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Ghetto Diary

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Janusz Korczak was a radical educator and early advocate of the rights of children. He was a Polish Jew (Korczak was a gentile pseudonym for Henryk Goldschmidt) and pediatrician whose work was well-known in Europe before WWII. Though little translated in English, his exceptionally original and poetic style and ideas puts him in the same league as Pestalozzi, Dewey and Montessori. In prewar Warsaw he organized two outstanding institutions: orphanages which were run as self-governing children's republics. But Korczak is legendary not for his life of intense work and ideas, but for his death. When The Warsaw Ghetto was liquidated, he prepared his 200 children to defy death in a unique way. Eye-witness accounts testify to the shattering spectacle of 200 cheerful, orderly children marching in foursomes through the hell of the Ghetto singing. They entered the trains singing, and they died at Treblinka. Every teacher and Korczak himself died with them. Korczak was twice of! fered by the Nazis to survive, once at the trains, once in Treblinka itself -- to be sent to Germany and educate German youth. But he refused. The Ghetto Diary is the only English translation of Korczak's own account of the last year in the Ghetto. It is invaluable. Those of us interested in children, in education and in Remembrance, should put this book into Samizdat, copying it and sharing it. It is the duty of the publisher to keep such a document available. This edition has a superb introduction by a former student of Korczak's. It is written as a novella, but perhaps comes as close to capturing the state of Korczak's mind in those days as anything could. It is quite surrealistic -- as is Korczak's own work. It combines in tribute to Korczak, Korczak's own unique synthesis of imagination, dream and the harshest, most unsparingly observed reality.

I am a great admirer of Janusz Korczak not because of his wonderful books, but because he was firm to his beliefs until the end. He had principles and he was not ready to give up, and he paid with his life for it.

Korczak was the director of a big orphanage in Warsaw and he was very well know throughout the world for his writings in education. As the Holocaust started and life got very hard on the ghetto, Korczak worked even harder to keep on with cultural activities and day-to-day life. He was offered to escape to US, as most famous Jewish, but he believed that his children were his life and that he would rather die with them than live in a world that exterminates children cold-bloodedly. BUT, as William Blake puts it: "He who respects the Infant's faith triumph's over Hell & Death."

This book is very interesting; it provides many of the memories that Korczak wrote in the difficult days of the Second World War. It shows how desperating reality was, and how Korczak gave his soul into his fight to keep his children safe and healthy; a sad historical document with pictures of this noble man and the orphanage that made him so proud.

I have his whole collection; unfortunately for English speakers, I have found around 15 books in Hebrew while in English I found just 5. I warmly recommend this book, together with two other books that are found at Amazon: 'King Matt the First' and 'When I am little again' (see my reviews about them).

Owing to the fact that Korczak cared for children, it is not surprising that much of his diary is devoted to this subject. He mentions such challenges as child-care tips, discipline, and attempting to heal sick children. He also noted the pains of ageing that he experienced.

Korczak makes many interesting comments on various subjects. He often discusses what kind of God he believes in. He also writes: "The world knows nothing of many great Poles." (p. 86). Also: "Nietzsche was also of Polish origin--Nitzki, you know." (p. 28). Korczak mentions Jewish virtues such as talent and hard work (p. 179), but also comments: "The Jews are conceited and that is why they are despised. I believe this will change, perhaps soon." (p. 182).

Unlike other diarists, Korczak devotes little direct attention to German Nazi actions in the Warsaw Ghetto. The consequences, however, are obvious: "The body of a dead boy lies in the sidewalk. Nearby, three boys are playing horses and drivers. At one point, they notice the body, move a few steps to the side, and go on playing." (p. 121). Korczak, an obvious intellectual, invites others to discussions in his flat about such topics as Napoleon, Leonardo da Vinci, freedom, destiny and free will, etc. (p. 155). These Jewish behaviors shed light on comparable Polish ones. Holocaust materials have commonly featured the Poles engaged in normal activities (riding a carousel, attending Easter Mass, etc.) while the ghetto was burning--all insinuating the cold indifference of Poles to Jewish suffering. They were no such thing. We see that both Poles and Jews simply attempted to live lives as close to normal as possible in the face of all the horrors surrounding them.

Korczak was offered to be saved by his Polish friends (p. 39), who had already made forged identification papers for him. He refused, and went to the gas chambers of Treblinka with the children in his care.