Overview

On July 10, 1941, in Nazi-occupied Poland, half of the town of Jedwabne brutally murdered the other half: 1,600 men, women, and children-all but seven of the town's Jews. In this shocking and compelling classic of Holocaust history, Jan Gross reveals how Jedwabne's Jews were murdered not by faceless Nazis but by people who knew them well-their non-Jewish Polish neighbors. A previously untold story of the complicity of non-Germans in the extermination of the Jews, Neighbors shows how people victimized by the Nazis could at the same time victimize their Jewish fellow citizens. In a new preface, Gross reflects on the book's explosive international impact and the backlash it continues to provoke from right-wing Polish nationalists who still deny their ancestors' role in the destruction of the Jews.

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Nothing could have prepared the 1,600 Jews in Jedwabne, a town in northeast Poland, for the hell of their final days in the summer of 1941. . . . It is an especially gruesome Holocaust horror story. But it is a tale that, 60 years later, has stunned Poland. For what Poles have learned recently is that the perpetrators in this case weren't Germans, though the Nazi occupiers clearly approved the slaughter. They were Poles, the Jedwabne neighbors of the Jews. And the revelation of their role has triggered a wave of agonized soul-searching since it emerged . . . in Neighbors, a slim, carefully researched book [that] has guaranteed that Poles will never see their wartime history in the same way. . . . The controversy over Neighbors is already spreading across the Atlantic. ---Andrew Nagorski, Newsweek Neighbors strikes squarely at Poland's accepted historical narrative . . . One Polish critic compares the gathering controversy to the uproar with which Germans greeted Hitler's Willing Executioners, Daniel Goldhagen's 1996 study of civilian participation in the Holocaust. ---John Reed, Financial Times The first question that leaps to mind is why the story of a massacre so monstrous, and of such historic significance, should surface only now, half a century after the fact. The answer to this question is both startling and complex. . . . A detailed account is provided by the sociologist and historian Jan T. Gross in his book. . . Gross's scrupulously documented study challenges another cherished myth: the noble attempts of most Poles to save Jews. ---Abraham Brumberg, Times Literary Supplement An important contribution to the literature of human bestiality unleashed by war. Neighbors tells a story that has long been known in Poland but one that has shocked the rest of the world and even, it seems, the Poles themselves . . . [A] fine, careful book about the awful massacre in Jebwabne . . . [Gross] is cautious and fair to the facts. ---Steven Erlanger, New York Times Book Review Nothing can make up for the horror. But if the screams of those burning alive at Jedwabne are heard at last, they may not have been completely in vain. ---George Steiner, The Observer Horrifying and thoughtful. * Times Literary Supplement * [This] small book detailing the massacre of the Jews of Jedwabne raises large questions about the roles Poles and Germans played in some of the boodiest actions against Jews during World War II. . . . Neighbors tells a compelling story admirably. It should be widely read and discussed, for the complex, unsettling issues it raises still need to be fully explored. ---Alvin H. Rosenfeld, New Leader Sixty years ago, on July 10, 1941, half the Polish town of Jedwabne murdered the other half. Why did the murderers do it? Prof. Jan Gross of New York University may not fully realize he has found the answer. It is in his astonishing little book. The title, Neighbors, is an ice dagger to the heart, but only after the book has been read. ---George F. Will, Newsweek [Gross] brings much art to the enterprise. . . . Neighbors. . . is possessed of the key virtues: moral energy, commitment to accuracy, and the maintenance of a continuing open dialogue between historian, sources, and reader. ---Inga Clendinnen, London Review of Books

""National Book Award Finalist"" ""Selected Entry for the National Book Critics Circle Award"" ""Compact, sharp and withering. . . . A book to be read, a book to be reckoned with. . . . Like an oral tale transcribed by a folklorist, it has the ring of the eternal to it. My tale is simple and horrible, it seems to say; listen to it and remember it and pass it along. Hatred like this runs deep in human nature and is ever ready to erupt again. Be warned.""---Michael Frank, Los Angeles Times ""An important contribution to the literature of human bestiality unleashed by war. . . . [A] fine, careful book about the awful massacre in Jebwabne.""---Steven Erlanger, New York Times Book Review ""Astonishing. . . . The title, Neighbors, is an ice dagger to the heart.""---George F. Will, Newsweek ""Compelling and immediate.""---Linda Matchan, Boston Globe ""Nothing can make up for the horror. But if the screams of those burning alive at Jedwabne are heard at last, they may not have been completely in vain.""---George Steiner, The Observer ""Powerful. . . . Extraordinary.""---Jaroslav Anders, New Republic ""Horrifying and thoughtful.""---István Deák, New York Review of Books ""Neighbors strikes squarely at Poland's accepted historical narrative.""---John Reed, Financial Times ""[A] scrupulously documented study.""---Abraham Brumberg, Times Literary Supplement ""Neighbors tells a compelling story admirably. It should be widely read and discussed, for the complex, unsettling issues it raises still need to be fully explored.""---Alvin H. Rosenfeld, New Leader ""[Gross] is possessed of the key . . . virtues: moral energy, commitment to accuracy, and the maintenance of a continuing open dialogue between historian, sources, and reader.""---Inga Clendinnen, London Review of Books ""Compelling. . . . Gross’s dispassionate book is the most comprehensive effort to uncover the stark truth about Jedwabne.""---Robert S. Wistrich, Commentary

National Book Award Finalist Selected Entry for the National Book Critics Circle Award Compact, sharp and withering. . . . A book to be read, a book to be reckoned with. . . . Like an oral tale transcribed by a folklorist, it has the ring of the eternal to it. My tale is simple and horrible, it seems to say; listen to it and remember it and pass it along. Hatred like this runs deep in human nature and is ever ready to erupt again. Be warned. ---Michael Frank, Los Angeles Times An important contribution to the literature of human bestiality unleashed by war. . . . [A] fine, careful book about the awful massacre in Jebwabne. ---Steven Erlanger, New York Times Book Review Astonishing. . . . The title, Neighbors, is an ice dagger to the heart. ---George F. Will, Newsweek Compelling and immediate. ---Linda Matchan, Boston Globe Nothing can make up for the horror. But if the screams of those burning alive at Jedwabne are heard at last, they may not have been completely in vain. ---George Steiner, The Observer Powerful. . . . Extraordinary. ---Jaroslav Anders, New Republic Horrifying and thoughtful. ---Istvan Deak, New York Review of Books Neighbors strikes squarely at Poland's accepted historical narrative. ---John Reed, Financial Times [A] scrupulously documented study. ---Abraham Brumberg, Times Literary Supplement Neighbors tells a compelling story admirably. It should be widely read and discussed, for the complex, unsettling issues it raises still need to be fully explored. ---Alvin H. Rosenfeld, New Leader [Gross] is possessed of the key . . . virtues: moral energy, commitment to accuracy, and the maintenance of a continuing open dialogue between historian, sources, and reader. ---Inga Clendinnen, London Review of Books Compelling. . . . Gross's dispassionate book is the most comprehensive effort to uncover the stark truth about Jedwabne. ---Robert S. Wistrich, Commentary

An important contribution to the literature of human bestiality unleashed by war. Neighbors tells a story that has long been known in Poland but one that has shocked the rest of the world and even, it seems, the Poles themselves. . . . [A] fine, careful book about the awful massacre in Jebwabne. ---Steven Erlanger, New York Times Book Review Nothing can make up for the horror. But if the screams of those burning alive at Jedwabne are heard at last, they may not have been completely in vain. ---George Steiner, The Observer [An] astonishing little book. The title, Neighbors, is an ice dagger to the heart. ---George F. Will, Newsweek Neighbors strikes squarely at Poland's accepted historical narrative. ---John Reed, Financial Times A slim, carefully researched book [that] has guaranteed that Poles will never see their wartime history in the same way. ---Andrew Nagorski, Newsweek [A] scrupulously documented study. ---Abraham Brumberg, Times Literary Supplement Neighbors tells a compelling story admirably. It should be widely read and discussed. ---Alvin H. Rosenfeld, New Leader Horrifying and thoughtful. ---Istvan Deak, New York Review of Books [Neighbors] is possessed of the key virtues: moral energy, commitment to accuracy, and the maintenance of a continuing open dialogue between historian, sources, and reader. ---Inga Clendinnen, London Review of Books

Author Information

Jan T. Gross is the Norman B. Tomlinson '16 and '48 Professor Emeritus of War and Society and professor emeritus of history at Princeton University. His books include Fear: Anti-Semitism in Poland after Auschwitz.

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