City of Life, City of Death: Memories of Riga [Hardcover]

Max Michelson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 2001

This is a stirring and haunting personal account of the Soviet and German occupations of Latvia and of the Holocaust. Michelson had a serene boyhood in an upper middle-class Jewish family in Riga, Latvia Chr(45) at least until 1940, when the fifteen-year old Michelson witnessed the annexation of Latvia by the Soviet Union. Private properties were nationalised, and Stalin's terror spread to Soviet Latvia. Soon after, Michelson's family was torn apart by the 1941 Nazi invasion of the Soviet Union. He quickly lost his entire family, while witnessing the unspeakable brutalities of war and genocide. Michelson's memoir is an ode to his lost family.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A story of courage and rebirth of a young man who wants to find meaning in his survival." -- Elie Wiesel

"With each memoir by a survivor, Riga’s tragic fate becomes better known. Thus Max Michelson’s book, filled with poignant and moving episodes, deserves to be read by anyone wishing to learn more about the life and death of a Jewish community which included the great historian Shimon Dubnov. But it is also a story of courage and rebirth of a young man who wants to find meaning in his survival." -- Elie Wiesel --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

About the Author

Max Michelson, a retired engineer, is married and lives in Framingham, Massachusetts. With his wife Julia, he has raised two sons, and Max regards his three grandchildren as the best thing that has ever happened to him.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 171 pages
• Publisher: University Press of Colorado (May 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 087081642X
• ISBN-13: 978-0870816420
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 5.9 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,889,852 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #66 in Books > History > Europe > Latvia

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is an important book, January 18, 2003

By 

Stephanie Burns (Sausalito, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: City of Life, City of Death: Memories of Riga (Hardcover)

Max Michelson's chronicle of his life in the ghetto in Riga, Latvia during the Nazi occupation is an incredible tale that can't be told by anybody else, because most people died. The story is told so simply that the miracle of his survival lives outside the pages in what we know of history and what we realize from the few statistics he gives. Everyone should read this book. It is the actual, human story that those of us who haven't faced death at the hands of an evil power have tried to create in our own heads to understand. Considering world events today the kind of education that Max Michelson provides is just the kind we need.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Book on the Holocaust in Latvia, December 19, 2003

By A Customer

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: City of Life, City of Death: Memories of Riga (Hardcover)

In addition to providing a detailed account of the Holocaust in Riga, Latvia, this book is an excellent description of pre-WWII Jewish life and culture in Latvia. Due to the lack of survivors, there are relatively few accounts of the Holocaust in Latvia. The author is an engineer, and he understands the importance of detail. I found the description of his family life very interesting from a cultural standpoint. Overall, I think this an excellent account, especially interesting for someone who is interested in how the Holocaust affected people in different countries and the the kinds of people and cultures that disappeared.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Growing up in Riga, August 30, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: City of Life, City of Death: Memories of Riga (Hardcover)

This is a very wordy description of one Jewish family and its various branches. The first 80 pages could have been done in 30. After the first part it becomes an interesting description of one person's view of survival. Good book if you are studying the Holocaust.