Surviving Hitler: A Boy in the Nazi Death Camps

Warren, A. (2001). Surviving Hitler: A boy in the Nazi death camps. New York, NY: HarperCollins Publishers.

Summary: Jack Mandelbaum is 12 years old; he lives with his parents, older sister, and younger brother in 1939 Gdynia, the most beautiful city in Poland. He has just begun preparations for his bar mitzvah and has a carefree attitude about life, in spite of the circulating rumors about an upcoming war with Germany. As the rumors become more insistent, Jack’s father sends Jack and the rest of his family to live in a small town with Jack’s grandfather. His optimism still undaunted, Jack believes that his father will be joining them shortly and views the trip as an extended vacation from school—even when the Germans swiftly occupy Poland and force the Jewish men in the town to do hard labor. Soon, however, the Jews are forced to move to a ghetto in the town and, one awful morning, are divided up and sent to different Nazi camps. Jack, separated from his family and sent to a labor camp, is determined to survive and confident that he will eventually reunite with his family. As the years pass, however, and he is moved from camp to camp, Jack finds it increasingly difficult to play the survival game in a world where the rules are inconsistent and players are treated without the most basic of human consideration. He has to rely on the bonds he develops with other prisoners, chance, and his own determination to make it through to liberation.

Standard(s): California History/Social Science 10.8.5: Analyze the Nazi policy of pursuing racial purity, especially against the European Jews; its transformation into the Final Solution; and the Holocaust that resulted in the murder of six million Jewish civilians; California History/Social Science 10.8.6: Discuss the human costs of the war, with particular attention to the civilian and military losses in Russia, Germany, Britain, the United States, China, and Japan.

Suggested age range: 10 and up

Annotation: Andrea Warren’s powerful biography tells the story of Polish Janek “Jack” Mandelbaum’s experiences in Nazi labor camps during World War II. Only 12 years old when the war started, Jack emerged his immediate family’s only survivor after the war; he was 17 years old and weighed only 80 pounds at the time of liberation. Warren draws mainly upon Mandelbaum’s own memories to tell his story, but supplements them with facts about the Holocaust and a bit of literary creativity when it comes to remembered conversations (she also includes many direct quotations from Mandelbaum). While it describes one of the most devastating genocides in modern history, the story Warren tells is ultimately hopeful as a result of Jack’s refusal to give in to hatred. His relatively positive attitude balances the horrors being described and makes this biography an appropriate introduction to the Holocaust for tween readers. In addition to Jack’s story, Warren includes historical photographs throughout the text and several pages of general information about the concentration camps at the end of the book. Her list of recommended books and media is also a valuable resource for readers wishing to study the Holocaust further.

Subjects/themes: Concentration camps, Holocaust, World War II, Nazi Germany, occupation, Poland, death, survival, Judaism, immigration

Awards:

• 2002 Sibert Informational Book Honor
• 2002 Society of Midland Authors Book Awards

Reviews:

• Booklist (January 1, 2001)
• Kirkus Reviews (February 15, 2001)
• School Library Journal (2001)
• Voice of Youth Advocates (June 2001)

High interest annotation: Teenager Jack Mandelbaum is torn from his family and forced into a 1941 Nazi concentration camp; now he has to find a way to survive one of the most terrible events in human history.