Only My Life: A Survivor's Story [Hardcover]

Louis De Wijze (Author), Kees Van Cadsand (Author), Victor De Wijze (Author), Victor De Wijze (Translator)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1997

A Holocaust survivor tells how luck and determination kept him alive, from his association with a Jewish smuggler to his own escape from a death march at the war's end.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The Nazis forcibly transported De Wijze, a 21-year-old Dutch Jew, to Poland from the Netherlands in 1944, a year after they deported his parents. He recounts here the story of his survival after arriving at labor camp Monowitz, a "special unit" outside of Auschwitz. He managed to avoid starvation and relentless hard labor by making friends with a Jewish smuggler who had SS connections. He was given the relatively easy task of tending rabbits and thereby obtained enough food to survive. He also joined the camp soccer team, organized to keep the SS amused, which boosted his morale. At the end of the war, he nearly died on the forced march from the camp into Germany. After three tries, he escaped and, after the war, returned to the Netherlands, where he found his sister still alive. Although De Wijze attributes his survival to luck, his endurance and the ability to seize any opportunity that came his way surely played a part. In the literature of the Holocaust, de Wijze's memoir provides only a minor footnote.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

De Wijze is a Dutch Jew who, in March 1944, was deported from Westerbork, the transit camp in the Netherlands, to Monowitz, a labor camp outside Auschwitz. He was 21 at the time and was put to work in the synthetic oil and rubber factory known as Buna. He faced hunger, brutality, bitter cold, and degradation, but he also managed to join the camp's soccer team, smuggled vodka, and traded tobacco for bread and soup. He eventually secured a less arduous job tending rabbits. In January 1945, de Wijze was forced to leave Monowitz ahead of the advancing Russians. The death march ended at the Buchenwald concentration camp. On a second death march, de Wijze escaped and was rescued by American troops. This is an extraordinary memoir, reflecting the author's raw courage, willpower, and amazing luck. George Cohen

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 183 pages
• Publisher: St Martins Pr (February 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312146973
• ISBN-13: 978-0312146979
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,262,410 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Exquisite!, December 16, 2002

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Only My Life: A Survivor's Story (Hardcover)

I absolutly LOVED this book. Honestly I wasn't paying attension when i just randomly pulled it off the book shelf. But I must say that I am glad that I did. I believe that this book is a sign of heroism, survival and hope. Throughout the whole thing, De Wijze expresses himself and his life so vividly that when i was done, I just sat there, still, glaring at the last three words: only my life. I reccomend this wonderful book to both adults and children. It is a great source of information, and also an exilerating experience to read just for fun.

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing!, December 2, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Only My Life: A Survivor's Story (Hardcover)

This book is simply the truth. It is amazingly descriptive, and makes you feel as if you are experiencing the Holocaust. Mr. de Wijze tells of his struggle for survival in the treachorous conditions of concentration camps. It describes the favoring of one prisoner over another and the many horrible deaths during this time period. I reccommend it to anyone looking for a good read.

5.0 out of 5 stars A profound message about surviving a terrible tragedy, July 6, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Only My Life: A Survivor's Story (Hardcover)

This book is important for all to read. Through one man's story we are able to remember the past, in hopes of never repeating it. It is a honest story that is told with an emotion that I shared. In the closing pages, I found the greatest sadness knowing that this man had only his life to declare to all. This book has given me a message that I will carry with me throughout the rest of my life