Customer Reviews

Izzy's Fire: Finding Humanity In The Holocaust

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In all honesty, I had never read a book about holocaust survivors. Sure, I learned about the brutal, senseless mass murder of millions of Jews and seen those horrid, deplorable images of dead bodies of Jews lying around strewn while German soldiers looked on in glee in History class. But NEVER have I read a personal account, and it was far more devastating to my sense of humanity than I could ever imagine.
From the first pages of Izzy's Fire, by Nancy Wright Beasley, I was enthralled with Izzy Ipson and his family's story as well as those of their friends and family. Ms. Beasley did an awesome job of bringing their story to life for me, but more so making their story, their journey through hell, mine. I connected with these people because I am a wife and mother. I thought and later asked myself after I had read the story, would we have survived something like this? Would my husband have risked his life day in and day out, like Izzy, to save my son, and me and to provide safety and food for us? Would my son have endured as Jay did?

Edna lost two babies, one during the roundup in Lithuania and one after their escape to the United States. How did she keep her sanity? Was she made of steel? No! Ms. Beasley brilliantly displayed Edna's moments of fear, happiness, and extreme stress, like when her step-father, mother, her sister Minnie and their sons Fievel and Chaim were put on board the truck heading for certain death. It was only the knowing that Izzy would surely not live without them that made Edna not board that train with her son, and of course, Jay's stubborn desire to live to see his father. No one was without pain in this story; not even the reader.
I left the reading knowing the Ipson's persevered because of their faith and strength in God and one another. Even when faced with the knowledge that their families were executed, they still had one another to get them through, and that's what they needed. Not even hiding out in a make-shift shelter in a potato patch with 7 other people could break their spirit and resolve.
I cannot tell you exactly how many heroes are in this story. From the German and Jewish Ghetto soldiers who risked their lives to give information and ways to escape to not only Izzy but to others as well to the Gentiles (non-Jews) who risked their lives to hide their fellow human beings. In short, Ms. Beasley is by far one of the most powerful and genuine storytellers whose best gift, I believe, is letting the voice of the characters tell their own story. In no way does her voice intrude upon the essence of Izzy's story.
I recommend Izzy's Fire without abandon to anyone who wants to read about real people, real life, and real issues. It should be required reading in the public schools across America to help not only put a face and name to the horror's of the evil that man can do, but to also demonstrate the resilience of man to overcome when the odds are stacked against him. This book sent me running to the Holocaust Museum; it brought History alive for me, and it will do the same to you.

Rebeccasreads highly recommends IZZY'S FIRE as a compelling account of how a Lithuanian Jewish couple & their son survived the Nazi occupation, & hide for 3 years in a Catholic farmer's root cellar. & then surviving the Communist "liberation" of their homeland.

Beasley draws from personal interviews, research & numerous memoirs, including those from Israel "Izzy" Ipson, who helped his family escape from Kovno Ghetto, one of the most notorious killing fields for Jews in Lithuania. The Ipps, as they were known then, relocated to Richmond following their liberation and later changed their name to Ipson. Their story has been re-created at the Virginia Holocaust Museum in Richmond, Virginia.

IZZY'S FIRE is Eta's answer to those who say the Holocaust never happened, & is a tribute to personal bravery & the unquenchable resources of compassion, quick-wittedness & sheer determination to live, with a lot of luck thrown in.

Complete with maps & photos, IZZY'S FIRE is a story for all time.

I could not put this book down. This book was very well written. One can never EVER belittle the horrors the Jewish people had to endure during this horrible time in our history. This book celebrates the families that literally went through hell and survived. When you get to the end you have a feeling of "yes, they made it!". There are the losses as well, which the author does honor to in a special way. Although this is a book about 5 surviving families of Holocaust, it also involves Christian and Catholic families as well. My 11 year old was able to read this, but would not recommend younger children. This story needs to be read and reread so no one ever forgets!

I met Nancy Wright Beasley at a writer's conference in Richmond, Virginia. She was kind enough to share the story of her book, Izzy's Fire with me. I saw the love and passion in her eyes when she spoke of her seven-year journey to complete Izzy's Fire - and I knew I had to review the book.

Simply put, Izzy's Fire is one of the many millions of stories that came out of those dark and desperate times we now call the Holocaust. But on another level, it is the intense and personal story of one real family as told by a woman who was willing to walk through the horrors of despair, death and war to make sure that justice was served and Izzy's Fire was shared with the world.

Izzy Ipson married the love of his life, Edna (she was formerly known as Eta Ipp). They had a son, Jay (known as Jacob). They believed, as most young couples in love believe, that the world was there, just for them. And they were going to live life to the fullest.

The reality of the Ipson family was World War II and a madman known as Hitler. From the beginning of the book, when we can literally hear the sound of the military boots hitting the pavement as the Ipson family attempts to escape their two-year imprisonment in the Kovno Ghetto-to the celebration of a man whose family risked it all to save the Ipsons, you will be mesmerized, shocked and will be lifted from the depths of despair by something called hope.

Izzy's Fire is a must read. Let us never forget the Ipsons and millions of others who experienced the Holocaust. If we forget, we give the world and ourselves the opportunity to make the same mistake again. And that would be the greatest sin of all. Izzy's Fire is remembrance. It should never die.

Armchair Interviews says: Read this book, so we don't forget!

....there is something wrong with you. But, it WILL inspire you. {I shall say at the outset that I will leave out a lot of the names I can't pronounce}. This is the story of a family of three Lithuanian Jews, and, secondarily, of ten others, saved from the Holocaust by the courage and sacrifice of one Catholic family. They survived, and made it to America....

The tale is told from the viewpoint of Etta Ipp, who became Edna Ipson here in Richmond, VA. "Izzy's Fire" was a pet name her husband's family had for her. Some of the scenes, and stories, will make you sick. {DON'T let little kids read it}. Some will make you cry. There is great evil in the world; if you doubt that, read this book. There is also great good...never doubt that, either, for you shall meet it here.

The Ipsons lost almost all of their family to the Nazis, but they survived, and even prospered. Izzy died in 1997. Edna was still alive at the publication of the book in 2005. Jay, their young son, is now in his mid 70s, and helps run the Virginia Holocaust Museum, in Richmond. He is living history. I shall do something I never do, and recommend you not buy this from your favorite bookstore...if you purchase it from the Holocaust Museum, Jay will sign and personalize your copy; that virtually makes it a sacred relic. I assure you I treasure mine.

There are many people today that feel "entitled" due to race, relegion or the condition of the home in which they were born. This is a story about a family who's life was turned upside down by war; who lived in barns, potato holes and lived in fear of being murdered as was the fate of many of their family members. Through perserverance and a strong faith in God, they were able to get to America and lived the "american story" of pulling themselves up from poverty to owning a successful business. All young people need to read this story.

Izzy's Fire is by far one of the best books I've ever read. I cannot imagine the pain and suffering of this family in the ghetto in Lithuania. The book was extremely well written and was very hard to put down once I started it. Kudos to Ms. Beasley on a job well done! I can't wait until her next book. This is a must read.

This incredible book touched my heart like no other. "Izzy's Fire," beautifully written in the first person, chronicles the story of one brave Jewish family and their struggle to survive the horrific event known as the Holocust. Nancy Wright Beasley, a gifted author, tells the amazing TRUE story of the Ipp (Ipson) family using the voice of the young mother. In this memoir of sorts, we learn how Eta and her husband Izzy, are determined to save their young son, Jay. We learn about the incredible risks that they took, the sacrifices they made - and how they were assisted by a family of impoverished, but courageous, Catholic farmers. I was incredibly moved by this story of love and sacrifice.

Izzy's Fire: Finding Humanity In The Holocaust is the triumphant true story of a holocaust survivor and members of her family escaped the Kovno Ghetto in Lithuania, survived trials and successfully hid until the war's end in a hiding places granted them by a Catholic farmer. She, her husband, and other refugees dug a hole between two potato cellars, and with the unselfish aid of that selfless, risk taking Catholic family, miraculously survived the Holocaust. Afterward she and her husband emigrated to America and encountered a joyful reunion decades later. Izzy's Fire gives voice to those who survived the Holocaust in hiding, and is a welcome addition to Holocaust studies shelves.