My Name Is Selma

The Remarkable Memoir of a Jewish Resistance Fighter and Ravensbrück Survivor

By: Selma van de Perre

Narrated by: Rachel Bavidge

Length: 6 hrs and 6 mins

Publisher's summary

An international bestseller, this powerful memoir by a 98-year-old Jewish Resistance fighter and Holocaust survivor “shows us how to find hope in hopelessness and light in the darkness” (Edith Eger, author of The Choice and The Gift).

Selma van de Perre was 17 when World War II began. Until then, being Jewish in the Netherlands had not been an issue. But by 1941 it had become a matter of life or death. On several occasions, Selma barely avoided being rounded up by the Nazis. While her father was summoned to a work camp and eventually hospitalized in a Dutch transition camp, her mother and sister went into hiding - until they were betrayed in June 1943 and sent to Auschwitz. In an act of defiance and with nowhere else to turn, Selma took on an assumed identity, dyed her hair blond, and joined the Resistance movement, using the pseudonym Margareta van der Kuit. For two years “Marga” risked it all. Using a fake ID, and passing as Aryan, she traveled around the country and even to Nazi headquarters in Paris, sharing information and delivering papers - doing, as she later explained, what “had to be done.”

In July 1944 her luck ran out. She was transported to Ravensbrück women’s concentration camp as a political prisoner. Unlike her parents and sister who she later found out died in other camps - Selma survived by using her alias, pretending to be someone else. It was only after the war ended that she could reclaim her identity and dared to say once again: My name is Selma.

“We were ordinary people plunged into extraordinary circumstances,” she writes in this “astonishing, inspirational, and important” memoir (Ariana Neumann, author of When Time Stopped). Full of hope and courage, this is Selma’s story in her own words.

©2020 Selma van de Perre. English language translation ©2020 Alice Tetley-Paul and Anna Asbury. Originally published in Dutch in 2020 by Thomas Rap as Mijn naam is Selma. Previously published in English in Great Britain in 2020 by Bantam Press, an imprint of Transworld Publishers. All rights reserved. (P)2020 Penguin Audio. All rights reserved.

A Must-Read True Story of A Holocaust Survivor

This is a fascinating true account of a brave young Jewish woman who became part of the Dutch resistance in WWII, who saved many lives, who was sent to Ravensbrooke Concentration Camp, and who lived through incredibly dangerous situations and horrendous conditions in Ravensbrooke. The reader was outstanding. I could not stop listening the story was so good. I cannot think of anyone who would not enjoy this book.

BRAVE

So, so brave. A lovely tribute to her life and that of so many others.

Unfathomable Human Strength and Perseverance

Selma recounted her experiences and life in a brave and entertaining manner. It’s hard to describe these atrocities as entertaining, but I could not quit listening. Maybe spellbinding is a better choice of words. She just told her story! One that needs to be heard! I read much fiction and it’s hard to imagine this is true and I’m betting Selma toned it down

Life is not fair as we still, to this day, can attest, but our daily trials and tribulations pale compare to the holocaust.

I gave it 5 stars across the board because it earned it. Thank you for writing this in your later years. It truly needs to be remembered.

Must read

It was a wonderful book, This lady story was courageous and heartbreaking heartbreaking all at once, God-bless all

great book

loved it. the story is great and so is the narrator. the personal details are interesting

Importance

A wonderful memoir by someone who suffered horribly at a concentration camp after being arrested as a resistance member. The book is important as part of all efforts to keep alive the lessons of the Holocaust.

Enthralling Story

This book is a must-listen for anyone not familiar with the Holocaust or even an ignorant denier. So powerful and so moving, her story is told beautifully by Rachel Bavidge.

I realize this is a very short review, but there's not anything more to say except that the book is extraordinary.

Critically important eyewitness testimony

Important autobiography from one of the dwindling living witnesses who endured it. Such important testimony. A painful, emotional, insightful, incredible story.

Great testament of the world to survive with dignity and strength.

Great admiration for Selma. This is a great read and a poignant one for these times.

Remarkable

This is a story we should share with everyone we know! We must never forget!