We grandparents grew up in the post WWII era. We all knew of a family member affected by the war and probably heard family stories of living through combat, the incessant bombing raids or the horrors of prison camps. We grew up knowing the Holocaust was real and that what followed the war was both economic growth and a Cold War with Russia.
This is a true story that highlights the courage and perseverance displayed by people who found themselves in unimaginable circumstances.
The Boy from Block 66 by Limor Regev
In January of 1945 fourteen-year-old Moshe Kessler is living with his observant Jewish family in the town of Berehovo, Czechoslovakia, near the Hungarian border a town that is today situated in Ukraine. When the Nazis invade the area Moshe and all his family are taken. He is first sent by train to Auschwitz-Birkenau and loses touch with all his family members. He survives a death march and is eventually taken by train to Buchenwald.
Moshe knows, as everyone does, that the only way to survive Buchenwald is to get to Block 66, the children’s block.
Although we know the horrors of the Holocaust, reading the details of Moshe’s everyday life in the camps impresses once again the strength of the survivors and the importance of never allowing such a regime to gain power again.
