Overview

"""My Sister's Eyes is a charming work written with precision and passion. From their prosperous life in Poland through the Nazi onslaught and their perilous flight to freedom..."" Dr. Michael Berenbaum, Director of the Sigi Ziering Institute and co-founder of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Washington, D.C.: ""My Sister's Eyes is a vigilant call to others not to forget...It is also a salute to Aristides de Sousa Mendes..."" Dr. Mordecai Paldiel, the leading world authority on the Righteous Diplomats, former Director of the Righteous Among the Nations Department at Yad Vashem, the World Holocaust Remembrance Center in Jerusalem, Israel. This exquisitely crafted book brings to life the story of one young Jewish couple's upended life. The author, Joan Arnay Halperin, skillfully depicts her parents' prosperous pre-war life in Poland and Belgium, including their fortuitous blind date, whirlwind romance, orthodox marriage, and the birth of their first child. The reader then experiences the Krakowiak family's perilous escape from the Nazi invasion of western Europe beginning with the blitzkrieg of Belgium on May 10, 1940 to their months in limbo in Portugal, where they anxiously await visas for presumed safety in the New World. Over the course of their circuitous route which lasts one thousand two hundred and forty-one days, they confront unspeakable tragedy and still continue on with an indomitable spirit that imbues the reader with admiration and hope for humankind despite the evil of some. In addition to this personalized vantage point that so gracefully humanizes the horrific effects of World War II, the book also informs the reader of the moral courage and heroism of Aristides de Sousa Mendes, the Portuguese Consul General in Bordeaux, France in 1940, who issued thousands of visas to desperate refugees for safety in Portugal."

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9780692844892

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Reviews

KIRKUS REVIEWS My Sister's Eyes: A Family Chronicle of Rescue and Loss During World War II by Joan Arnay Halperin In this debut memoir, a Jewish American woman charts her family's escape from Nazi-occupied Europe and celebrates the memory of a sibling she never met...The author begins the narrative by documenting her parents' lives in Poland before World War II...By 1940, the family joined the crowds of desperate refugees intent on escape...the book records a journey of terror, hope, and loss, using family photographs, letters, and legal documents. It's like being allowed access to a family's private archive, and Halperin's erudite, tender prose carefully explains the significance of each and every slip of paper...The author's laconic but powerfully evocative style allows the reader to step back to the very moment...Overall, this is an important and deeply personal memoir that vividly documents the struggles of a refugee family...A thoroughly researched and intensely moving remembrance. MID-WEST BOOK REVIEWS - The Holocaust Studies Shelf - August 2017 Edition My Sister's Eyes: A Family Chronicle of Rescue and Loss During World War II by Joan Arnay Halperin tells the story of the Polish-Jewish Krakowiak family beginning with their prosperous pre-war life in Poland and Belgium, then suffering the Nazi onslaught and their perilous flight to freedom. Of special note is the reporting of the moral heroism of the Portuguese Consul in Bordeaux and then the family's ultimate escape from the holocaust inferno of war and their journey to America. Profusely illustrated and specifically written for young readers, My Sister's Eyes is an impressive testament to the human spirit and with its underlying message of 'Never Forget. Unique, exceptional, informative, emotionally moving, My Sister's Eyes ' is very highly recommended for family, school and community library Holocaust Studies collections for children. JEWISH BOOK COUNCIL REVIEW by Marge Kaplan My Sister's Eyes: A Family Chronicle of Rescue and Loss During World War II by Joan Arnay Halperin Foreword by Dr. Mordecai Paldiel, former Diretor of the Righteous Among the Nations Department, Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial, Jerusalem, Israel There are few books of Holocaust testimony that include pictures of families who lived through those times. This book is valuable as it contains family photographs dating from before 1939 and up until 1997. The photographs have been collected by Ignas and Hala Krakowiak's daughter, Joan. In 1997, Joan's mother agreed to catalog some of her experiences and share them with generations-to-come and begins to share her life in both words and pictures...In addition to the text and the photographs, there are letters from the 1942 Jamaican camp where children who knew Yvonne express their shock and loss after her death as well as letters from family in the Polish ghetto. This collection of family memorabilia, letters, postcards, family trees, and Nazi signage gives a comprehensive look at what Jewish families in Europe went through during the Nazi era and beyond. A useful resource for the education of today's youth, this book is recommended for ages 12 to 16.

KIRKUS REVIEWS My Sister's Eyes: A Family Chronicle of Rescue and Loss During World War II by Joan Arnay Halperin In this debut memoir, a Jewish American woman charts her family's escape from Nazi-occupied Europe and celebrates the memory of a sibling she never met...The author begins the narrative by documenting her parents' lives in Poland before World War II...By 1940, the family joined the crowds of desperate refugees intent on escape...the book records a journey of terror, hope, and loss, using family photographs, letters, and legal documents. It's like being allowed access to a family's private archive, and Halperin's erudite, tender prose carefully explains the significance of each and every slip of paper...The author's laconic but powerfully evocative style allows the reader to step back to the very moment...Overall, this is an important and deeply personal memoir that vividly documents the struggles of a refugee family...A thoroughly researched and intensely moving remembrance. MID-WEST BOOK REVIEWS - The Holocaust Studies Shelf - August 2017 Edition My Sister's Eyes: A Family Chronicle of Rescue and Loss During World War II by Joan Arnay Halperin tells the story of the Polish-Jewish Krakowiak family beginning with their prosperous pre-war life in Poland and Belgium, then suffering the Nazi onslaught and their perilous flight to freedom...and then the family's ultimate escape from the holocaust inferno of war and their journey to America. Profusely illustrated and specifically written for young readers, My Sister's Eyes is an impressive testament to the human spirit and with its underlying message of 'Never Forget'. Unique, exceptional, informative, emotionally moving, My Sister's Eyes ' is very highly recommended for family, school and community library Holocaust Studies collections for children. JEWISH BOOK COUNCIL REVIEW by Marge Kaplan My Sister's Eyes: A Family Chronicle of Rescue and Loss During World War II by Joan Arnay Halperin Foreword by Dr. Mordecai Paldiel, former Director of the Righteous Among the Nations Department, Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial, Jerusalem, Israel There are few books of Holocaust testimony that include pictures of families who lived through those times. This book is valuable as it contains family photographs dating from before 1939 and up until 1997. The photographs have been collected by Ignas and Hala Krakowiak's daughter, Joan. In 1997, Joan's mother agreed to catalog some of her experiences and share them with generations-to-come and begins to share her life in both words and pictures...In addition to the text and the photographs, there are letters from the 1942 Jamaican camp where children who knew Yvonne express their shock and loss after her death as well as letters from family in the Polish ghetto. This collection of family memorabilia, letters, postcards, family trees, and Nazi signage gives a comprehensive look at what Jewish families in Europe went through during the Nazi era and beyond. A useful resource for the education of today's youth, this book is recommended for ages 12 to 16. ONLINEBOOKCLUB.ORG - My Sister's Eyes I feel very privileged to have read their story.

Author Information

Joan Arnay Halperin is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin at Madison with a BA in Speech and Drama. She earned a Master of Arts Degree in TESOL and devoted many years to teaching, grant writing and teacher training at various New York City Public Schools. In 2012, while doing research for this book, Joan learned of Aristides de Sousa Mendes and his heroic acts. She now dedicates her energies to the Sousa Mendes Foundation as Director of Educational Initiatives. Dr. Mordecai Paldiel is the leading world authority on the Righteous Diplomats and former Director of the Righteous Among the Nations Department at Yad Vashem, the World Holocaust Remembrance Center in Jerusalem, Israel. Prof. of Jewish Studies at the Sigi Ziering Institute, American Jewish University and Co-founding Curator of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Washington, D.C.

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