The Heart Has Reasons: Holocaust Rescuers and Their Stories of Courage [Hardcover]

Mark Klempner (Author), Christopher R. Browning (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 30, 2006

"You can't let people be treated in an inhuman way around you. . . . Otherwise you start to become inhuman."

So speaks rescuer Hetty Voûte in The Heart Has Reasons, a remarkable book that provides both a fresh look at the "righteous gentiles," and a meditation on what they might have to teach us more than half a century after they defied Hitler.

In 1996, Mark Klempner sought out some of the last surviving Dutch rescuers of Jewish children to better understand how and why they made their courageous choices. Inspired by their willingness to risk everything to help others during the war, the author became deeply interested in what the rescuers have done with their lives since, and where their moral compasses point today.

What emerges is both a window to the past and a vision for the future. If the rescuers could remain committed to making a difference while under the boot of the Nazi regime, we surely have something to learn from them about taking a stand against injustices, about maintaining an open heart, and about not giving in or giving up. Framed by Klempner's quest for meaning, their words resonate across generations, providing insightful guidance as to how people of conscience can navigate ethically in an increasingly complex world.

From the Foreward:

"I have spent much of my professional career trying to put a human face on the ordinary men who committed asks of unspeakable evil. Like no other work I have read, The Heart Has Reasons puts a human face on those who committed acts of inestimable goodness."—Christopher R. Browning.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Asked why she helped save Jewish children during Germany's occupation of Holland in WWII while so many others stood by, Clara Dijkstra replies, "The heart has reasons." Klempner, a folklorist and oral historian, attempts to explore some of those reasons through interviews with 10 Dutch resisters who rescued Jews from the Nazis. Each of the chapters includes a short introduction, a first-person narrative from the rescuer, followed by a question and answer format and historical information. The result is often choppy; a straight and more integrated narrative throughout each chapter would serve these powerful stories better. As the son of a Holocaust survivor, the author uses the book to come to terms with his family's past and figure out what to do with his life. The dual objectives of profiling rescuers and wrestling with personal issues don't always work well together; the narrative often shifts uncomfortably between a focus on the rescuers and the author's focus on himself. But the summary chapter, which explores the lessons learned from the resisters and the application of those lessons for today's world is a highlight. (Mar.)
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From Booklist

Klempner examines the lives of 10 Dutch rescuers who saved Jewish children during the Nazi occupation of their country during World War II. Some of them were primarily involved in helping to find safe addresses for the young people and then transporting them to those addresses. Three rescuers took Jewish children into their homes. One rescuer made regular visits to the houses where the children were hiding, bringing the host families food, ration coupons, and money. Another helped to raise money and one of them stole large supplies of ration coupons from government offices. One of them developed intricate security measures to ensure that the whereabouts of the children would not be found out, even if he or other members of the Amsterdam Student Group were arrested. All together, the 10 people profiled here, and other children's rescuers throughout the Netherlands, were able to save more than 4,000 young lives. These poignant stories shed light on one of the darkest episodes in the twentieth century. George Cohen
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 235 pages
• Publisher: Pilgrim Press; First Edition edition (March 30, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0829816992
• ISBN-13: 978-0829816990
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #457,641 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Mark Klempner is a folklorist, and oral historian. The son of an immigrant who barely escaped the Holocaust, Klempner spent nearly a decade talking with and getting to know the Dutch rescuers in order to write The Heart Has Reasons. Klempner grew up in New York, and attended Cornell University, graduating Phi Beta Kappa in 1997, and winning a J. William Fulbright Fellowship. In 2000, he received an M.A. in folklore from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Klempner's professional articles have appeared internationally in publications such as the Oral History Reader, and his articles for the general public have been published in newspapers such as the Christian Science Monitor, and the Baltimore Sun. Online, he is a blogger for the Huffington Post, and has contributed articles to Commondreams.org and Alternet. He has also been interviewed on NPR and other media

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book, April 8, 2006

By 

Mary loves Murder (Indianapolis, Indiana USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Heart Has Reasons: Holocaust Rescuers and Their Stories of Courage (Hardcover)

"Give till it hurts" and "Give as good as you've got" was the creed my grandmother and my mother taught their children, and that permeated their own lives. This book is about Dutch people who lived this creed in dire circumstances, so dire the world had never imagined them before. It gives us the words and motivations of 10 of the luminous people who surely redeemed some bit of the evils of the Holocaust. The author is a skilled interviewer and gifted storyteller, a man who looks at truth straight on. His book is an easy read, an illuminating inspiration, an unusual penetration of the good in human hearts. It ends with a thoughtful analysis of victim and perpetrator of true evil, and those who intervened. It's an outstanding achievement! I look forward to hearing about the awards it's sure to receive.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing Altruism, May 1, 2006

By 

Diane Ruth (Kansas City, Mo) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Heart Has Reasons: Holocaust Rescuers and Their Stories of Courage (Hardcover)

In a world where "if it bleeds it leads," we come to think news=disaster and war=history. Cheers for a book that shines the spotlight on persons of extraordinary virtue. This book celebrates individuals who rescued Jewish children during the Nazi occupation of Amsterdam. And addresses that essential question: how can one person make a difference?

All of these heroes risked death, torture and ruin to help strangers. Even after reading these accounts, I am boggled by their altruism. Klempner refers to the Judaic myth of the righteous individuals whose goodness holds up the world. That metaphor communicates just how significant these stories are for us all.

Klempner avoids pat explanations. He lets the rescuers tell their stories in their own ways, giving their own rationales. He separates out his own personal history, which is a story in its own right. And also separates out some fine short essays that place the material in a historical context.

The narratives are not homogenized into a smooth package. Think of these gems as displayed in their natural state, not cut and mounted. Which preserves the authenticity of the historical record.

For students of history and ethics, these stories offer a springboard to discussion and further research. While not lengthy, this book packs some highly concentrated food for thought in its brown wrapper.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An antidote to the banality of evil, May 1, 2006

By 

Sarada George (Rochester, NY, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Heart Has Reasons: Holocaust Rescuers and Their Stories of Courage (Hardcover)

"Why?" This is the question I'm often left with after reading about Holocaust rescuers. They often seem far above ordinary humans, out of the sphere of people like me - but not in this book. The Heart Has Reasons shows rescuers in the context of their lives, as people who have learned to perceive, evaluate, and think for themselves. In the words of one of them, they do "not accept oversimplified answers". Their cultural and life histories helped them see everyone as equally human with themselves. Their answers, direct or indirect, to the question of why they helped the Jews invariably return to these ideas and often describe a journey of very small beginnings. In demystifying these Dutch rescuers, Klempner in no way diminishes them or their achievements. Indeed, their nobility is increased, as they become realistic examples of what ordinary people can do to change history. In letting the rescuers tell their own stories, interspersed with historical perspective and philosophical and personal commentary, Klempner effectively shows us the traits we must nurture in all children. A true storyteller, he lets his subject dictate its form. As we get to know the rescuers, we start with the usual question and end up each time with, perhaps, the only answer that can prevent other Holocausts.