Anyone with an interest in World War II, and particularly in the Holocaust, should read Leonard Gross's The Last Jews in Berlin, an absolutely fascinating recounting of how a handful of German Jews managed to go "underground" in Nazi Germany and survive the war right under Hitler's nose.
Their methods are as varied as their backgrounds: a wealthy young family (it seems there was money to be made for a good gemologist with the right black market connections); a scholar whose prominent, Aryan lover happens to be both a countess and a key member of the German resistance; a teenaged orphan; one of the finest dress makers in Berlin; and so on. What they all have in common, though, is resourcefulness, determination, and non-Jew "patrons" who help them hide and navigate life as an illegal.
Gross brings all of these individuals to life - as well as many of their friends and family members who did not survive - in this remarkable book. He also sheds life on wartime Germany: the lack of food, the near constant bombing raids, the fear of being reported for some real of perceived slight against the regime. The Last Jews in Berlin is a great companion to In the Garden of Beasts, in which Erik Larsen paints a portrait of Berlin on the verge of war. And, although the circumstances are vastly different, I was regularly reminded of the survivors from Three Minutes in Poland.
The most poignant and telling remark for me was actually recorded early in the book, when the dress maker is indignant with rage at the Gestapo headquarters. Having successfully convinced the Gestapo of her innocence, a successful (and arguably, admiring) guard tells her upon her release, "If everyone had been as courageous as you, a lot of things would not have worked for the Gestapo." This is something I have long contemplated: why so many went so willingly and so quietly, without the least bit of fight.
Four stars.
No comments:
Post a Comment