Monday 7 March 2016

"My Mother's Secret"



   My friend Terri, who was born in Poland told me about this book. What an amazing little book!  And it is little- only180 pages with very little print on each page.  And so powerful!
   It is based on a true story of a mother and daughter, Franciszka and Helena Halamajowa who harboured Jews during the Holocaust. Those who risked their lives in this way are called "the Righteous among the nations".  I had not heard that title, but these people certainly need to be remembered in a very special way.

   The woman and daughter in this novel lived in Sokal, Poland in 1942 in a two room house, but they were able to hide a Jewish family of three in a loft above the pigsty, a Jewish doctor and his wife and son in a crudely dug-out cellar, and a defecting German soldier in a 3-foot-high attic. 
   The novel tells the story of the mother and daughter who owned the house, as well as each of those who lived because of their kindness.
  This novel reminded me of the very powerful "Man's Search for Meaning" by Viktor Frankl- a non-fiction account of the holocaust. Click here for my blog on this book.

“The one thing you can’t take away from me is the way I choose to respond to what you do to me. The last of one’s freedoms is to choose one’s attitude in any given circumstance.”  Viktor E. Frankl 

1 comment:

  1. Hi Betty,
    Sorry but I wasn't born in Poland, my parents emigrated here in around 1925, separately, met here and got married in 1929. I was born in 1935 in St. Mary's hospital. But believe me, my heart is always in Poland. I am so glad you liked the book too, AND "Man's Search for Meaning: is at the top of the list for best books. Thankyou for your informative and entertaining blogs!
    Terri

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