of Holocaust Remembrance Day, April 21, 2009.

Obviously, this is a powerful story. It's a story about life and survival. It's a story about humanity--at its best and worst. The portrayal of the Becks--for better or worse--proves just that. What makes a man good? It's an emotional read--no doubt--with just as many losses as triumphs. (In one of the last chapters, the reader learns that of the 5,000 Jews living in Zolkiew, only 50 survived.) But it is a hopeful story as well. One of strength and endurance. A must read.

Junior Cain (cainbookreviews.blogspot.com)

This book was completely off my radar but the jacket caught my eye: .."one girl's story of survival." Actually it's practically her whole family's story of survival and what a harrowing story it is. It reads like a thriller. Clara Schwarz's story illustrates how good luck, good preparation and good people can make all the difference when one is forced to live among cruel people. The story's appeal comes from the straightforward manner in which it is told.

Clara's War: One Girl's Story of Survival left me absolutely humbled.

Once in a great while you come upon a book that will completely change your perspective on life. This book certainly taught me how much in life is taken for granted.

With the skilled writing of Stephen Glantz, Clara Kramer shares her story with simplicity and humility.

I could not put this book down... and I continue to think and talk about Clara's story. I do not want to give anything away.

Suffice it to say... this book needs to be on every person's Must Read list.

note: I read the hc edition which included photographs from the past, as well as, current photos of Clara and some survivors.

Interesting, but somehow I wished for more details about the ins and outs of their daily lives down inside the bunker. I have a very clear sense of its dark, damp, and often hot atmosphere, and the fear that infused their every day about getting caught. But I don't have a very good feel for most of the people down there. I am amazed and horrified by what they lived through. Something about the way it was written feels disconnected, though, from what actually happened, and I wondered how much the author was able to recall without the help of her diaries.

I try to read as much Holocaust literature as I can, especially diaries and first-person accounts of those alive at the time, so I looked forward to this book immensely. I was not disappointed. This is the story of Clara Schwarz, a Polish Jew, one of 5000 Jews in the town of Zolkiew at the time of the Nazi invasion of Poland. Clara was hidden by a Polish couple in a bunker with 17 other Jews, and because of their bravery she lived to tell her story.

What I enjoyed most was seeing how the families that were hidden together and the family that hid them truly became bonded to each other not only during the Holocaust but throughout the remainder of their lives. I enjoyed Clara's portrayal of Beck, the man who not only hid 18 Jews, but remained behind in Zolkiew at great risk to his family's safety rather than abandon these 18 Jews. Clara idolizes beck, but even as a young teen is able to distinguish that while he is an amazing and generous man as a rescuer, he is a far different person as a husband and father.

I found this story especially touching because the author familiarizes the reader with the names of so many loved ones who perished in the Holocaust. While many tomes refer to the 6 million, or in this case, the 5000 Jews in Zolkiew, Clara talks about her Aunts, Uncles, neighbors, and others who are killed. And as in every Holocaust memoir, the brutality and hatred displayed by both German soldiers and citizens alike is hard to understand and endure. When Clara describes hearing a german policeman describe with pride how many Jews he had killed, not knowing that 18 Jews were hidden under the floor beneath him, my stomach clenched for Clara and all Jews in Poland at the time.

I highly recommend this book to all interested in Holocaust memoirs and literature. Clara's diary, which she wrote while in hiding, is part of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum now, and my only regret about this book is that it did not include many more excerpts from her diary.½

Clara's War is the story of Clara Kramer (nee Schwarz) and her family's survival during WWII Nazi occupation of Northern Poland. We are told the story through the eyes of Clara as the Russian's flee Zolkiew leaving the citizens to defend themselves against the advancing Germans and the subsequent occupation. Clara's family as well as two others seek refuge in a small dug out bunker under the house owned by the Melmans. Above them the Beck family protect them from discovery from the SS and Blue Coats.

While the three Jewish families hide in the bunker all around them friends and relatives are being transported, detained or killed. As the war draws out the risks that the Beck's, Schwarz's, Melman's and Patrontasch's increase daily as the slaughter and persecution of Jewish people escalates. they have to contend with cramped living conditions as their number swell from 11 to 18, German SS and trainmen residing in the Beck's house, Mr Beck's womanising and drunken behaviour, and threat of starvation and illness.

This is an amazing story of survival which is told with care and respect. While I am sure the whole story was not told here the events included are enough to give the reader no illusions of how the families lived and the horrors they experienced during this period.

The saddest part of the book for me was when Clara told the story about how two young boys (around 13) turned in a Jewish girl knowing what would happen to her all for 5 litres of vodka followed by the courage of the young Jewish girl. There is of course more to the story which made it sadder but I will not reveal that here and let you discover it for yourself. One of the most up lifting moments is when, after the town is liberated by the Russians and the families are picking up the pieces, a man who before the war had wanted to help the Schwarz's and couldn't turned up and returned the gift they had given him at the start.

To me reading these books is vitally important to remind us of the worst and best humanity can be and remind us we should never allow something like that happen ever again. While this book is sad in it's subject matter the story will leave you having your faith restored in people. This book was also very educational while I am aware like most people of what happened and Auschwitz my knowledge was limited and I did end up jumping on the net and reading up on various things mentioned in the book and learnt a lot more about my WWII history. It is great to see more of these stories being recorded before they are lost.

Thank you Clara Kramer for sharing your story.½