Susan Paterson's story about For those I Loved
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Author: Martin Gray
SynopsisFar surpassing any thriller novel, this is the amazing, true story of a man who epitomizes the indomitable human spirit. When fourteen-year-old Martin Gray finds himself and his family looting their own Warsaw factory, scrambling out of the ruins carrying sackfuls of gloves after its bombing by the Germans, his talent for quietly observing what is going on around him becomes his secret weapon. He watches, brick by brick, as his beloved neighborhood is sealed off from the rest of Warsaw, imprisoning everyone inside. He watches who wears blue; who wears white armbands, the Star of David; yellow armbands. He studies the streetcars passing through the ghetto gates to the outside. He creates a smuggling operation, hopping on and off streetcars, hiding his armband in his shirt, knowing who to bribe, creating false papers, speaking German or Polish, flirting with death, in and out, in and out, everyday. All for those he loves. This story follows Martin as he is captured with his family and taken by train to the Treblinka Concentration camp, and details his escape and heroic efforts to build a new life.
My Story
This is one of many that has had an influence and the reason I chose this one was that I read it at a time my life was at a low ebb.
The author tells of how he survived the Ghetto in Warsaw, Treblinka, the loss of the all his family, his move to America and how he rebuilt his life, married and had children. However he lost this family to forest fires in France.
The authors sheer determination not to allow adversity to destroy his own life gave me the courage to move forward and I have never looked back no matter what happens to me.
This was also made into a film starring Michael York but I never felt that it reflected the written word.
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