East of the Storm: Outrunning the Holocaust in Russia [Hardcover]

Hanna Davidson Pankowsky (Author), Mary Maddock (Introduction)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 15, 1998

On September 27, 1939, less than four weeks after the Nazi invasion, Poland ceased to exist as a nation. Only three weeks had passed since ten-year-old Hanna Davidson had said goodbye to her father, Simon, and older brother, Kazik, who had been drafted and sent to defend Warsaw. Now she believed she would never see them again. Hanna and her mother, Sophia, an artist and intellectual, found themselves subjected to Hitler’s efforts to dehumanize Poland’s Jewish population. There seemed no choice but to cling to what shreds of stability they could by submitting to a ruthless tyranny. But when they got word that Simon and Kazik were alive in Bialystok in the Soviet-occupied zone of Poland, Hanna and her mother made a fearful decision—they would risk a harrowing escape from Nazi Poland into relatively safer Soviet territory. After a few hasty good-byes to family and with only the clothes on their backs, they left their apartment—just one hour before soldiers would come for Sophia. If the two-percent chance of surviving the crossing were not daunting enough, then the Davidsons’ prospects in the Soviet Union should have been. For Simon Davidson’s past as a prominent businessman (and capitalist) and political activism in the socialist Bund (an organization banned by the communists) branded him as undesirable. Moreover, he had been born in Russia—escaping years before by fooling Soviet authorities into presuming him dead—and his presence could place those members of his family who remained behind in danger. So for the sake of their very lives—and those of relatives they could never publicly acknowledge—the Davidsons would be compelled to invent and memorize not only their own new identities but also an extended family history. Moreover, avoiding persecution by the Soviet regime would entail struggling virtually every day to maintain a pretense of allegiance to Stalin. As recounted by Hanna, the Davidsons’ journey into the Soviet interior makes for an extraordinary story. More than a memoir of survival, the Davidsons’ story is clearly one of a family whose spirit could not be destroyed by persecution, war, famine, or political oppression. “A singular and engaging story . . . . More than just another memoir of survival” —Bookwatch

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Hanna Davidson Pankowsky lives with her husband in San Antonio, Texas, and often speaks to students and other groups.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 218 pages
• Publisher: Texas Tech University Press (November 15, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0896724085
• ISBN-13: 978-0896724082
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #801,132 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Surviving Displacement and Loss During WWII, March 26, 2004

By 

Betty Cummings (San Antonio, Texas United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: East of the Storm: Outrunning the Holocaust in Russia (Hardcover)

EAST OF THE STORM recalls a very personal story of one family's flight from Poland as the Germans moved into Lodz,Poland, in 1939. Hanna Pankowsky, a very small, frightened girl, walked away from her beautiful home in Lodz with her mother holding her hand. Thus began their flight from the German occupation of Poland.

Hanna's story is told with honesty and clarity. She never reaches out to the reader for pity. Although her story is one of moral and ethical value, Hanna simply tells her own story of survival--her unique story. During the years that her family traveled from place to place attempting to find a safe home, a home free from prejudice and brutality, she attended schools whenever possible and learned much about diverse cultures and people. She learned four languages out of necessity.

Much is revealed about Hanna and the difficulties of living during WWII through her travels from childhood into adulthood. As others have shared their experiences during this difficult time, she too tells us her story "so that we shall never forget."

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars WOW, June 8, 2002

By 

Helen Pankowsky, MD (United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: East of the Storm: Outrunning the Holocaust in Russia (Hardcover)

This book is an excellent book and really shows what outrunning the holocaust was like. It has excellent descriptions and it tells the story in vivid detail. I have read it two or three times and am going on third. The writing is supurb. I recommend this book for anybody that would like an excellent true survival/historical novel. Thank you for writing this book.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A "Must Read!", May 20, 2007

By 

Ray Nell Batot - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: East of the Storm: Outrunning the Holocaust in Russia (Hardcover)

What an absolutely brilliant narrative Hanna Pankowsky relates as she explains the years of hardship and perils she and her family experienced trying to escape the dangers of Nazi Germany. This is truly an "action thriller." The sad fact is the events actually happened and the fear, danger, pain and terror were lived by millions of men, women and children. Mrs. Pankowsky paints images in the reader's mind that are so vivid that the reader can place himself/herself in the action (even to the point of being out of breath trying to hop a train or run in the cold snowy forest!). This book is so well written and in a "first person" voice of history that this book should be in every school library as well as on the suggested reading list for history classes. Oprah needs to make this selection one of her book club favorites! Read it. You won't put it down!