Justyna's Narrative

by Gusta Davidson Draenger, Eli Pfefferkorn (Editor), David H. Hirsch (Editor), Roslyn Hirsch (Translator)

Overview

Written during World War II, Justyna's Narrative is a compelling account of the Krakow Jewish resistance. From February through April 1943, Gusta Davidson Draenger (aka "Justyna"?) composed the narrative on scraps of paper smuggled into her prison cell. Between sessions of torture and interrogation at the hands of the Gestapo, she recorded the activities and spiritual aspirations of the clandestine group of young Jewish idealists who forged documents, acquired weapons, and committed acts of defiance against the Nazis.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781558490383
Publisher:	University of Massachusetts Press
Publication date:	10/08/1996
Edition description:	First Edition
Pages:	168
Product dimensions:	(w) x (h) x 0.87(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Roslyn Hirsch is a professional translator. David H. Hirsch is professor emeritus of English and Judaic Studies at Brown University. Eli Pfefferkorn teaches Judaic studies at Central Hebrew Academy of Toronto.

What People are Saying About This

Abraham H. Foxman

Justyna's Narrative not only bears witness to the Nazi atrocities perpetrated against the Jews — an ever more important need as Holocaust deniers peddle their pernicious lies — but inspires the reader with accounts of courageous and persistent resistance.

Antony Polonsky

The literature of the Nazi attempt at a genocide of the Jewish people is vast. One's first reaction to another book on the Holocaust must therefore by, 'Does this add significantly to our knowledge and understanding of this genocide?' In relation to Justyna's Narrative there can be no possible doubt. This is one of the most important books to be written on the Jewish response to Nazi persecution, an eloquent documentation that succeeds in giving a human face to the victims and that has a capacity to move us deeply today.

Nechama Tec

A central document of Holocaust literature and a remarkable achievement. Not only does the author describe the courage, perseverance, and extraordinary planning it took to participate in these underground activities, she also shares with the reader her profound psychological and historical insights into clandestine activities.... This English translation is impeccably accurate and well written.

Editorial Reviews

"The literature of the Nazi attempt at a genocide of the Jewish people is vast. One's first reaction to another book on the Holocaust must therefore by, 'Does this add significantly to our knowledge and understanding of this genocide?' In relation to Justyna's Narrative there can be no possible doubt. This is one of the most important books to be written on the Jewish response to Nazi persecution, an eloquent documentation that succeeds in giving a human face to the victims and that has a capacity to move us deeply today."—Antony Polonsky, Brandeis University

"Justyna's Narrative not only bears witness to the Nazi atrocities perpetrated against the Jews—an ever more important need as Holocaust deniers peddle their pernicious lies—but inspires the reader with accounts of courageous and persistent resistance."—Abraham H. Foxman, National Director, Anti-Defamation League

"A central document of Holocaust literature and a remarkable achievement. Not only does the author describe the courage, perseverance, and extraordinary planning it took to participate in these underground activities, she also shares with the reader her profound psychological and historical insights into clandestine activities. . . . This English translation is impeccably accurate and well written."—Nechama Tec, Author of Defiance: The Bielski Partisans

From the Publisher

Nonfiction about the Holocaust should be judged on two levels: Does it add to our understanding of this horrific event? And is it a compelling piece of writing? This account of young Jewish underground freedom fighters in Krakow is an equivocal success on both levels, one marred only by its sometimes excessively lofty language and its lapses of continuity. Considering that it was composed on smuggled scraps of paper in a Polish prison by a woman who knew she would not survive the war, we are fortunate to have it at all. Originally published in Poland in 1946, this is the first English translation of the work. In order to protect her fellows, Gusta adopts pseudonyms for herself ("Justyna") and her husband, and she also writes about their exploits in the third person. Justyna relates how the underground formed, held secret meetings, organized false identity papers and worried about whether even a successful uprising could have more than symbolic value. They had managed to get hold of five firearms, including a Browning with which they planned to ambush six men, collect another six weapons and arm six more comrades. This was not to be, as Justyna regretfully writes of the failed guerrilla action. A few of their group survived Nazi atrocities, but the author and her husband were killed at some point after they escaped from the Polish prison. Although somewhat weakened by choppiness and grandiose prose, this is still a remarkable record of spirit and resistance. (Aug.)

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly