Joshua & Isadora: A True Tale of Loss and Love in the Holocaust

by Michael Benanav

Book Overview

Traveling through the Ukraine, Romania, and Turkey, Michael Benanav documented the incredible story of his grandmother Isadora, who was deported along with every Jew in Romania and held captive in a... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1599212404
• ISBN13: 9781599212401
• Release Date: January 2008
• Publisher: Lyons Press
• Length: 257 Pages
• Weight: 1.25 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 6.3" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

Grandson's Loving Tribute

This is a true story of the author's grandparents' determination to survive in the face of horrible conditions during World War II and their desperate efforts to hold on to their families, their dignity, their hope for a future. It is a loving retelling of their stories by their grandson against the backdrop of his travels to the same places they had journeyed through, struggling towards freedom and security. This is a beautifully written, absorbing tale of their two journeys, separated by 60 years and extraordinary hardships. Definitely worth reading.

Page-turning adventure

Benanav is a talented writer, turning a family history and personal journey into a page-turning adventure. He helps the reader understand the horror of the era, yet does so without sounding either maudlin or unsympathetic: a delicate balancing act made all the more difficult given the family connections. This is a thoroughly enjoyable book.

dobiekelly's review of JOSHUA & ISADORA

This was an incredibly heartfelt book. It was extremely informative and added some new thoughts about how tenacious and courageous these people were. It was flawlessly written. Michael Benanav is a gifted young writer. His compassionate writing of this story made it a wonderful reading experience about a time in history that should NEVER be forgotten. KL

A personal history of love and loss

A chronicle of the author's grandparents who were married in a refugee train en-route from the Nazis, without speaking a language in common. True life fairy tale? Uplifting tale of people recovering from incredible oppression? Really it's so much more than this. This book is part history lesson, as the roots of European Jewry are explained, part travelogue, as the author travels to the places his grandparents were, and part historical narrative, the personal thread that ran through Europe convulsing during the war. Joshua, Isadora, and several generations are given life as real people. Foibles when the young grandmother gets into a horse-drawn carriage accident while sneaking out for sweets. Heroic moments when a Jewish school is set up against a backdrop of pogroms and discrimination. Questionable decisions when disassembled weapons are hidden beneath the baby father of the author's bedding as British soldiers come searching. Heartwarming moments when children forge friendships in fetid refugee camps. A nuanced view of a now gone Europe is presented without easy moralizing. The same peasants that ransack corpses as they fall out of forced marches provide a starving young girl with life saving food. Life in concentration camps is presented starkly. Skill with sewing uniforms brings double rations and points out the absurdity of who lived and who died. The book is mindful to be honest about the limitations of being based on old memories forged during difficult times. Ways that reality could have differed from recollection are noted. This breathes humanity into the people who made these memories. It makes them less idealized icons who shined at their moment in history, and more humans doing their best in a difficult time. It is a pleasure to be welcomed into the life of the author and introduced to the people in his history. This is really a magnificent work.

Joshua and Isadora

A sad story beautifully written by a loving grandson. All very true and actuate. Very touching.