The Remnant - Stories of the Jewish Resistance in WWII (Boomer Book Series) [Kindle Edition]

Othniel J. Seiden (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review

I read this book while I was reading other WWII history books. I tried to find references to the battles, and historic events referenced in this 'historic novel' to make a judgment on its historical accuracy. I found that each of the independent sources collaborated with the stories of the forest people, warsaw uprising, Babi Yar, the explosions in Kiev and on and on. This may be a novel, but the stories are those of real people and the unbelievably harsh times they had to persevere to become 'The Remnant' - Jews that survived the Nazi's, the death camps, the politics of the day.

It is a stunning book - I recommend it highly. --Floyd, WWII History Buff

I read this book while I was reading other WWII history books. I tried to find references to the battles, and historic events referenced in this 'historic novel' to make a judgment on its historical accuracy. I found that each of the independent sources collaborated with the stories of the forest people, warsaw uprising, Babi Yar, the explosions in Kiev and on and on. This may be a novel, but the stories are those of real people and the unbelievably harsh times they had to persevere to become 'The Remnant' - Jews that survived the Nazi's, the death camps, the politics of the day.

It is a stunning book - I recommend it highly. --Floyd, WWII History Buff

I read this book while I was reading other WWII history books. I tried to find references to the battles, and historic events referenced in this 'historic novel' to make a judgment on its historical accuracy. I found that each of the independent sources collaborated with the stories of the forest people, warsaw uprising, Babi Yar, the explosions in Kiev and on and on. This may be a novel, but the stories are those of real people and the unbelievably harsh times they had to persevere to become 'The Remnant' - Jews that survived the Nazi's, the death camps, the politics of the day.

It is a stunning book - I recommend it highly. --Floyd, WWII History Buff

Product Description

"I can't kill Nazis if I'm dead. . ." Solomon Shalensky

After researching the transcripts of the Nuremburg Trials and interviewing 'The Remnant' or Jewish survivors of the holocaust, many still living in Israel; Othniel Seiden was compelled to write their startling and remarkable stories of World War II. In this stunning and compelling historical novel about the Jews who were able to remain free and fight, Seiden documents their survival, their suffering, their missions and their guerrilla warfare tactics against the Nazi occupation forces.

Also, well documented, the tragedy of Kiev and now infamous ravine of Babi Yar where it is thought that nearly a million people, Jews and non-Jews alike were massacred. These brave few escaped the certain death of their co-religionists by acts of bravery and sheer determination to live. The myth that the Jewish people 'went to their deaths like sheep to slaughter. . .' is put to rest forever in the stories of "The Remnant."

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Product Details

• Format: Kindle Edition
• File Size: 421 KB
• Publisher: Books To Believe In (April 11, 2008)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services
• Language: English
• ASIN: B0017Y914Y
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• Lending: Enabled
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #25,996 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
  • #5 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Fiction > Drama > Continental European
  • #5 in Books > History > Europe > Ukraine
  • #8 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Drama > Continental European

More About the Author

I do not have a literary background, though I did a year of graduate study at the University of Missouri School of Journalism, my real background is medical. I graduated from the University of Missouri School of Medicine in 1964 and practiced for 44 years, first as a General Practitioner, and the last 30 as an E.R. doc. I began writing as an avocation to help me unwind after a long day in the E.R. My writing went in two directions, one Historical Fiction, and the other Medical Self-Help, my forte translating medical information into easily understood lay language. In recent years that Self-Help has been more in the direction of Baby Boomer and senior health and emotional problems.
My Historical Novels deal mainly with Judaical, Holocaust, and Biblical History. Most of my books are both in print and on Amazon Kindle. Please enjoy! With over 40 books published by 10 different publishers I've been named Colorado's most prolific author. Google Othniel Seiden

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Paints a picture of amazing hardships - amazing survival during WWII for Jews who lucky enough to join the Resistance, May 2, 2008

By 

John Clark Craig "author of Sun Position - Hi... (Colorado) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: The Remnant - Stories of the Jewish Resistance in WWII (Boomer Book Series) (Kindle Edition)

This historical novel paints a picture of the hardships, problems and dangers faced by resistance groups in WWII. The fact that it deals mainly with the added problems that Jewish resistance fighters faced gives us a real understanding of just how brave and resilient these amazing people were. Their spirit lives on...

The fact that most of these stories were taken from survivors and the backstory taken from the transcripts of the Nuremburg Trials just made the story even more fantastic, tragic and amazingly inspirational!

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Worth your time to read!, February 6, 2012

By 

Grandma (NH, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Remnant - Stories of the Jewish Resistance in WWII (Boomer Book Series) (Kindle Edition)

I was born not long after the end of World War II. Some of my earliest memories are of hiding under the table out on my Grandma's porch listening to my Dad and all of my uncles talk about their experiences during the war. World War II, and in particular the Holocaust, has always held a fascination (for want of a better word) for me. I've read countless books on the subject, watched dozens, perhaps hundreds, of hours of movies and documentaries, and even had a chance to see & hear about some of what happened first hand both here at home and living in Germany.

In general, I do not approve of fiction when it comes to the Holocaust. Let me tell you why. This is an event that must never be forgotten, an event that some (all too many) deny ever happened, even with many survivors and combatants on both sides still alive. So, when I hear about something like "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas", first presented as a real event, then later declared to be a complete fiction by the authors themselves, I cringe. It will not be long before all of the direct witnesses have passed. Even my generation, the ones who heard the stories first hand, who saw the tattoos, who have walked the remnants of the battlegrounds, are getting on up there. Before too long, there will be nothing to witness except words written in a book. Those words must be truth, not fantasy. Otherwise, in 25 or 30 or 40 years people can simply point to a stack of made up books and say "see - all fiction - never happened."

There are some cases, though, where a story is important to tell even if it must be told through the medium of fiction because there are no longer living witnesses - or perhaps never were. One of those stories is the roundup,subsequent abandonment and final shipment to Auschwitz of more than 4,000 children in the Vel d'Hiv roundup in Paris, an action carried out by the French police on Petain's orders. There were few survivors - a mere handful - and most of those were young children at the time. Tatiana de Rosney does an excellent job of telling the story of this horrific event in Sarah's Key.

Until very recently even the fact that there WERE Jewish partisans was not particularly well known, at least not in popular mediums. Leon Uris talks about the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising in Exodus. Rudi Weiss joins the Jewish partisans in Holocaust. Only in the last few years has the story of the Bielski Brothers - The Bielski Brothers: The True Story of Three Men Who Defied the Nazis, Built a Village in the Forest, and Saved 1,200 Jews and Defiance - truly documented the Jewish Resistance. As heroic as the Bielskis were, their group was not the only Jewish resistance group. It is vitally important that a couple of decades from now, when all who were there to witness or spoke to those who witnessed are gone, that people know that everyone did not march quietly to the slaughter like so many sheep, that the Bielskis were neither alone in their resistance nor an aberration. There is room in the historical record for The Remnant - Stories of the Jewish Resistance in WWII.

Othniel Seiden's story has its foundations in a great deal of research - interviews, records of the Nuremberg proceedings, diaries left behind by those who lived these events - and he has done a remarkable job of presenting characters that are accurate & compelling composites.

Some have commented negatively on his portrayal of the role of the Roman Catholic Church in Hitler's Final Solution, particularly as regards the Pope in office at the time of World War II, a role that has been the subject of great debate over the years, debate that is not yet entirely settled. The basic facts that Seiden addresses in this regard - that the Catholic Church had a pact with Hitler and that the Vatican helped thousands of Nazis to escape Europe at the end of World War II - are grounded in known, demonstrable facts. It is only since the papacy of Pope John Paul II, himself a Polish seminary student during World War II, that there has been some attempt to rehabilitate the reputation of Pope Pius XII regarding his actions towards the Nazis and the "Final Solution." Had Seiden chosen to present this rehabilitative material, information that would have been unknown to the characters at the time during which these events occurred, would be to rewrite history. That would be a grave error.

Highly recommended. This is worth your time to read.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars History Few People Know, February 5, 2010

By 

Ronald T. Sherwood "Captain Ron" (Texas) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Remnant - Stories of the Jewish Resistance in WWII (Boomer Book Series) (Kindle Edition)

This book is a must read for students interested in WWII. A good look at the dangers and day-to-day life of resistance behind enemy lines battling the elements as well as the enemy, and the amazing people who risked it all to help defeat the Nazis. These Jews did not meekly go to the gas chambers. You keep asking yourself what you would do in a similar situation.