The Righteous Among the Nations: Rescuers of Jews During the Holocaust [Hardcover]

Mordecai Paldiel (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 27, 2007

In the darkest days of World War II, the Nazi German regime reigned supreme over virtually all of Europe. Within these occupied lands, Jews were being rounded up and sent off to extermination camps for execution. Helping them escape was punishable by death.

In this dark and seemingly hopeless situation, hundreds of ordinary people risked all to shelter and smuggle Jews to safety. These were generally not organized efforts, simply moral people who reacted in horror to the fate of innocent neighbors and took action. Thousands of Jews were rescued in this way.

In 1953, the state of Israel established Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Martyrs' and Heroes' Remembrance Authority in Jerusalem to commemorate and perpetuate the memory of the heroes and martyrs of the Holocaust. An independent committee reviews and awards the honor of The Righteous Among the Nations to those documented cases of rescue. Over 20,000 people, from all nationalities and religious groups, have received this prestigious awards.

This work selects approximately 200 biographies from among the Righteous, and describes the circumstances of the rescue. Each entry includes description of the contact; the aid extended; dangers and risk faced by the rescuer; motivation (eg, friendship, altruism, religious belief); and evidence from the rescued. These little–known stories offer a picture of the best of humanity in the worst of times.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

This moving tribute to the best in the human spirit profiles more than 150 recipients of the Yad Vashem "Righteous Among the Nations" award, given to non-Jews who risked their lives to save Jews during the Holocaust. They are just a few of the 21,310 who have received the award since its inception in 1963. The award grants honorary Israeli citizenship, but more than that, it acknowledges a high level of moral heroism. It is notable that most of the subjects do not see themselves as heroic but as following the only path they could. In the words of Lucien Bunel, when asked why he had disobeyed the laws against sheltering Jews, "I know of only one law, that of the gospels and of love." Each entry is told in narrative form, conversationally, as in a memoir. The result is a volume that is not only highly readable but that excerpts well for use in talks and lectures. In some cases, black-and-white photographs of the subjects of the entries are provided. Narratives center mostly on occupied Europe but also include humanitarians from the U.S. and Japan. The heavy paper and clarity of the photographs, along with the excellent use of white space, make the book a delight to use. A detailed index includes names of those rescued, the rescuers, and places that figured in their activities. A list of rescuers by country and a selected bibliography are also provided. A more condensed treatment than Israel Gutman's The Encyclopedia of the Righteous Among the Nations (Yad Vashem, 2004–2007), this inspiring volume has a place in synagogue libraries as well as any library with a demand for materials on the topic. Welton, Ann

Product Details

• Hardcover: 608 pages
• Publisher: Harper (February 27, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061151122
• ISBN-13: 978-0061151125
• Product Dimensions: 10.9 x 8.8 x 1.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #688,123 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Remarkable accounts of Gentile rescuers of Jews during the Holocaust, March 7, 2009

By 

Z Hayes (TX, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Righteous Among the Nations: Rescuers of Jews During the Holocaust (Hardcover)

The Holocaust is one of the greatest tragedies in the history of the world, claiming 11 million lives, of which 6 million were Jews. The atrocities of the Nazis and their willing conspirators are well-documented in numerous books and other publications, and bear testimony to man's inhumanity. However, there were also those who risked their lives to save Jews - these Gentiles came from all walks of life -lowly peasants, priests, young women, diplomats, wealthy industrialists and many more, all of whom were united in their goal to do the right thing, and to act according to the dictates of their faith and/or conscience.

In this book, readers are introduced to 150 of these Righteous Among the Nations, and their compelling, heart-wrenching stories are presented in their full versions according to archived evidence kept in Yad Vashem. Many of these stories are accompanied by the B&W photograph of the rescuer/s, and told in as much detail as could be compiled - providing the background, conditions and the actual rescue effort itself. Some of the rescuers are familiar names - Oscar Schindler, Raoul Wallenberg, Sugihara, and others not so familiar but whose courageous acts are no less extraordinary. Reading these stories certainly had a profound impact on me, and some stories are so emotionally wrenching that I could not help but shed tears at the pain these people had to go through - some rescuers undertook the rescue of the Jews at great personal risk to themselves [for the penalty for helping Jews was frequently death], some saw their marriages crumble in the face of extreme duress, and of course, there is Raoul Wallenberg, who was imprisoned by the Soviets and who died in captivity.

This is an amazing work - it's quite hard to come by works that are devoted to documenting the rescue efforts of Jews by Gentiles, and thus this is a significant body of work that merits recognition and deserves accolades. I highly recommend this work to all those who are keen on Holocaust history. Note: there is an extensive index at the end of the book, as well as a selected bibliography.

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amassing stories and general picture, May 3, 2010

By 

Mark Bernadiner (Pearland, Texas USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Righteous Among the Nations: Rescuers of Jews During the Holocaust (Hardcover)

I watched these stories on pbs and they are really amassing. Those people are heroes and deserve recognition and respect for their courage. My cousin, 6 ears old Jewish boy during WWII, lived in Ukraine. His farther was in red army fighting Nazis and mother died. He was saved by Ukrainians from being captured by SS soldiers.

Let's be fare and remember who actually invented Holocaust. According to numerous historic documents, which media would not like people to know, Holocaust was invented in occupied Israel (called Palestine) in 1920s by grand mufti of Jerusalem Haj Amin Husseini. Husseini's idea and ultimate goal were to make Israel free of Jews completely and create Islamic state. He organized killing Jews in Israel on regular basis for decades in 1920s and 30s. To fulfill his goal, he contacted Hitler in 1941 and asked him for help when Hitler was planning military occupation of ME. He also gave Hitler the Holocaust idea and help him to implement Holocaust in Europe. He organized in Europe two islamofascist brigades that operated under SS supervision, had their own concentration camp, and killed thousand of Europeans, including Jews.

According to testimony by Nazi war criminals to Nuremberg court in 1946, the Mufti's influence was critical to the German decision to annihilate the Jews of Europe. At the Nuremberg Trials in July 1946, Dieter Wisliceny testified:

"The Mufti was one of the initiators of the systematic extermination of European Jewry and had been a collaborator and adviser of Eichmann and Himmler in the execution of this plan... He was one of Eichmann's best friends and had constantly incited him to accelerate the extermination measures. I heard him say, accompanied by Eichmann, he had visited incognito the gas chambers of Auschwitz."

After WWII, Nuremberg Criminal court declared Husseini criminal, but, he escaped and organized Fatah.

Arafat was his nephew and lieutenant in Fatah. After Amin death, Arafat organized PLO and committed numerous murders around the world killing Europe and, Americans and Israelis.

So, commemorating Holocaust, we must remember that palestinian muslims who wrongfully call themselves "palestinians", hold Holocaust "patent" and still continue their Holocaust agenda. PLO and Fatah were organized on Nazi and SS ideology and uphold their fundamentals.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Huge book, good read, April 2, 2011

By 

Jackie Wilhelm "a friend" (Lakeland, FL) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Righteous Among the Nations: Rescuers of Jews During the Holocaust (Hardcover)

This book has some wonderful, inspiring stories, but surely could not be taken on the airlines to read or even to read in bed - way too big. A book to read at one's leisure.