Survivor Biography

“Sobering, unforgettable reading. This is a standout of its kind.” – Publishers Weekly “A riv­et­ing, deeply mov­ing mem­oir. The writ­ing is descrip­tive and dra­mat­ic, pre­serv­ing Lewkowicz’s deep emo­tions.” – Jewish Book Council This is the remarkable story of...

Eastern Europe, 1944: Three women believe they are pregnant, but are torn from their husbands before they can be certain. Rachel is sent to Auschwitz, unaware that her husband has been shot. Priska and her husband travel there together, but are immediately separated. Also at Auschwitz, Anka hopes in vain to be reunited with her husband. With the rest of their families gassed, these young wives are determined to hold on to all they have left-their lives, and those of their unborn babies.

Our Crime Was Being Jewish contains 576 vivid memories of 358 Holocaust survivors. These are the true, insider stories of victims, told in their own words. They include the experiences of teenagers who saw their parents and siblings sent to the gas chambers; of starving children beaten for trying to steal a morsel of food; of people who saw their friends commit suicide to save themselves from the daily agony they endured.

After being separated from my mother twice in my 10 short years of life, I was more than a little excited at the prospect of being reunited with her again. Unfortunately, my elation was to be short-lived when the visits to my bedroom started. Threatening to send me away again or turn the loaded gun he kept in my wardrobe on us all, he kept my silence. It was to be another six years until I escaped the abuse of my mother’s husband and another 30 years before I was able to bring him to justice. Ironically, the one person that should have protected me and helped me fight to stop him, my ...

In This Altered Body is the compelling story of Charlene’s physical and emotional odyssey to reclaim her life and identity after surviving a tragedy that left her facially disfigured and grieving. As Charlene begins the long, painful process of recovery, she fears she will never be loved again, because her outward beauty has been destroyed and our society, obsessed with flawless skin and superficial beauty, stigmatizes disfigurement.

A memoir of family, the Holocaust, trauma, and identity, in which Adam Frankel, a former Obama speechwriter, must come to terms with the legacy of his family’s painful past and discover who he is in the wake of a life-changing revelation about his own origins. “The Survivors is an...

On October 12, 1972, a plane carrying a team of young rugby players crashed into the remote, snow-peaked Andes. Out of the 45 original passengers and crew, only 16 made it off the mountain alive. For 10 excruciating weeks, they suffered deprivations beyond imagining, confronting nature head-on at its most furious and inhospitable. And to survive, these men and women not only had to keep their faith; they had to make an impossible decision: Should they eat the flesh of their dead friends?

What's it like to live in a Mormon home? What's it like when your father goes to church on Sundays and tells everyone to repent, all the while he's sexually abusing you? What's it like to know your mom will never stand up for you or keep you safe? Is it possible to still believe in God after this? Is it possible to heal? Read about the journey of a girl determined to break the chains of abuse and give her children the life she never had . . . and then how she failed. This is a book of hope, faith, tragedy and heartbreak . . . this is real life. There is a purpose to every pain we have. I've...

A New York Times Bestseller In this uplifting memoir in the vein of The Last Lecture and Man’s Search for Meaning, a Holocaust survivor pays tribute to those who were lost by telling his story, sharing his wisdom, and living his best possible life. Born in Leipzig, Germany, into a Jewish...

Holocaust survivor and licensed therapist Karmela Waldman shares brutally honest advice about life and death—often deploying brutally sharp wit—with her son and podcast co-host, Joel Waldman.

An inspiring account from one of history’s darkest moments. Marione Ingram grew up in Hamburg, Germany, in the late 1930s and early 1940s. She was German. She was Jewish. She was a survivor. This is her story. As a young girl, Marione was aware that people of the Jewish faith were regarded as outsiders, the supposed root of Germany’s many problems. She grew up in an apartment building where neighbors were more than happy to report Jews to the Gestapo.

When Ted Greenfield first said yes to God’s prompting to help in the fight against human trafficking, he had no plans, no aircraft, and no experience. But through divine guidance, answered prayer, and miraculous provision, Invisible Angels was born – an air rescue ministry flying trafficking survivors to safety. Rescuing children sometimes not even ten years old and at other times rescuing thirty- or forty-year-olds in desperate situations, this gripping story reveals the evil of trafficking, the resilience of survivors, and the courage it takes to make a difference.

"We Volunteered." is the story of Carl Robert Ruse, suvivor of the Bataan Death March, and a prisoner of the Japanese Imperial Army through the end of World War II. As a POW, he endured horrific conditions at prison camps such as Camp O'Donnell, Cabanatuan, and Davao Penal Colony. He also survived two months of time in the hold of a crowded Japanese "Hell Ship" for a two-month voyage to Japan where he was forced to work in the Japanese industrial city of Yokkaichi until the end of the war. At the time of his liberation, he weighed eighty pounds.

This striking work of narrative nonfiction tells the true story of six-year-old Sachiko Yasui's survival of the Nagasaki atomic bomb on August 9, 1945 and the heartbreaking and lifelong aftermath. Having conducted extensive interviews with Sachiko Yasui, Caren Stelson shares the true story of a young girl who survived the atomic bomb and chronicles her long journey to find peace. This special book offers listeners a remarkable new perspective on the final moments of World War II and their aftermath.

The harrowing true story of abduction and survival from the courageous young woman who lived it—now the subject of a Lifetime original movie, I Am Elizabeth Smart. In this memoir, Elizabeth Smart reveals how she survived and the secret to forging a new life in the wake of a brutal crime. On...

My Mother's War is a gripping memoir about one woman's unflinching courage and cunning in the face of horrific evil. This compelling true story follows author and Holocaust survivor Michael Fryd's larger-than-life mother who outsmarted the Nazis and saved her family. Michael Fryd was only three years old when Nazi Germany invaded Poland, triggering World War II and one of humanity’s darkest chapters. Forced to leave their home and everything they knew, Fryd's mother went to near impossible lengths to keep her family safe from Hitler’s clutches, including crafting clever lies, dealing in...

An inspiring survivor of Mao’s Cultural Revolution in China makes a passionate case that history is eerily repeating itself as the Woke Revolution spreads across America. Xi Van Fleet lived through the horrors of the Chinese Cultural Revolution as a schoolgirl. Forced to the countryside with...

“A bible for badass women.”—SARAH MICHELLE GELLAR “Gripping and liberating.”—ADAM GRANT, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Hidden Potential and Think Again “Survivor legend and gay icon, Parvati Shallow has won my heart all over again.”—BOWEN YANG NATIONAL BESTSELLER ...

Gripping and inspiring, these true stories of bravery, terror, and hope chronicle nine different children's experiences during the Holocaust. These are the true-life accounts of nine Jewish boys and girls whose lives spiraled into danger and fear as the Holocaust overtook Europe. In a time of great horror, these children each found a way to make it through the nightmare of war. Their legacy of courage in the face of hatred will move you, captivate you, and ultimately, inspire you.

Christina Crawford’s Mommie Dearest cast a spotlight on the unspoken horrors of family violence and exorcised the demons of her childhood. But in the years following the controversial best seller’s publication, the author’s resilience was tested in ways she never expected. Crawford was forced to brave a stunning backlash intended to shame her, a film adaptation that bastardized her story and compounded the trauma, a descent into alcoholism, a divorce, and a massive stroke that left her paralyzed. Staying true to her fighting spirit, she made a remarkable comeback.