Daughters of Absence: Transforming a Legacy of Loss (Capital Discovery) [Paperback]

Mindy Weisel (Author)

Book Description

Series: Capital Discovery | Publication Date: August 1, 2002

Now in paperback - the book that Susan Tumarkin Goodman of the Jewish Museum New York praised: "Mindy Weisel and the other daughters of Holocaust survivors have provided us with extraordinary insights. "The solemn beauty of their sagas and the triumph over the past is a gift to their parents, who survived and rebuilt their lives, and to those millions who did not." Peter Novick, author of The Holocaust in America, professor of history at The University of Chicago, described it as: "Each in her own genre, these ‘daughters of absence’ trace - with great skill, great courage, and great candor - their journey from a ghost-ridden past to a fulfilling present."

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

These 12 essays were written by daughters of Holocaust survivors. As Weisel points out in her preface, the women--artists, writers, poets, filmmakers, a photographer, a musician, and an actress--have found a strong voice through their work, and their work has been both a life force and a lifesaver. The editor, too, is the daughter of Holocaust survivors; her parents survived Auschwitz. Weisel, a painter, was born in Bergen-Belsen, the former concentration camp that was turned into a displaced persons camp after World War II. The contributors include Helen Epstein, author of Chilren of the Holocaust; Aviva Kempner, the filmmaker who produced The Partisans of Vilna and The Life and Times of Hank Greenberg; and Rosie Weisel, the Israeli graphic artist who is the editor's sister-in-law. The introduction is by Eva Fogelman, author of Conscience & Courage: Rescuers of Jews during the Holocaust. A number of poignant black-and-white photographs of family members appear in this book of personal accounts of growing up in the shadow of the Holocaust. George Cohen
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

About the Author

Mindy Weisel’s art hangs in museums and institutions around the world, including the Smithsonian, Hirshhorn Museum, National Museum of American Art, Israel Museum, U.S. Capitol, and Baltimore Museum of Art. Her work has been featured in 18 one-person and more than 30 group exhibitions since 1977. She has been nominated for Awards in the Visual Arts and participated in the State Department’s Art in Embassies Program. An interview with Ms. Weisel’s art and life aired in 1997 on CNN’s program, "Impact." She has been reviewed in The Washington Post, USA Today, Art News, and more. Ms. Weisel lives in Washington, D.C.

Product Details

• Paperback: 216 pages
• Publisher: Capital Books (August 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1931868018
• ISBN-13: 978-1931868013
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.1 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,956,508 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Filling Absence with Joy, May 1, 2001

By 

bibliophile "bibliophile" (South Bend, IN United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Daughters of Absence: Transforming a Legacy of Loss (Capital Discoveries) (Hardcover)

Twelve wonderful, talented women have taken the time to share their view of the world as it was shaped for them by their parent's Holocaust experience. Rather than turn embittered or defensive, these women turned that legacy of loss and pain into beauty, light, joy and love. We can all learn from these women - that we must honor our pasts, but live life each day, full of hope and happiness. That is the gift to us from the generation before - the ability to go on. Daughters of Absence is a lesson we all need to read, learn and live.

Thank you ladies, one and all, for sharing your stories. I am a better person for having read the book. You touched my heart.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A remarkable collection., May 3, 2001

By 

Ary Freilich (Fort Lee, NJ USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Daughters of Absence: Transforming a Legacy of Loss (Capital Discoveries) (Hardcover)

Mindy Weisel has beautifully compiled, and elegantly introduced, a remarkable collection of intimate pieces on the most difficult of topics.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A powerful, life-affirming read, September 7, 2001

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Daughters of Absence: Transforming a Legacy of Loss (Capital Discoveries) (Hardcover)

Aptly edited by Mindy Weisel, Daughters Of Absence: Transforming A Legacy Of Loss is an impressive and revealing collection of writings of the children of Holocaust survivors. It is also an homage to Holocaust survivors, intended as a gift from the children of those survivors to their parents, and as a tribute to the millions who died. With moving, uplifting prose that recounts how the daughters of survivors transforms a legacy of shadow into the artistic light of movies, art, photographs, poems, novels, and lives, Daughters Of Absence is a powerful, life-affirming read and a strongly recommended addition to Holocaust studies reading lists and reference collections.