5 comments about Survival In Auschwitz.

1. This account of the imprisonment, internment, survival of Primo Levi in Auschwitz is written as a straightforward chronological narrative. Levi recounts his initial capture , the horrendous suffering of the journey of Italian Jews to Auschwitz, the selection there in which all the woman and children were immediately sent to their deaths in the gas- chambers, and in which the able- bodied sent to the work- camp at Buna. Levi tells the story , detail by detail of his getting into the work- order of the Camp. He describes in clear precise language the horrible humiliations the prisoners were subject to. He also describes in one central chapter, four different kinds of survivors, and the strategies they use to escape death. His accounts of his own getting through to the liberation include his appreciations of his friend Albert, and a few other individuals who with no reward to expect for it, helped him on the way.
   The bestiality of the Nazis and their helpers is not sermonized about, but rather portrayed in specific incidents of unusual terrible cruelty.
   Levi is deeply concerned with the whole question of what it means to be human , and how it is possible to retain human dignity in the most extreme circumstances.
   His carefully written record of his own horrifying experience is to this day considered one of the most moving and effective of Holocaust memoirs.



2. A touching, but not mawkish or dramatic, memoir. One realizes the randomness and happenstance by which he survived, and easily accepts the moral dualism of the life of thievery and connivance, within bounds of common decency and collective group self-interest, that kept any survivor alive. Some reviews seemed to fault the book for being unemotional, but one sees how Levi's essentially scientific and objective personality became a key to his survival, and necessarily informs his voice.



3. A monotone, sort of scientific voice. His story is sad...but is told with very little emotion. It was hard to get into - a little harder to read due to the "scientist' type voice that I'm not used to. I found Elie Weisel's "Night" to be a much more candid look inside a survivor's haunted soul. Primo Levi is good for someone who prefers reading something about the Holocaust that is a bit more textbook vs. memoir.



4. Excellant book, I felt like I was living Mr Levi's life in the camp with him. What a wonderful story of survival.



5. This book from bnpublishing contains serious multiple errors, sometimes five per page, that disrespect the author and the Holocaust and force the reader to stop and try to figure out the author's real meaning. Book is full of incorrect or missing punctuation (such as periods), words and names spelled different ways from one sentence to the next, random capitalization, run-on sentences, grammatical and spelling errors in English, French, and German. "Figfit" is not a word. Neither are "infaticable," "aroupd," or "mochery." The phrase is "flash of intuition," not "flask." The sign over every concentration camp was "Arbeit Macht Frei," not "Fret." You say, "avec moi," which means "with me," not "avec mot" which means "with word." Phrases like "there were no dark cold air had the smell" (p. 107) stop the reader dead. Very disrespectful of the author and the subject. Levi was a brilliant man with astounding powers of observation and recall for his hellish experiences. His words deserve to be preserved better than this.

5 comments about The Lost: A Search for Six of Six Million.

1. I found this book to be well researched and the story telling was certainly superb, albeit annoyingly interrupted by the author boasting about his story-telling abilities. He could use the number one lesson given in every introductory writing course: show, don't tell. It is true that it is very wordy at times, which slows down the reading, but upon rereading, it is possible to make out what the author is trying to convey. However, there is a horribly amateurish quality about this book that made me cringe every time. In the descriptions of the characters, every Jewish person is conveniently beautiful, handsome, brilliant, and talented. Every non-Jewish person, is piggish, fat, ignorant, jealous and stupid. It makes me question the author's judgment, and quite frankly, as a non-Jewish reader, I can't help but be insulted by his bigoted views.
   Overall, there is not too much new information here about the Holocaust, but a very-well researched family history written in an interesting way with some run-on sentences. I had to give it three stars because of the author's thinly veiled hate against non-Jews.



2. Reading this made me feel privileged to be invited into author's family. His writing style takes a little getting used to...a little repetative at times but his empathic approach to searching for his relatives in very touching. This story is so important as the survivors are scarce and their story needs to be documented. I'm not good at reviews..... The scattered black and white pictures seem oddly placed (untitled) but come to life throughout the book. One of the best Holacaust books I have read. And Daniel.....you are as good looking at Matt, Ha!



3. This book is painfully long and repetitive. I'm on page 35 and I doubt that I will be able to finish the entire book. Once you begin to get into the history of the family, the author veers completely off topic. Frustrating. Irritating.
   I want to love this book, and I'm sure that there is a wonderful story somewhere in the mass of pages, I'm just not sure I will have the patience to find it.



4. This book was excellent in expressing the thoughts of the author. It had so much factual information that made you want to search for your ancestors.
   This ws not a easy book to read but well worth reading



5. This is a good book but the effort to write this book and the passion, is greater. This is an indepth personal journey and you are in the experience, at times this is tedious but it is as well an enriching experience and engaging. There are appealing charachter stories but also descriptions of human torture and brutality so I say I think some sensitivity should be demonstrated in marketing books about the Holocaust, the material is true but it is brutal and should not be associated with words like "hilarious" on the back cover. I am referring to the review quote by Jonathan Safran Foer who describes the book as being "at times hilarious". I did not come across anything in the book that I would define as hilarious.

4 comments about Shut Up, I'm Talking: And Other Diplomacy Lessons I Learned in the Israeli Government--A Memoir.

1. A hilarious and telling book. Gregory Levey does an excellent job revealing the often bizarre life behind Israeli international diplomacy. A must read for anyone interested in Israel and the Middle East.



2. Shut Up, I'm talking is very, very funny. I tried reading it before bed, but found it didn't help me fall asleep -- I kept reading on to the next chapter, laughing aloud along the way. The book reads like David Sedaris, but without the camp. This isn't for someone looking for a serious study of Israeli politics (obviously) -- but for something fun, this is it.



3. Levey is one of the funniest writer's I've read in a while. The best pieces in here are funny to the point that I laughed out loud in public. In fact, the best pieces are so good that you seek to retell it to your friends, yet sadly realize that you don't have the 1/10th the storytelling chops of Levey.
   
   Beyond the humor, Levey is endearing and honest. Indeed, his stories are as funny as they are because they are wrapped in the context of Levey's empathy and thoughtfulness. I've purchased this book already for three friends, and look forward to further giving it away to people who haven't had the pleasure of reading it. If you haven't read this book, it is a must. I am very much anticipating his next work!



4. ** AUTHOR'S NOTE **
   "As I write this note, things don't look good in the Middle East. I'm not sure when you're reading this, but I assume that things still don't look good in the Middle East, because they never really do."
   -----------------------------------------------------------
   
   The author Gregory Levey at the age of twenty-five-years-old and not even an Israeli citizen found himself sitting alone at the State of Israel's seat at the United Nations General Assembly. An important vote was about to take place, and he not only didn't know which way to vote on the resolution... he didn't even know what the resolution was!
   
   This humorous and almost satirical yet somber situation was all set in motion innocently enough when Greg became bored in his second year of law school. The author being Jewish and a Canadian citizen going to school in New York decided to volunteer to serve in the Israeli army. After he signed up on-line for the army he still had a number of months ahead of him until he had to report to Israel. Unwilling to accept the monotonous months of waiting ahead he decided to apply for an internship at the Israeli Mission to the United Nations. What follows could provide enough fodder for a full season of hilarious sitcom material. As Greg followed up on his application, over and over again, without any positive results, he showed dogged determination and made yet another phone call to yet another person who told him to fax his resume directly to her. After still no response Greg gave up on the whole idea and left for Christmas break.
   
   After he returned to New York in January he got a strange call from a man named Yaron from Israeli security. This led to many, many, phone calls with varying degrees of time between each clandestine call, with questions that ranged from "what side of the street did he live on?" to questions about the Jewish summer camp he attended as a child. Finally an interview was set up with Israeli Ambassador Mekel. The first thing the Ambassador said was: "You look perfect on paper, so there must be something wrong with you." During the interview the Ambassador told Greg there is no internship program but offered him a deputy speechwriter job on a part-time basis, because the regular speechwriter was going to be leaving and if everything went well he could take over fulltime. "Greg accepted the offer, but told him that as a Canadian, he was not eligible to work in the United States. The Ambassador shook his head before he even finished the sentence and said, "I can hire anyone I want. We'll just change your status from student to DIPLOMAT!" "So that was it. From the U.S. State Department's point of view, Greg was going to be an Israeli Diplomat, even though he wasn't an Israeli citizen." Greg had come in the hope of getting an internship and walked out as an Israeli Diplomat.
   
   From there Greg starts writing speeches for Ambassador's in New York and gets noticed by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's staff in Israel, and as a favor writes a speech for the Prime Minister. While working in the Mission in New York he takes a vacation in Israel and takes a course in "combat firearms". He subsequently takes another vacation and goes to Israel and takes an "intelligence and counterintelligence" course, and as part of an assignment has to go undercover as "Joey Shmeltz". He then gets invited to come to Israel and work on Prime Minister Sharon's staff. From there on out the author provides a never before seen "outsider's" view of the "inside" of the tumultuous stress that Israeli's face daily as a people and as a nation with a smattering of rye humor along the way.

5 comments about Foreskin's Lament: A Memoir.

1. The author's honesty is remarkable re: the inner workings of this community, one I'm familiar with. If you liked this book, let me strongly recommend, "Yiddishe Mamas: The Truth About the Jewish Mother" for another honest eyeview of this maligned stereotype.



2. My book club selected this, and although I'd never heard of it, I went along, checked out the library's copy and dutifully started reading it. It turned out to be one of the funniest books I've ever read--and I'm not easily entertained. I literally couldn't put it down and read it in just a few days. I enjoyed it so much, I plan to buy my own copy so I can read it again. It probably helps to have been raised Jewish of some stripe, but even the non-Jews in the book club loved it. So did the woman who keeps kosher.
   
   I also gained some insight into the pervasive negativity I see in certain members of my own family. Although we were not raised Orthodox, I finally understand that their sense of doom and judgment isn't just cultural. It isn't just because my parents witnessed the Holocaust (albeit safely across the Atlantic as American citizens), or because they lived through the Depression. I'd never realized before reading this book that it actually has religious roots, even though my family isn't especially religious.
   
   Anyway, if you have a wry sense of humor, love irony and absurdity, then you're bound to love this book. Shalom Auslander, thanks!!!!



3. This is one of the most disturbing books I have read in a long time. That is not a bad thing. I wonder if I would have the gumption to bare my life and my soul the way Mr. Auslander has in this story. He spares no detail. In fact, it is more of a personal exegesis than a story. Although it focuses on the idiosyncrasies of growing up in an orthodox Jewish environment, what he says is applicable to any similar theologically literal upbringing. I know Catholics who could tell similar stories, and some fringe evangelical Christians too. I recommend this book. It is unforgettable.



4. I loved this book, and found myself laughing out loud several times on crowded subway cars. Auslander manages to create humor and warmth out of painful childhood memories and an obsession with a vengeful God, and is clearly a talented writer. I had a hard time putting it down when it came time to go to work, or bed, and I really look forward to reading more from him.



5. His candor and wit are refreshing.
   I,too,used to want to get out from underneath the gnawing suspicion that my thoughts and actions had consequences. But one word proved the existance of God for me. Israel. So while I'm a Christian and my perspective differs from Mr.Auslander's, I can still relate to his predicament. The persistant pervasiveness of the Book and the people of Abraham just can't be seen in any other culture on earth. And this despite just a bit of "opposition" through the years, shall we say. God chose them to communicate His truth and His plan in written form to solve the mess we're in since sin entered our DNA. It's been available for all to hear/read, take or leave, believe or disbelieve.
   
   I may not like it sometimes. But, like Richard Gere cried in An Officer and a Gentleman, "I got nowhere else to go!"
   
   (hey, of course Christians always get "preachy." Try and see it from our perspective, it'd be like being on the Titanic, seeing the iceberg and not yelling get in the boats. So if a Christian doesn't preach at you they just don't care whether you know God has a place in a lifeboat with your name on it. Indulge us. Or at least treat us as you would a crazy relation at a family gathering, with patience and understanding)

5 comments about I Have Lived A Thousand Years: Growing Up In The Holocaust.

1. I read this book years ago, when I was about 10 years old and didn't even understand fully the depth of the Holocaust. But even then I enjoyed this tale of a girl surviving against the odds. Great book for everyone; helps even the young to understand the plight of millions during that dark era and got me interesting in the Holocaust.



2. She was one in thirty five that returned...Originally, five hundred left. Into the ghetto then into cattle cars, off to fend for their lives. Thirteen year old Elli (later, changing her name to Livia. Yes, this is a true story!) was one of many young, Jewish, innocent, Holocaust victims. Elli and her family lived a comfortable life. They owned a local gocerey store, they were successful and had many close friends and family...that is, until Germany took over. In March 1944, the Nazis invaded Hungary. Privledges were taken away slowly but surely, no more school, giving up prized possessions and their store, having to wear yellow stars. What was this? No one knew. SUddenly, Elli finds that all will be lost. Elli's family is moved into a crowded ghetto, and they lose all the privledges and possessions that they hadn't already lose. It took everything they had to survive, yet little did they know, this was only the beginning. Soon, they were put on cattle cars. Ellie's family was spilt up among concentration camps; although, Ellie and her mother managed to stay together and survive some of the harshest punishments the Nazis dished out. This is a remarkable memoir of a teenage girl who no doubt had, lived a thousand years, she had no chouce. Her hope and faith along with her suffering and fears, you won't beleive a thirteen year old would've realized and out smarted the Nazis in such ways. Not only is this a beautiful story of survival but an ugly piece of history. Having background on WOrld War II helped me understand a bit more but also this book taught me a great deal of history, another reason to read. This book, was definitely a fast read, I couldn't put it down. You're constantly wondering..."Will she survive?! How will she out smart them this time?! Will she escape?!" You would definitely need to enjoy survival and history to get through this novel and also know that some chapters are a bit graphic. This woman went through the unthinkable and she doesn't hold back on letting you know that. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants an amazing story with some history behind it. Livia Bitton-Jackson is a part of our history and survived as one of thirty five returning of an original five hundred. This woman did the unthinkable.
   
   -Kaitlyn Toner



3. Fantastic book, I recommend it to many of my students at work. I cried and cried at the end. We certainly have no idea in our cosy 2007 world. A brave, graphic and well written book.



4. "I Have Lived A Thousand Years" is a personal and gut-wrenching story of how a 13-year old girl survived the German Holocaust in the death camp of Auschwitz. The book is fairly short with short chapters. It is obviously written for adolescent readers, but can certainly be appreciated by adults as well. This is a very good first book for teens to learn about the Holocaust. It is written in the first person, and we "see" the horrifying conditions through the author's sensitve eyes.
   
   The story is gripping from page one to the last page. It should be read and then discussed with the adolescent reader, as many questions will be raised as to the horrific nature of the Holocaust.
   
   There are many good Holocost books, but the stark reality presented in this book, along with the narrative style, makes this an excellent introductory first-person account to the atrocities of the Holocaust.
   
   Jim Koenig



5. This book is so powerful. I have read many stories of Holocaust survivors, but few if any have presented such a vivid view of the horrors the Jews faced. Some parts were disturbing, but they describe true history, so they are definitely important to read. If you're interested in the Holocaust, this is a great read.

5 comments about Man's Search for Meaning.

1. This is a small book with a big subject - life and meaning - written in 1946 and first published in 1959. Only recently it has been published in English. It still rings true, written by a Nazi concentration camp inmate, Dr. Viktor Frankl. He originally wanted to be an anonymous author; however, his friends persuaded him to publish under his own name to give the book credibility. Readers could therefore also understand this is a psychiatrist's objective view of suffering, which is part of life, and why life and hope prevail in the darkest moments.
   
   Part One, Experiences in a Concentration Camp is key to all he learned on the meaning of life. The horrible losses and inhumanity are seared into your mind, but when Dr. Frankl looks at the horror with educated eyes, he recognizes courage, objectivity and responsibility as vital for survival. This is a story of a man who was sent to the concentration camp with a belief that if he had to suffer and die, it would be significant: he would not suffer nor die for nothing.
   
   Dr. Frankl reviews the fight for survival and his decisions that somehow help him survive. He notes that prisoners go through three phases, 1)shock: the period following his admission 2)apathy: the period where they they become well entrenched in camp routine, and 3)the sense of loss, where they lose everything but hope. He digs down deep in his own soul to helps others to go on and have meaning in their life - not to give up and find the basic motivation to go on. He teaches despairing men "that it did not really matter what we expected from life, but what life expected from us." Dr. Frankl repeats, "if we have the "why" we will always find the "how" to go on."
   
   This book shows each individual he is important and every decision he makes is impactful. Therefore, make the right decisions and be triumphant. Right decisions cause the least pain and give the most love for fellow man. It is what gives us hope and value as part of humanity.
   
   Part Two, Logo-Therapy in a Nutshell, was not as interesting to me. It describes Frankl's philosophy of logo-therapy and reminded me of of mid-eastern religions as well as Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. It is a way (Frankl calls it "neo-dynamics") to have a goal in mind and achieve it no matter what obstacles and stress you are facing. The things that make life important and with meaning are different for each of us. All of us can have a meaning of life, but the "big picture meaning" is hard to understand. It takes us a lifetime of good and bad events and decisions to shape us.
   
   Part Three, is a postscript on "Tragic Optimism" and states that despite the "tragic triad" (as it is called in Logo-Therapy) 1)pain, 2)guilt, and 3)death - how is it possible to say yes to life in spite of all that? Logo-therapy teaches there are three main avenues on which one arrives at meaning in life. The first is creating a work or by doing a deed. The second is by experiencing something or encountering someone, and the third is turning a personal tragedy into a triumph. He mentions using bad situations as a growth experience.
   
   Overall a deep book but a good book on looking at life. It shows that each one of us can determine personal meaning and why it is important.



2. well i learn psycology at the university and my professor has recommended it so i bought it through amazon.
   this book will rock your world.and give you a different perspective of life and how man interacts in a hostile and unreal enviroment ...for more info of the book itself i recommend turning to a better source :) but as a reader i can say this book is worth the time and the money :)



3. The following summarizes the true meanings the author wants us to absorb.
   There are three avenues to arrive at the meaning of life. 1) Creating a work or or doing a deed 2) Experiencing or encountering something added to your life i.e. finding love 3) facing a fate one cannot change. You then rise above oneself, rising above what is expected. One grows from the experience, and experiences positive change.
   Experiencing and surviving suffering is something to be proud of... not something to be ashamed of. We all learn and grow from our experiences.



4. I read this book regularly for inspiration. Frankl found a way to confront the greatest evil of the last century, which for him was very personal, and survive. In the midst of it he discovered that we most long for meaning in our lives, and so he developed a therapy that helps people search for it.
   
   The beginning part of the book about life in the camps simply cannot be forgotten. And then, when he tries to make sense of it, ordinary readers realize that whatever they have suffered there is a way forward. Frankl used tragedy to help others. A person can't be more noble than that.
   
   Lawrence J. Epstein, author of "At the Edge of a Dream: The Story of Jewish Immigrants on New York's Lower East Side."



5. What can a person expect of life in a concentration camp? Is there a chance you can find meaning in living that torture? This is a truly inspirational book that reminds you that not everything is lost, that you can find light in the most terrible conditions. It's not new age, it's a story of survival and hope.
   The second part of the book is about logotherapy. Victor Frankl was the creator of this discipline and it basically addresses the question of meaning in people's lives.

5 comments about The Man in the White Sharkskin Suit: My Family's Exodus from Old Cairo to the New World.

1. There is much to discuss in this story. First there is the lives and attitudes of the nonArabs who lived in Egypt prior to the government of Nasser. For the most part life was good for them . Their diets and some their customs were similar to the Egyptians but they seemed to possess a superior attitutude. Egyptian Jews acted in some ways like the colonial English. The author's mother, grandmother,and some members of her family never learned to speak Arabic.
   The author's father continued his all night ramblings even after he was married and only seemed to stop when he had an accident. As he grew older he became more likible to me.
   The lives of the Egyptians was very interesting and the descriptions of Jewish Cairo were good.
   My heart went out to Alexandra, the maternal grandmother of the author. She sufferered poverty, loss of a child in the most terrible way, and loneliness. She was truly a tragic figure.
   The family's life in Paris and their life in Brookyn was very interesting. I was annoyed that the author felt that America owed her more( for example the fact that her brother had to attend college at night).
   
   Anyway, I was fascinated by this story and would recommend it.



2. A very interesting book about a middle class family of six in Egypt who is forced to leave Egypt because they are Jewish and find a new home in a foreign country with $212 allotted to all six of them. It shows the stark contrast between Egypt pre-Nasser and post and the contrast between Egypt and the United States. It also shows the pschological impact of a change in cultures for one of the members at an advanced age with significant health problems.



3. 
   Lucette Lagnado's moving memoir is subtitled My Family's Exodus from Old Cairo to the New World. It is a story of a remarkable father and his family movingly told with the feel of a novel as you share the experiences of this family who traveled half way around the world to settle in America. Lucette Lagnado, who is a senior special writer and investigative reporter for The Wall Street Journal, demonstrates both her skill as a writer and an investigator.
   
   The story begins with the marriage of her parents, Leon and Edith, in wartime Cairo. As the family establishes itself after the war, the position of the Jewish community gradually deteriorates until, in the early sixties they flee to Paris en route to their eventual destination. The strength of both parents and the details of the family's difficult journey is a story that this reader found intensely moving. The thought of being "stateless", as they were once they left Egypt, is hard to imagine. That they overcame this and survived is a tribute to their courage. This is a memoir that I will not soon forget.



4. I'd been meaning to read Lucette Lagnado's family memoir for awhile. Learning that the book had won the 2008 Sami Rohr Prize for Jewish Literature motivated me to actually pick it up. This past weekend, I finished reading the book. And it's an excellent read.
   
   Given what often seems an unending stream of memoir-related scandals, not to mention the primacy of what I'll charitably call the dysfunction narrative (and of course the interrelationship between the two), reading THE MAN IN THE WHITE SHARKSKIN SUIT is a gift. Not only does the author focus on a story that's truly fresh (in this case, the story of a Jewish family's history in Syria and Egypt and the massive dislocation it experienced in 1962 when emigrating from Egypt, first to France and then to the United States). Not only does she include authentic "evidence," including photographs, documents, and file citations from the social service agencies that worked with her immigrant family in Paris and New York. But she also presents rounded portraits of multiple "characters," especially her parents (her father, Leon, is the eponymous man in the white sharkskin suit) and grandparents (especially her two grandmothers). An exercise in navel-gazing, this is surely not. It's not until late in the book that the author's own life-threatening medical problems--which another writer, especially in this Age of the Misery Memoir, might have chosen to make the subject of an entire book, and which are artfully presaged in earlier chapters--take center stage. Even then, it's the effect of her illness on those around her rather than her own suffering that seems to matter more.
   
   What will you get from reading this book? You'll get a sense of the culture of a Levantine Jewish community, one that I, for one, previously knew only superficially (mostly through stories about the in-laws of one of my mother's close friends). You'll get some history, of World War II and the Suez crisis. You'll get stories of Jewish immigrants in France and Israel and the United States. You'll get the texture of Brooklyn in the 1960s and 1970s. You'll get the almost unimaginably shocking story of what happened to one of Lagnado's maternal uncles at the hands of Lagnado's own grandfather. You'll get the triumphs and the tragedies of her family, and you'll get, in particular, a sense of the deep bond between Lagnado and that extraordinary man in the white sharkskin suit. Don't miss it.



5. This is a wonderful and tragic story of a Jewish family who lived in Egypt until the early 1960's when conditions made it very difficult for them to stay. The author tells the story of her grandparents and her parents in wonderful detail, and takes the reader with her on their exodus from Egypt to become refugees in France and then new immigrants to the United States. This book is a must for anyone who wants to learn about the story of Jewish life in Egypt in the 20th century, which came to a sad end as a result of the hostility of Egyptian government towards Israel. The author focuses on the personal story and avoids politics, and shows a graceful attitude without any bitterness towards the country which made her family leave.

5 comments about Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl.

1. The Truth: I'm a Girl, I'm Smart and I Know EverythingThe last time I really read the diary of Anne Frank, I was nine, in Sunday school in Connecticut and pretty miserable. I had my own issues-some of the girls made fun of me, I couldn't learn to read Hebrew (no one had recognized that I had a learning disability) and I wanted nothing more than to really belong. Anne's diary made me cry and feel even more miserable.
   
   This time, I'm a grown-up. In fact my kids are grown. I'm a psychologist in private practice, with an emphasis on positive psychology. That means I encourage hope and optimism in my clients. I help them look for their talents and even lost potential. And I just wrote a book in diary form, written by a 10-11 year old girl, to help girls and their moms get in touch with the best of themselves. Sooo, things are very different.
   
   My reaction to reading Anne Frank this time was as if I had blinders taken away from my eyes. Instead of just seeing a girl in hiding and feeling oppressed with the sadness of her unfulfilled life, I saw a profoundly real teen-age girl with unbelievable wisdom and hosesty. She seems to be the compliation of all the inner knowledge, wisdom, sexual and emotional development of all girls. She is almost like the western world's Shakespeare for girls. For example, as a psychologist and a woman who was once a teenager, I was enthralled with her intimate feelings and thoughts around her crush on Peter. Lots of girls fall in love or have a crush, but few know how to process their feelings. In fact that is why 'the girl' in my new book, The Truth, falls in love, to help kids learn how to share these sorts of feeling. Anne understood so much about the ego development of a person in transition from child to woman. What she is able to put into words about her crush should help any girl experiencing deep and complex feelings.
   
   I think every woman should take some time and re-read Anne Frank. You will certainly fall in love with her in a different way than the first time around. You may find yourself sobbing later, as I found myself, when her love of life and feelings and insights about growing-up, welled up inside of me with the realization that Anne never got a chance to do all the things that most of us women take for granted: the husband, the kids, the first apartment, friends over, pets, just getting out in the fresh air!
   
   Anne held on to her ideals and dreams and she hoped that there would be a time that she could carry them out. She didn't make it, but we have. And so if every woman who reads this book can just be a little more insightful, a little more caring, a little more loving, listen a little harder to kids and teens-then in a way, we have carried out, as best we can, her ideals. As a positive psychologist and woman, this is my opinion as to how to maintain hope, and fulfill not only her potential, but our own.



2. Anne Frank's tale is a snapshot frozen in time.
   
   Neither faded recollections nor hindsight feature here. This was written with the clarity of the present tense through the eyes of a young girl living through a terrible chapter of world history. This immediacy serves to empower the story further and move the reader in ways that so few books can.
   
   Highly recommended.
   
   Owen Zupp
   Author: "Down to Earth"
   DOWN TO EARTH: A Fighter Pilot's Experiences of Surviving Dunkirk, The Battle of Britain, Dieppe and D-Day



3. A classic that we all should read when we are young, and again when we are older. It emphasizes the fact that evil does exist in our world, and that evil often comes from a government. It belongs in all of our libraries.



4. Great read, highly recommend for all jr. high and Sr. high kids. I read this book in high school (many many years ago) and wanted to read it again because of the movie "Freedom Writers" and it's integral part in the movie. I highly recommend it



5. ACH, DU LIEBER!!!!
   
   That's the biting phrase that can best epitomize my personal feelings at the disconnect between the expectation of Anne Frank's diary and the actual reality of reading it. The Diary of Anne Frank is very, very, very disappointing and a humongous letdown!!!! To wit, I must implacably question and hold in contempt the judgment processes of the many, previous, sycophant reviewers who've been exaggerating the "beauty" or "grace" or whatever politically correct term of flattery they can invent for this diary. The Diary of Anne Frank is one of the most caustic examples of herd mentality-syndrome and mass hysteria among the many positive-rating, Amazon reviewers. In truth, this diary of Anne's is just plain, bloody awful and doesn't deserve its classic status to say the least!!!! I suppose the hordes of five-star reviewers simply turned off their brains, refused to analyze Anne's diary critically, and just subserviently jumped on the bandwagon of conventional wisdom, where her diary is hailed a "classic." BS!!!!
   
   After having thoroughly read this, I can assure you that it's no classic and D-E-F-I-N-I-T-E-L-Y not worth your time or money...unless, of course, you get your kicks and jollies from plumbing the trivial and superficial mind of a fourteen-year-old. This stellar, brutally-but-intellectually-honest review of mine will analytically break down precisely what the hell's wrong with Anne's diary (plenty!) and warn you against reading it. If you're not narrow-minded and can take an analysis which intrepidly contravenes the discreditable conventional wisdom of the masses, then you'll be grateful for this review. If you're a hypersensitive sheeple, then I expect you to be appalled and shocked at the alleged "audacity" of this review, but that's YOUR problem, not mine. All I concern myself with is an intellectually honest review of this diary.
   
   I went into The Diary of Anne Frank because it came to my attention that I hadn't read it in high school, whereas many of my peers had indeed had it mandated for reading in school. I attended a Catholic high school, and it's not like Catholics have something even remotely to be shameful about concerning their treatment of Jews in WWII. Why, in fact, educated people know that even N*zi Adolf Eichmann confessed in his diaries that the Catholic Church in occupied Italy was the only organization that loudly protested and opposed the mass deportation of Jews from their "ghetto" in Rome. So, I wanted to catch up on this apparent "classic" because it was missed reading at my old, Catholic high school.
   
   However, I absolutely regret and curse this misjudgment of mine due to the appalling quality and shortcoming of the content of the diary. See, as a new reader, I perceptively went into the Diary of Anne Frank with the reasonable expectation that it would, you know, perhaps talk about her feelings relating to--I don't know!--the genocidal, N*zi occupation, which had forced her family and some acquaintances into an attic, where they lived like imprisoned animals under extreme duress. That would make for an interesting read obviously because one would delve into the psychology of a person in such duress and try to relate. Conventional wisdom has it that that's what her diary mainly relates to, but in actuality...her diary's actually filled to the nauseating brim with her infatuation (nah, kids these days would call it her "crushing) on her attic-mate Peter; endlessly boring stories about preparing and storing vegetables in their attic; girl talk about her prior crush before she went into hiding; lurid tales about her discovering her budding sexuality; typical teen-girl angst about how she's never really had close girlfriends; grumbling about the adults in the attic always rebuking her due to her forthrightness; and how she hates her mother like a typical EMO teenager, just to name a few!!!!
   
   Anne disappointingly spends precious few entries (the vast minority) on the more interesting and valuable ruminations, such as those on human nature, persecution of Jews, and the terror felt inside the attic that came primarily from being discovered, or from the sounds and sights of war breaking loose outside her attic (on a couple of entries, she even recounts stories of downed fighter planes and their pilots' fate). That's the unpardonable fault of her diary because only these kinds of idiosyncratic entries actually material to WW2 are what would elevate her diary above that of any other, mundane, teen girl's. That so much of her diary is precisely so ordinary according to what one stereotypically expects from ANY teen girl's entries is the real pity in this exaggeratedly hyped work.
   
   I found the purpose of Anne's diary much more useful in detailing how more wonderfully conservative society was in the 40s--rather than getting the reader to empathize with WW2-era, persecuted Jews--compared to today's liberal nightmare. In example, Anne's many entries where she's "crushing" on her attic-mate, Peter, involve feelings of sincere, simplistic affection and puppy love, maybe quaint but still adorable in hindsight. For instance, in many entries, Anne swoons over attic-mate Peter's confiding in her or the way he merely looks at her; to her as a girl in the 40s back then, that already qualified as a "fantasy." Contrast this to the inarguable fact that in today's world, many 14-year-olds in Anne's shoes would probably have infectious thoughts of desiring to sexually please their crushes (and then do so!) just so they could feel like "true women!" Another unmistakable motif in Anne's experiences that comes through as a confirmation of how more wonderfully conservative things were back then is the constant reference to schoolwork, and, by golly, actually doing well at it! In some entries, Anne actually *gulp* takes pride in getting good grades in school and measuring herself as a person based on her work ethic in class, again, wonderfully "old-fashioned." Again, contrast this with many 14-year-olds today who--especially if they're in the NEA's public schools--can't read, write or do any `rithmetic, yet can tell you all kinds of things about the b*tches and h*es in rap music!!!!
   
   This latest edition of her diary, The so-called Definitive Edition, includes inexcusably AWKWARD entries involving Anne's sexual awakening, which is also a discomforting sign of the incrementing liberalism that's occurring societally, whereas her dad, Otto, wisely omitted these lewd entries from the original publication. For instance, on page 162, she writes, "Once when I was spending the night at Jacque's, I could no longer restrain my curiosity about her body, which she'd always hidden from me and which I'd never seen. I asked her whether, as proof of our friendship, we could touch each other's br*asts. Jacque refused. I also had a terrible desire to kiss her, which I did. Every time I see a female nude...I go into ecstasy." Gross!!!! This egregiously has nothing to do with WW2, or a person's feelings of being imprisoned in an attic while hoping the N*zis don't discover her. The inclusion of this lewdness was utterly ill-advised.
   
   Surprisingly, though, some of Anne's entries include reflections which prove she possessed moral clarity and, unlike today's liberals (the arbiters of moral relativism), had the ability to judge between good and evil with regards to WW2. For instance, on page 334 (from July 21, 1944), she writes, "Now, at last, things are going well!...An *ss*ssination attempt has been made on H*tler's life, and for once not by Jewish Communists or English capitalists, but by a German general...This is the best proof we've had so far that many officers and generals are fed up with the war and would like to see H*tler sink into a bottomless pit..." Here, Anne clearly demonstrates that she confidently feels it's perfectly all right to be happy at the prospect of your enemy being killed in a war. Further, she also interprets the *ss*ssination attempt in a pro-Allies, anti-German way, suspecting that H*tler's generals are turning on him. Contrast that to today's dreadful, modern liberals who would have a hell of a hard time rejoicing about the prospect of Bin Laden's death or any terrorist's, for that matter, because they're too obsessed with getting them "legal rights" through habeas corpus and moving them onto the US mainland for detention purposes!!!!
   
   Still, Anne's diary is soooo disappointingly off-the-mark that I want anyone even flirting with the idea of reading a fourteen-year-old's musings to just boycott it. It's so dreadful because it mostly evades reflecting on WW2 and the hardships of attic life. Mainly, it reads like every other fourteen-year-old girl's diary from the beginning of time to infinity, and, so, is an absolutely superficial read!!!! To get an idea of how WW2 affected people, you can get a better read almost ANYWHERE ELSE. If you want to get inside a fourteen-year-old girl's trivial head--which Anne's diary is really mostly about: crushes, boys, resentment of parents, etc.--you should just steal your kid sister's. What's that? Don't have a kid sister?! Well, then steal the diary of your friend's or neighbor's kid sister because you'll get the same trivialities there as in Anne Frank's diary.

5 comments about Brotherhood of Warriors: Behind Enemy Lines with a Commando in One of the World's Most Elite Counterterrorism Units.

1. I heard the author Aaron Cohen on a radio interview and decided to buy the book. Once I started reading, I could not put it down. It is much more than an inside look at the clandestine warriors on the front lines of the international war against terrorism. It is a coming of age journey about a young man who finds himself and the meaning of life amidst the most extreme circumstances imaginable.
   
   My girlfriend thought it might not appeal to her, but she started reading it after I finished and now she can't put it down. This would make an amazing movie.



2. This book tells an an astonishing story of an 18 year old who gave up the option of the "good life" in Los Angeles to pursue some of the most difficult training and dangerous counter terror missions imaginable. (Look for the scene of Cohen going undercover to meet a terrorist big shot in a Jerusalem cafe.) It's a fast-paced, exciting memoir, one of the best I've read in years. Once I started, I couldn't put it down. Highly recommended to anyone interested in current affairs, counter terrorism and national security.



3. I heard the author being interviewed on the Michael Savage radio show and immediately went out to buy the book. I was definitely not disappointed an excellent read from a person who had everything except that which he felt was missing from his life which he went out to discover and found. A great book 100 stars could not put the book down once I started reading it. Hopefully he goes on a book signing tour or this is made into a movie



4. A compelling read, very well-written and a good balance of very personal perspective and simply amazing descriptions of the brutal selection and training of Israel's top counter-terror commandos (as done in the 1990's).
   
   Cohen, like his instructors and fellows, pulls no punches discussing the positives and negatives of the process. His own experience of how this kind of preparation forever changes the men who survive it, and then how the work itself inevitably degrades social connectedness and relationships is as psychologically detailed and perceptive as anything I've ever read, and I commend his ruthless honesty.
   
   He also gives a fond but hard-eyed look at the changing Israeli society and the often unfortunate way it is absorbing some of our less positive qualities.
   
   VERY highly recommended. A great read.



5. Amazing book, great detail and as was said before, no punches pulled. From the uncertainty of growing up to gaining his confidence with the Israeli Defence Force (IDF), Mr. Cohen details his experiences growing up in the US to his making aliyah to Israel and going through his training to join one of if not the toughest counterterrorism military units in the entire world. I certainly believe that his experiences could go a long way in making sure that the next time you travel in an aiport you don't get questioned by some person who only has their GED and can't wait to get home. Instead you're questioned by a person who knows why they are there and are vigilant in their search for the next terror threat. It drives home the point of "Security with a Purpose". People in Israel deal with terror threats on a daily basis and taking what they've learned and have put into use could only help to make our country that much more secure. Are there points in the book that may offend people?? Yes, such as the profiling that happens on a daily basis in Israel, however with that in mind, understand that most of the bombings occurring there are perpetrated by Arabs. It's a simple fact of life.

5 comments about Night (Oprah's Book Club).

1. Night, this book went through my soul.
   Elie Wiesel described the pain, that many others and I have, in words that would be impossible for me to do.



2. This book is definitely one of my favorites. I was really sick with a stomach flu one time and I read the entire trilogy start to finish. I have never done that with any other book.
   
   The imagary is amazing. Wiesel has a way of creating an environment of such hostile conditions that you feel it in your soul. Any other person would want to repress such horrid memories, but Elie brings them to the forefront of his mind, and I was left with such a feeling of gratitude when finishing this book it was overwhelming.



3. Regardless of how many times I return to this book, it never fails to shock and inspire. An indispensable recollection of the horror of the Holocaust and one survivors struggle to reconcile his experience and his faith.



4. There are no words worthy to describe this epic and true tale of the Holocaust.
   
   Buy the book, but prepare yourself for this tragedy that is our world history.
   
   Never again.
   
   Wolfe



5. I have been to Germany, toured Dachau and have been interested in reading about the holocaust ever since. Reading "Night", was nothing short of amazing. There wasn't one page where I lost interest and by the end, I felt conflicted. I was happy that such a sad story was over, but sad that such an amazing book was done. Elie Wiesel is hero, a survivor, an excellent son and a gifted author. It's so sad that all this greatness came at such a personal cost. Would I ever love to sit and talk with this man... amazing from cover to cover.