Customer Reviews
A generous book. - By: V. K. Smallwood, 20 Aug 2008 
I was hoping to experience, through Bernard Offen's words, something candid, direct & real about a life that has been lived under such utterly different circumstances to mine. In fact, I have received much more. Bernard Offen's story has brought alive for me not only the details of the horrors of his survivalin Poland, but also something of what it is like to grapple with that experience years on. It has brought alive the process of healing that brought Mr. Offen to write the book.
It has been a privilege to have Mr Offen let me walk by his side while he remembers, & to let me see so tangibly places such as the house where he & his family first lived, & later Krzemionki Cemetery where he hid after escaping Plaszow concentration camp. The significance of these places was underpinned by having read the preface, by Norman Jacobs, which was original, informative & drew me into the stark reality of Polish life at the time Bernard Offen was growing up.
I enjoyed the uncomplicated, natural & gentle tone of Mr Offen's voice. Above all, I feel the whole book comes together as a great demonstration of couragein all ways. I am left feeling inspired & humbled by Bernard Offen's story & hopeful that the 'journey of healing', which Mr. Offen refers toin his introduction, is possible, for all individuals & humanity as a whole.
About 'My Hometown Concentration Camp' - By: Ms. Deborah C. Morley, 17 Aug 2008 My most striking impression is that this book reads as though it is written by an 11-year-old, with an innocence of timeless recall, as if of a memory of that age.
It is without any sense of hysteria that one might expect of the experience, however, any thoughts about the irreplacable loss of vitality of community life, would be so unbearable that one abidesin the remaining silence, the presence of silence, stillness, as one follows the walk woven into a stream of recall, as the story is toldin the silence of the walk. By reading the book I would like to return to Krakow & follow the walk,in memorium. Towards the end of the book (the third section) a maturityin the writing emerges, as writtenin the present day, by someone older looking back, about trauma & healing, as if the work has been done.
Excellent, informative and deeply touching account of one man's experience of the Holocaust - By: C. M. Harry, 07 Jul 2008 Bernard Offen's account of the years he spent as a childin the Kraków Ghetto &in a hideous run of concentration camps is all the more astonishing for the quiet, colloquial mannerin which it is recounted. It is as if the author is standing by your side sharing his memories with you, encouraging you to accompany him on this most painful & extraordinary journey, talking you through some of the most unimaginable experiencesin his simple & direct style.
Throughout the journey he acts as what feels like your very own guide on a tour of the Kraków Ghetto, the camps & a period of history that I have always tried to avoid reading about for fear of being `exposed' to horrors I would rather not contemplate. It is certainly true that parts of the book left me shaking my headin revulsion & near-disbelief. However, having just finished it, my overall feeling is that it is as inspiring as it is devastating.
Bernard Offen's reflections on the long journey of healing that he has undertaken since the war are deeply moving & inspiring & are a testament to the power of the human spirit at its most admirable. This isin stark contrast to the dark testament to its extreme opposite contained elsewhere within these pages.
The book includes an excellent preface by Norman G. Jacobs which sketches a backdrop to the events of WWIIin Poland & provides an informative account of Jewish lifein the country both before & after the war. At 117 pages it is very manageablein terms of length & I believe it would act as a fine accompaniment to secondary-level school history courses.
I would recommend the book to anyone interestedin WWII, the Holocaust, orin questions about war, survival & healing. I would also recommend it to anyone like myself who has hitherto been reluctant to delve into this area of history. I can't think of a better introduction.
