A personal depiction of life in Poland set against the Nazi and Soviet takeovers of Europe and their cataclysmic aftermaths. It is the compelling memoir of Alexander Kimel, taking him from a shtetl in the Polish Ukraine to a Nazi ghetto to liberation.

It is also the harrowing story of his wife, Eva, whose father is murdered in the “Holocaust by Bullets.” A dialog across generations with narrative written by their son, the book is a rare portrayal of Jewish survivors who remained in Communist Poland after the war.

It is a story of the many challenges they faced and the life they built together after quitting Poland in 1956 for Israel, ultimately emigrating to America. By including the stories of other family members, the book also provides a panoramic view of Polish Jewry before, during, and after the war.

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The following excerpt from The Pessimist’s Son: A Holocaust Memoir of Hope by Alexander Kimel and Martin Kimel shared only with Remember.org. Copyright 2025 Martin Kimel. All Rights Reserved. For questions please contact the author here.

CHAPTER 1

The Shtetl

Podhajce was a town forgotten by time, tucked between a high mountain and a large lake, with a horse-drawn fire engine, a half-blind town crier, and one automobile. The huge market square—rynek, in Polish—was the soul of the town.

Here, every Thursday, hundreds of peasants sold their eggs, chickens, and butter and bought their dry goods. At the same time, their horses deposited in the market a huge supply of manure, the sole source of pollution in town.

The only car in the shtetl—when it ran—was a reason for excitement and the pride of the town. When it appeared running at a top speed of fifteen miles per hour, children tried to outrun it and touch this huffing and puffing symbol of modernity.

A mix of Poles, Jews, and Ukrainians, living in a hateful harmony, inhabited the town; they needed and hated each other. They lived in dilapidated, whitewashed clay huts with flickering kerosene lamps.

The few rich people lived in high, two-story stucco buildings with electric lights and hand-cranked telephones.

The town had an assortment of “celebrities” from all walks of life: B., the half-witted town fool, master of profanity; E., the town’s crazy man; W., the one-handed invalid peddling an antisemitic newspaper; the Burstiner Rebbe, the religious leader, and his gabbai, or business manager, Joel.1

What did the town’s people live on? The Poles owned the land; the Ukrainians toiled on their small lots and on the big estates of the Polish land- owners; and the Jews traded.

They traded everything and with everybody and even among themselves. A bushel of wheat worth ten zlotys went through many hands, increasing the price by a whole fifty groshen (half a zloty).

The Jews lived in a close-knit, diverse society. It was comprised of the gevirim—the rich men; the balabatim—the well-to-do citizens; the balmelochis—the tradesmen, the butchers, the shoemakers, the tailors; the shnorrers (“beggars,” in Yiddish)—the market women and the middlemen living from day to day.

Most of the Jews were poor. Even the successful merchants were not millionaires. How much money can you make selling five cents worth of sugar?

Despite the general poverty, life was passable. Entertainment was plentiful, and food was cheap. For fifty groshen, you could buy a pail of fresh cherries; a sack of potatoes was seventy-five groshen; and a live chicken also cost seventy-five groshen.

The only problem was how to earn the needed money. People were known by their trades, which were passed down from generation to generation: “Velve the katzif”—Velve the butcher; “Meir the schnader”—Meir the tailor; “Shloyme the balagule”—Shloyme the coach- man.

There also was no generation gap. There is less room for generations not to understand each other when each generation has the same livelihood.

Martin’s Note: Many people had nicknames unrelated to their professions. Nicknames in shtetls could be brutal,2 and Podhajce was no exception. It seems that many people there got nicknames relating to their worst personal traits.

For example, writing in Sefer Podhajce, the yizkor book of Podhajce, Baruch Milch mentions Yehuda the Lo (Judah the “no”), who was referred to as such because he always expressed a negative opinion and stressed the vowel in lo (“no,” in Hebrew).

Milch also tells the story of a shoe wholesaler from Lwów (now Lviv, Ukraine) who was dunning a Mr. Leon Weiss, a leather and shoe merchant, for late payments. He asked many people in Podhajce where Leon Weiss lived, but nobody recognized the name.

Eventually, he discovered that Weiss was known in the town by his nickname, Leibele Trask—“Leibele the Smack,” because he got upset easily and threatened to “smack” people.3

Apparently, my dad got off easy: he had a nickname related to his Hebrew name, “Shiko” (derived from Joshua). I believe that my grandfather, who was born Leib Hersh, was referred to in Podhajce as Hersh.

* * *

There was no television to isolate people from one other, to make them lonely. At six o’clock, the youth of the town provided the shtetl with an unstaged show. The “Corso,” as the sidewalk area around the rynek was called, was full of young couples walking hand in hand.

It was a colorful pageant. The Corso served many purposes. It was a mating place for young people. Here, the town beauties would select their boyfriends.

It was a non-stop fashion show, too; here, a girl named Dziunia would show off her mother’s creative talent in copying the latest fashion journals. Because of this show, some people called Podhajce “the Paris of Galicia.”4

The Jews in the town lived from week to week, and the most important days in the week were Thursdays and Saturdays. Saturday (the Jewish Sabbath, known as Shabbat) was the holy day. Thursday was the day that you earned the money needed to celebrate the Sabbath.

Each Jew, regardless how poor he was, had to observe the Sabbath with a good meal. So, Thursday was a hustling day; the poor men ran around the horse-driven peasant’s carts, trying to trade, buy, or sell while the merchant stood in front of the meager stores hawking brown leather shoes or colorful cottons for dresses.

The women had a field day. They were doing the shopping for Saturday’s treats, bargaining with the peasant women selling loaves of yellow butter wrapped in green leaves, or buying noisy chickens, geese, or ducks.

Buying a chicken was a ritual, an art passed down from mother to daughter. First, you had to weigh the chicken, holding it with your right hand, trying to guess its weight.

Then you had to turn the chicken around, take it under your arm, blow off the feathers around the rear and see how much fat the chicken had. After determining that the chicken had a fat rear end, the bargaining process started in earnest.

The trick was to offer a low price and never let the chicken out of your hand. It was a loud ritual: the peasant woman cursing, trying to get the chicken back, the buyer arguing loudly that the chicken had not even one ounce of fat—and the surprised chicken cackling loudly.

My Schooling

Like other Jewish boys, I started my schooling at the age of three. I attended a cheder—a one-room school in which children got religious training. The cheder was really a combination religious school and nursery.

Our teacher, Nusen the Melamed (Nusen the Teacher), taught groups of children, ages three to twelve. When one group of children was taught, the other group played outside, in the small yard.

The melamed used proven, ancient meth- ods of instruction. We repeated in unison the Hebrew words and the Yiddish translation. For example: “Vaydaber Adonai l’Moishe” (“And God spoke to Moses”).5

END OF EXCERPT: For more visit The Pessimist’s Son.

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PRAISE

“The Pessimist’s Son: A Holocaust Memoir of Hope is a moving chronicle of Polish Jewry that belongs in every archive, in every library, indeed, in every home.  But it is much more than that.

In this powerful volume Martin Kimel brings together two extraordinary tales woven into a third inspiring testimony.  The stories of his father and mother are told in the aftermath of the radical assault on the soul that defined the Holocaust.

And they are tales of a kind of healing that each soul offers to the other.  The Pessimist’s Son is a memorial and a testimony not only to what happened during those days of destruction but, above all, to why it matters—something that is often forgotten.

That is what makes this book a memoir of hope, a remembrance for the sake of the future.  That is what makes it so urgent to the world we live in today.”

— David Patterson , Hillel A. Feinberg Distinguished Chair in Holocaust Studies , University of Texas at Dallas

“A compelling memoir of Jewish life in Russian occupied Poland in World War 2, the German invasion of Russia and life underground during the ensuing Holocaust of bullets.

Alexander Kimel’s story is interwoven at every step with his son Martin’s magnificent work of narrative nonfiction to provide a wide-angle view with other first-hand accounts and the larger historical context, including the parallel survivor journey of Alexander’s wife, Eva.

Beautifully written and deeply researched, The Pessimist’s Son is a riveting testament to the ingenuity and resilience of the human spirit when faced with impossible circumstances. Everyone should read it.”

— Scott Lenga, Author of The Watchmakers

Alexander Kimel was born in Podhajce, Poland (now Pidhaitsi, Ukraine) in 1926. After the war, he earned a bachelor’s and master’s degree in electrical engineering at the Wrocław Polytechnic University in Poland. In the U.S., he started and ran his own consulting engineering firm. Poems from his award-winning website on the Holocaust have been used in schools, universities and exhibits, widely reprinted, and recited on YouTube. He also contributed a chapter to the anthology, Life in the Ghettos during the Holocaust. He died in 2018.

Martin Kimel, the son of Alexander and Eva Kimel, is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and Stanford Law School. He is a securities lawyer in Washington, D.C. and lives in Maryland. He has written on the Holocaust and other topics for the Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Baltimore Sun, Wall Street Journal, Times of Israel, Forward, Chicago Tribune and many other publications.

“I Cannot Forget”, two poems by Alexander Kimel

Alexander Kimel – Prayer

The post The Pessimist’s Son by Alexander Kimel and Martin Kimel appeared first on Remember.org - A People's History.

We’re releasing this video interview with Richard Lowy, author of “Kalman & Leopold – Surviving Mengele’s Auschwitz” and son of Leopold Lowy, on Yom HaShoah – Holocaust Remembrance Day – for a reason.

While the January liberation of Auschwitz has become widely recognized internationally, Yom HaShoah remains a distinctly Jewish day of remembrance with deep historical significance.

It is also our 30th anniversary of Remember.org, preserving and sharing the stories of survivors and their children.

Today, on this solemn day of memory and reflection, we remember the extraordinary journey of Kalman and Leopold – two individuals who exemplify what surviving Mengele’s Auschwitz truly meant.

When I first encountered their story, narrated to Richard K. Lowy, I was struck by its understated power.

Unlike many Holocaust narratives that have entered our collective consciousness through dramatized films and emotional retellings, this account offers something different – a quiet, clear-eyed testimony of two individuals whose paths crossed in one of history’s darkest corners.

Two Hungarian Boys, Two Sets of Twins

Kalman and Leopold were both Hungarian Jews, each born as part of a twin pair. When the Nazi occupation of Hungary began in March 1944, neither knew that their status as twins would both endanger and save them.

The Hungarian deportations happened with stunning efficiency – within weeks, entire communities that had existed for centuries were emptied.

Their residents were packed onto trains bound for Auschwitz-Birkenau, where most deportees faced immediate selection upon arrival.

Those deemed unfit for labor – the elderly, young children, pregnant women, the visibly ill – were sent directly to the gas chambers.

But twins were set aside for a different purpose, one that would bring Kalman and Leopold together.

Surviving Mengele’s “Scientific” Interest

Dr. Josef Mengele had secured for himself a unique position at Auschwitz. While functioning as a camp doctor who participated in selections, he also ran what amounted to a personal research laboratory focused primarily on twins.

What’s often overlooked in discussions of Mengele is that he wasn’t a scientific outlier, but rather the product of a respected academic lineage.

The eugenics movement that shaped his research began in earnest in the 1880s with Sir Francis Galton, Darwin’s cousin, who coined the term “eugenics” and advocated for “improving” human populations through selective breeding.

By the early 20th century, eugenics had gained scientific legitimacy across Europe and the United States, with research institutes, academic journals, and even laws supporting its principles.

Mengele studied under Dr. Otmar von Verschuer at the Institute for Hereditary Biology and Racial Hygiene in Frankfurt, who in turn had studied under Eugen Fischer, one of Germany’s leading racial anthropologists.

Fischer’s 1913 studies on mixed-race populations in German Southwest Africa provided a scientific veneer for theories of racial hierarchy decades before the Third Reich.

This academic pedigree gave Mengele’s work at Auschwitz a façade of scientific legitimacy that was recognized within German scientific circles of the time.

Far from being a lone madman, Mengele represented the logical, horrific endpoint of ideas that had been developing in respected academic settings for decades.

In our conversations with Holocaust educators, we’ve found that surviving Mengele’s Auschwitz remains one of the less thoroughly documented aspects of the Holocaust.

This makes firsthand accounts like that of Kalman and Leopold particularly valuable to our historical understanding.

As Leopold matter-of-factly noted in his conversations with his son Richard, he sometimes called Mengele the “Angel of Auschwitz” – not out of any reverence, but because being selected for Mengele’s experiments meant not being sent immediately to the gas chambers.

The reality of these experiments was far from angelic. Twins in Mengele’s program endured regular blood draws, injections of unknown substances, measurements of every physical feature, and comparative studies of their reactions to diseases.

Finding Each Other

What makes the story of Kalman and Leopold unique is that they weren’t related to each other – they each had their own twin siblings.

They were strangers who met through the cruel circumstance of Mengele’s twin program.

In the dehumanizing environment of Auschwitz, where prisoners were reduced to numbers and every aspect of life was designed to break human connection, they formed a bond that would endure for decades.

Their day-to-day survival wasn’t marked by dramatic acts of resistance.

Instead, it consisted of small, consistent gestures of mutual support – sharing food, warning of dangers, providing a moment of distraction through conversation or humor.

When students ask what helped people survive the camps, often these ordinary but crucial human connections provided reasons to continue when all logical reasons were stripped away.

Separation and Rediscovery

When liberation came in January 1945, Kalman and Leopold lost track of each other amid the chaos of the war’s end.

The postwar years presented their own challenges – displacement, immigration restrictions, the struggle to rebuild lives from nothing, and the often impossible task of locating lost family and friends across a transformed Europe.

For 56 years, they lived separate lives, each carrying memories of their time in Auschwitz and of each other. The odds against their ever reconnecting seemed insurmountable.

Yet through an almost impossible series of coincidences – the airing of a documentary called “Leo’s Journey” about Leopold Lowy’s life – they found each other again after more than half a century.

Their reunion bridges not just physical distance but the psychological expanse of decades lived in the aftermath of trauma.

Why This Account of Surviving Mengele’s Auschwitz Matters Now

When teaching the Holocaust to today’s students, we often struggle with how to present the enormity of the event without overwhelming.

Individual stories like that of Kalman and Leopold offer a way in – they allow us to understand the broader historical context through the experiences of real people who lived through it.

Their account of surviving Mengele’s Auschwitz is particularly valuable because so few of his twin subjects have shared their stories.

Most of Mengele’s subjects did not survive the war, and many who did found it difficult to speak about their experiences.

The matter-of-fact way that Kalman and Leopold describe what happened to them – without sensationalism or melodrama – makes their testimony all the more powerful as a teaching tool.

For educators working with middle and high school students, “Kalman & Leopold – Surviving Mengele’s Auschwitz” provides an entry point to discuss not only the historical facts of the Holocaust but also more universal themes.

The story also offers a counterpoint to the more commonly taught narrative of Anne Frank.

While her diary ends with arrest, Kalman and Leopold’s story continues through liberation, separation, and eventual reunion.

Beyond Victimhood

Perhaps most importantly, this book presents Kalman and Leopold not simply as victims, but as complete human beings who experienced one of history’s greatest atrocities and somehow maintained their humanity. Their story isn’t told with the swelling music and dramatic close-ups of a Hollywood film, but with the quiet dignity of lived experience.

In my conversations with Holocaust survivors over the years, I’ve often been struck by their pragmatism and lack of self-dramatization when discussing their experiences. The horrors they witnessed need no embellishment, and their survival required a focus on the practical rather than the emotional.

“Kalman & Leopold – Surviving Mengele’s Auschwitz” captures this quality, making it an authentic and valuable addition to Holocaust literature. For educators, researchers, students, and anyone seeking to understand this chapter of history through the lens of personal experience, this book offers a rare glimpse into an aspect of the Holocaust that few survivors have documented.

It stands as testimony not only to what happened, but to the enduring connections that helped two young men survive – and reconnect against all odds many decades later.

“Kalman & Leopold – Surviving Mengele’s Auschwitz” is available for educational institutions and can be incorporated into Holocaust studies curricula for high school and university-level courses. This rare testimony of surviving Mengele’s Auschwitz provides educators with a valuable primary source that brings history to life through authentic personal experience.

The post Surviving Mengele’s Auschwitz: The Story of Kalman and Leopold appeared first on Remember.org - A People's History.

History lives in silence, so much so that a Mengele Auschwitz firsthand account is rare, and precious.

For decades, Holocaust survivors like Richard Lowy’s father kept their experiences locked away, carrying unimaginable trauma without burdening their children with the horrors they had witnessed.

As Richard recounts,

“Father had the numbers on his arms, and we all knew that he survived World War Two, but we had no idea.”

It wasn’t until after his twin sister Miriam’s death in 1999 that Leopold Lowy finally agreed to share his story—the story of being a Mengele twin at Auschwitz, where he and Kalman witnessed and survived one of history’s darkest chapters.

Get “Kalman & Leopold” on Amazon

In this powerful excerpt, we witness October 7, 1944, through the eyes of two teenage boys who survived Dr. Josef Mengele’s cruel experiments.

Remember.org is proud to present this exclusive chapter from “Kalman and Leopold: Surviving Mengele’s Auschwitz,” a testament to human resilience, with a Mengele Auschwitz firsthand account bearing witness. As fewer survivors remain with us each year, these firsthand accounts become ever more precious in our commitment to remember—and to ensure such atrocities are never repeated.

The following excerpt is printed with permission from Richard K. Lowy.

Find more learning tools at their site, where you can reach the author.

All Rights Reserved. © 2025 Richard K. Lowy

Kalman

Saturday, October 7, 1944: The uprising

The day grow worse, and so do our physical conditions. The weather is deteriorating. In this first week of October, people are dying faster. Our lives mean less. Selections are more frequent. Instead of twice a month, they’re now once a week. The machine is speeding up.

We continue on with another miserable routine workday in the guard shack. I’m busy with a pair of army boots and Lipa is wiping the floor around the coal stove in the duty room. He’s at the front and I’m in the last bedroom at the end of the shack.

In the middle of our workday there is a tremendous explosion. The whole guard shack shudders.

I run into the corridor and Lipa is running towards me. We hunch together in the corridor.

We look at each other and realize the explosion came from behind the guard shack, the crematorium. A few moments later we hear the rapid rat-tat-tat of small-arms fire. Jawohl, Fritz, Müeller, and the other guards understand immediately, grabbing their guns and running out the door.

On his way out, Red-Nose yells, “Verschwinde! Verschwinde von hier! [Get the hell out of here!]” and they’re gone.

We’re left alone.

Lipa grabs me by the collar, says, “Come,” and pulls me outside around to the back, cautioning me, “Be careful of the fence.” We stand between the electrified fence and the guard shack in awe and watch.

It’s total mayhem.

Crematorium IV is on fire, smoke is billowing out, the whole thing is an enormous heap of rubble. Small flames sprout out, there is a lot of gunfire, people are running everywhere, machine guns fire from the distant guard tower, it’s madness. We watch as a group of pajamas rush out of the building, overtaking several guards.

This is an uprising.

The Germans are surprised.

Someone in the crematorium must’ve had the wherewithal to say, Look, we’re going to die very soon. Let’s do something against these people.

Whoever arrives to Auschwitz is already a psychologically dismantled person. Their worlds are disrupted and churned up during the several stages of arrival: the ordinances, ghettos, starvation, dehumanization, and the insufferable transports. Uprisings may have occurred in the minds of a few indomitable souls, but the other 99.9 percent are the majority, and they are submissive souls.

Uncle Lajos told me of this group, the Sonderkommandos, a special unit of some comparatively better-fed Jews whose job it is to drag the bodies out of the gas chambers and put them into the ovens. Some had to do this to their own parents, their own children.

Then they had to clean the ash created by the bodies out of the ovens. I’ve heard rumours the Sonderkommandos are liquidated every quarter—they know too much. The Germans call them Geheimnisträger, the bearers of secrets. They work in the heart of the machine and are separated from the main population, the rumours insist. From their point of view, and wisely so, the German command cannot afford any of these groups to remain in the job more than a few months, lest the secrets of Birkenau get out to the world.

Several minutes later a host of military trucks comes tearing up the road and stops right in front of us. Soldiers jump down and line up. One yells orders and then, firearms drawn, they set off toward Crematorium IV. Within minutes the large group of soldiers is shooting back, trying to quell this resistance. Lipa and I—two little mice, forgotten by everyone— stand between the electrified fence and the guard shack and watch.

No one is looking at us. They have more urgent things to worry about. Another explosion tears an opening in the electrified fence. Sparks fly and pajamas race out, running toward the woods.

Soldiers chase after them, machine guns in hand, firing left, right  and center. It looks completely mad. Undirected. Guards from the distant tower continue raining down fire with their machine guns, shooting at anything that moves.

A fair amount of time later, when the place is full of guards and soldiers, the firing stops and everybody who could be caught is killed.

There’s no stopping and asking questions; any running pajama is shot. Bodies lie everywhere. It looks like they all died, but not before they blew up Crematorium IV and forced the killing machine to stop.91 It is a small dent in this seemingly unstoppable machine.

After the uproar winds down, we walk back into our workplace. Shortly thereafter our six hosts return, all very serious, and Jawohl directs them, “Resume your positions.”

He looks at us and says, “No more work. Get lost.” We stand at attention. “Jawohl!”

Collecting our bits and pieces from the storage room, Lipa and I leave and walk back to our barrack. It’s rare we return in the middle of the day. As soon as we enter, everybody descends on us. Now we are the source of information.

We’re bombarded with questions in seven languages—Hungarian, Czech, Greek, Polish, Russian, Yiddish, and German. “Here, talk to me. What happened? What did you see?”

Everyone wants to know. They could hear but not see what was going on outside the barrack. We can’t report much, but what we do is infinitely more than what anyone else saw. We tell them the Sonderkommandos rebelled and blew up the crematorium, there was a gun fight, and most of them died. Those who understand and speak multiple languages start translating to others. Fear rips through the barrack. We all know someone will pay the price for the Sonderkommandos’ actions.

Footnote

On October 7, 1944, Jews in the Sonderkommando at Auschwitz-Birkenau organized the biggest and most spectacular mutiny and escape attempt of the camp’s history. They set fire to one of the crematoria, causing serious damage, and attacked SS men in the vicinity.

Some of the prisoners escaped through the fence and reached the outside, but the SS managed to pursue and surround them, murdering all. A total of approximately two hundred fifty Jews died fighting. A few SS were killed and a number more wounded.

After several minutes, the kapo barks, “That’s it, back to your bunks!” I look around and Lipa’s already gone.

Returning to my bunk, Uncle Lajos is waiting for me and quietly says, “Sit. Now tell me what happened. What did you see?”

I report to him in as much detail as I can. We’re anxious about what will come as a result. By late afternoon the barrack returns to its normal affairs. Uncle Lajos and I sit on the bunk and nibble yesterday’s rations.

Leopold

Saturday, October 7, 1944: The uprising

I’m working in the guard shack when there’s a huge explosion outside, followed by shooting and hollering. The guards run out; I follow to see what’s happening.

Fighting has broken out between the prisoners and the guards. About a hundred and eighty young men called Sonderkommandos are assigned to the crematoria. I understand they do the gassing and load the ovens. They knew when they were assigned this detail that it was a death sentence. They know too much, see too much. Rumours say the Germans burn these guys every four months so there are no eyewitnesses to the internal workings of the crematoria. The Germans can’t take a chance of even one of them escaping.

The Sonderkommandos have overpowered their guards. It’s an uprising. A few guards are killed and some Sonderkommandos take their uniforms. Truckloads of soldiers start arriving with machine guns. The Sonderkommandos don’t have a chance. There’s no point of even considering a win—it’s a losing situation.

After the uprising, our guards come back. There’s no more work for us today, and they send us back to our barrack.

Later in the afternoon, I hear the kapo call out, “A1295,” which is unusual. If I’m going for a medical check, it’s always been in the morning. I’m taken by a Red Cross van to Crematorium II and into a big medical room with two large stone tables with drains for blood. I remember the rumour of the dissections.

There’s no discussion, no notice.

I’m cleaned up and laid out on one of the tables.

On the other, already lying down, is an SS guard.

He must have been injured in the uprising, brought here for medical treatment.

A doctor takes my arm and puts a needle with a tube in me. The other end of this tube also has a needle and is put into the SS. They start transferring my blood. Lying here I’m scared, not batting an eyelash, getting weaker, shaking, so frightened. Nothing is said to me.

For over an hour they drain me dry to save his life. I don’t see the SS guard’s face. He doesn’t see mine. Just two tables, side by side with two tubes, me to him.

When there’s no more to give, they take the tubes out. I am so weak I can’t get off the table. I’m picked up and carried out to the van then literally dropped in front of my barrack with an extra piece of bread. I wonder if I’m going to die right here.

Barely alive, I crawl into the barrack. Some of the other twins help me to my bunk.

I never know what the day will bring, if I will be returned. If I’ll be brought back with a limb missing, with something done to me. I don’t know when a real experiment will happen, when I’ll be harmed physically, and that will be it.

The following excerpt is printed with permission from Richard K. Lowy.

Find more learning tools at their site, where you can reach the author.

All Rights Reserved. © 2025 Richard K. Lowy

In this powerful excerpt, we witness October 7, 1944, through the eyes of two teenage boys – Mengele Auschwitz firsthand accounts –  who survived Mengele’s cruel experiments.

Remember.org is proud to present this exclusive chapter from “Kalman and Leopold: Surviving Mengele’s Auschwitz,” a testament to human resilience and the vital importance of bearing witness. As fewer survivors remain with us each year, these firsthand accounts become ever more precious in our commitment to remember—and to ensure such atrocities are never repeated.

Surviving Mengele’s Auschwitz: The Story of Kalman and Leopold

The post Mengele Auschwitz Firsthand Account: “The Uprising” appeared first on Remember.org - A People's History.

Welcome to a deep dive into a story about the Holocaust in Czechoslovakia, a story that’s heartbreaking, but also really inspiring.

We’re diving into My Name is Alice, a memoir by Holocaust survivor Alice Muller.

So we’re really trying to get inside Alice’s world, right?

See it through her eyes.

A Message from Alice Muller

When I was six, my teacher wore a Hlinka Garda pin on his lapel. I wondered how he would be to me, it gave me a bad feeling, so I was always on the alert and I made sure not to sit in front. He was nice to the children during class, but I made sure to do the homework well so that he should not start up with me.

But at that time, I came home to my father and in the morning I was sent off by my father, and I felt ok. But this situation did not last. You can read more about me in MY NAME IS ALICE, a book I recommend to adults and older high school children.

I hope that I will hear from other survivors here, as well as from anyone else who has a question on the Holocaust, like children and grandchildren of Holocaust survivors, and American students of history.

I am writing an update now on my book, but in the meantime, I have written AL TISHKACH VAL TISLACH: A HOLOCAUST SURVIVOR’S STUDY GUIDE TO THE HOLOCAUST AS RELAYED BY THE JEWISH CALENDAR, and two books for children, My Name is Yisroel Yosef, about my husband Joseph, and Malka and the Holocaust Survivors, about the importance of offering help to living survivors.

I thank you for your interest about what I went through. I wish a Happy New Year to those who read my words who are Jewish, and good wishes for all.

My Name is Alice Paperback –

Chapters One and Two along with photos of Alice Muller

by Alice Muller (Author), Dr. Tzipporah Bat-Ami (Author)

Getting the historical context is important, but those little personal details, that’s what makes it real.

So Alice’s story, it starts in the 1930s, Czechoslovakia, in this town, Michalovce.

She describes it as pretty charming, you know, cobblestone streets, that kind of thing.

But before we get too far, her name, Alice, has a whole story behind it.Oh, is this about those rules they had in Czechoslovakia then?

Like the restrictions on Jewish names?

See, her dad, Herman, he wanted to name her Rachel.

Totally normal, right?

But biblical names. Not allowed for Jewish families.

Like, can you imagine having that choice taken away?
Even something as basic as your child’s name.

Search and Unite | Czech Property and Looted Art in Austria

It’s just shows how deep the anti-Semitism ran, you know.

It was in everything.

Makes you think about all the other compromises people had to make just to exist.

So the clerk, he suggests Rosalie because it starts with R, you see.

But Alice’s mom, she puts her foot down.

My daughter, she says, her name is Alica.

Alica. It’s a fashionable name then.

Maybe a little act of defiance, but also, a mother’s love,
wanting the best for her kid, even with all that’s going on.

And speaking of her childhood, Alice’s memoir really goes into detail about her home, like describing the rooms, the furniture.

She even mentioned this one thing that struck me, a vanity mirror.
Her father bought it for her mother.

A vanity mirror seems like such a, everyday object, especially with everything else going on.

Why do you think that detail stands out?

On the surface, it seems almost insignificant, you know.

But I think it speaks to this desire for normalcy, wanting to hold on to beauty even when everything’s getting darker.

Imagine that.

Fear, uncertainty everywhere, and this mirror, it’s a symbol of their love, of their life.

And it still means something.

It reminds us that even in the darkest times, those little joys, those connections, they offer hope.

And, well, that hope, it becomes even more important as Alice’s story goes on.

And before we get to those tougher times, you mentioned how Czechoslovakia in the 1930s had all these rules about Jewish names.

Can you tell us a bit more about that?

Like, what was it actually like to be a Jewish family living there then?

Before we jump into those tougher times with the Nazi occupation and all,
it’s important to understand what life was like before.

You mentioned timelines, maps, that kind of thing from the Amazon page.

Can you paint us a picture of Jewish life in 1930s Czechoslovakia?

So Czechoslovakia back then, it was considered more tolerant than a lot of Europe, but anti-Semitism was there, definitely growing.

And it showed up in different ways, you know, social stuff, economic restrictions.

It all cast a shadow over these communities.

Imagine that constant pressure, feeling like an outsider in your own country just because of your faith.

And those name restrictions, that was part of it, right?

A very real example of how it was seeping into every part of life.

Yeah, like this slow erosion of freedom.

A slow tightening of the noose.

But even with all that, you see families like Alice’s trying to live their lives, to create that loving home for their kids.

Remember that vanity mirror?

It’s not just a mirror, right?

It’s the symbol of resilience.

Like even when things are falling apart around you, the human spirit, it looks for beauty, looks for hope.

You know, that’s what gets me.

It wasn’t some big grand gesture, just this ordinary thing.

But because of what’s happening around them, it takes on this whole other meaning.

It’s like even small acts of kindness.

They have so much power, especially in times of turmoil.

You cling to those little bits of light.

And that’s something you see a lot in Holocaust stories.

It’s not always the big heroic acts.

It’s those everyday moments, the human connection that helps people get through those horrors.

And as Alice’s story goes on, I’m sure we’ll see more of that.

Now, you mentioned that excerpt from Remember.org.

It kind of ends abruptly.

What does the full book tell us based on that Amazon page?

So the Amazon page, it mentions My Name is Alice, includes those timelines you like, historical context.

But it also like hints at things getting worse, you know, as the Nazis take over.

That’s where those reviews you sent come in, reading them.
It’s like we’re getting all these different takes on Alice’s story.

Everyone’s coming to it with their own experiences.

Some people, they were focused on the history.

Others, it was Alice’s strength that got to them.

There’s this one review, though. By Declan Dunn.

He’s the founder of Remember.org, right?

He’s dedicated his life to sharing these stories.

He called Alice’s book a special work.

Said it touched his heart.

And coming from him, someone who’s heard so many survivor stories.

It carries weight, definitely.

It makes you realize that even within all the Holocaust literature out there,
each story, it’s unique.

It really is.

And it’s through those personal stories that we start to grasp what prejudice, what hate really does, how it destroys individuals, families, whole communities.

It’s easy to forget that sometimes when you’re looking at the bigger picture.

You mentioned a review that praised the historical detail, how those timelines, those maps, they help make it real.

For someone like you who values that accuracy.

It makes all the difference.

I mean, reading about history in a textbook, it’s one thing.

But experiencing it, even indirectly, through someone who lived it, those little details, those glimpses into daily life when everything’s falling apart, that’s how we understand the human cost.

And speaking of those human experiences, another review, it focused on Alice’s resilience.

Even with all that darkness, her spirit, it shines through.

It’s incredible, isn’t it, that even in those moments, the will to survive,
to hold on to hope, it can endure.

Resilience.

It’s a common thread in these stories.

But it never fails to amaze me, that strength, that hope, in the face of such horror.

It reminds you of what we’re capable of.

And that’s what makes Alice’s story and all these stories so important to hear, right?

They remind us of the terrible things we can do to each other, but also the strength we have, the importance of empathy, of understanding.

It makes you think about your own life, how you face your challenges, how you learn, how you treat other people.

It’d be easy to despair after hearing a story like Alice’s, but I think there’s a call to action in there, too.

To be better, kinder, to see the humanity in everyone, no matter what.

Alice’s story, it comes from a dark place in history, sure.

Memories of My Childhood in the Holocaust by Judith Jagermann | Theresienstadt ghetto

But ultimately, it’s about resilience, about hope, about understanding different perspectives.

So as you go about your day, let Alice’s story stay with you, not just as a memory, but as a reminder of that strength we all have, the importance of empathy and building a better world together.

All materials, words, and photos from:

 Get “My Name is Alice” book

See on Amazon

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Discover the inspiring and heartbreaking journey of Abram Korn, a Holocaust survivor whose story is brought to life through the Abram Korn: A Holocaust Survivor website.

This digital memorial offers a comprehensive look into the life of a man who endured unimaginable suffering yet emerged with unwavering resilience.

Go to Abe’s Story

Get “Abe’s Story” book

Uncover a Holocaust Survivor’s Journey

The story of Abram Korn is a harrowing testament to the horrors of the Holocaust and the enduring strength of the human spirit.

Korn, born in 1918 in Grodno, Poland, was a young man when his life was uprooted by the Nazi invasion of his home country. In the years that followed, Korn would endure unimaginable suffering, witnessing the brutality of the Nazis firsthand.

However, Korn’s story is not one of despair. It is also a story of resilience and hope. After surviving the Holocaust, Korn immigrated to the United States and rebuilt his life.

He became a successful businessman and a loving father. Korn’s son, Joey, eventually compiled his father’s memoirs into a book titled “Abe’s Story: A Holocaust Memoir.”

The Abram Korn: A Holocaust Survivor website is a powerful resource that tells the story of Abram Korn’s life.

The website includes an interactive map that traces Korn’s journey from his hometown in Poland to the concentration camps where he was imprisoned.

The website also features excerpts from Korn’s memoirs, providing readers with a firsthand account of his experiences.

In addition to the interactive map and excerpts, the website also includes a section on the teaching the background of the Holocaust.

This section provides essential context for understanding Korn’s story. It discusses the rise of the Nazi Party, the invasion of Poland, and the establishment of the ghettos and concentration camps.

The Abe’s Story website is a valuable resource for anyone who wants to learn more about the Holocaust. The website’s interactive map, excerpts from Korn’s memoirs, and background section comprehensively examine Korn’s life and experiences.

Here is a more detailed look at the key features of the website:

• Interactive Map: The website’s interactive map allows users to trace Korn’s journey from his hometown in Poland to the concentration camps where he was imprisoned. The map includes stops in Grodno, Warsaw, Auschwitz, and Buchenwald. Users can learn more about Korn’s experiences at that location by clicking on each stop.

The interactive map on the Abram Korn website is a powerful tool for understanding Korn’s journey during the Holocaust.

The map includes markers for crucial locations in Korn’s life, including his hometown of Grodno, Poland, and the concentration camps where he was imprisoned.

• Grodno, Poland: Korn’s hometown, Grodno, was a vibrant Jewish community before the war. The map provides information about Jewish life in Grodno before the Nazi invasion.
• Warsaw Ghetto: After the German invasion of Poland, Jews were forced into ghettos. The map includes information about the Warsaw Ghetto, where Korn lived.
• Auschwitz: One of the most notorious concentration camps, Auschwitz was a place of unimaginable horror. The map provides information about the conditions at Auschwitz and Korn’s experiences there.
• Buchenwald: Another concentration camp, Buchenwald was also a place of great suffering. The map provides information about the conditions at Buchenwald and Korn’s experiences there.

The interactive map is a valuable resource for students and teachers alike. It can be used to teach about the geography of the Holocaust and the different stages of Korn’s journey.

• Excerpts from Korn’s Memoirs: The website features excerpts from Korn’s memoirs, “Abe’s Story: A Holocaust Memoir.” These excerpts provide readers with a firsthand account of Korn’s experiences during the Holocaust. The excerpts are a powerful reminder of the brutality of the Nazis and the resilience of the human spirit.

The excerpts from Abram Korn’s memoirs provide a powerful firsthand account of his experiences during the Holocaust. The excerpts are arranged chronologically and cover various topics, from life in the ghetto to survival in the concentration camps.

• Life in the Ghetto: The excerpts describe the harsh conditions of life in the Warsaw Ghetto. Korn describes the hunger, disease, and fear that were constant companions for ghetto residents.
• Deportation to Auschwitz: Korn’s memoir describes the horrific experience of being deported to Auschwitz. He describes the selection process and the separation of families.
• Life in the Concentration Camp: Korn’s memoir provides a detailed account of life in the concentration camps. He describes the grueling work, the lack of food, and the constant threat of violence.
• Liberation: Korn’s memoir describes the liberation from the concentration camp and the complicated process of rebuilding his life after the war.

The excerpts from Korn’s memoirs are powerful teaching tools about the Holocaust. They can help students understand the human cost of the war and the resilience of the human spirit.

• Abram Korn’s Family: The website also includes a section on the the family. This section provides essential context for understanding Korn’s story.

The Abram Korn: A Holocaust Survivor website is a moving and vital resource. It tells the story of one man’s survival during the Holocaust and serves as a reminder of the importance of remembering this dark chapter in human history.

This blog post is a starting point for learning more about Abram Korn and the Holocaust.

Here are some additional resources:

• United States Holocaust Memorial Museum: https://www.ushmm.org/
• Yad Vashem: https://www.yadvashem.org/
• Anne Frank House: https://www.annefrank.org/en/

By learning about the Holocaust, we can help to ensure that such a tragedy never happens again.

Background on Remember.org

The background section of the Abram Korn website provides essential context for understanding Korn’s story.

Other sections of Remember.org explore the rise of the Nazi Party, the invasion of Poland, and the establishment of the ghettos and concentration camps.

• The Rise of the Nazi Party: The section discusses the rise of the Nazi Party in Germany and the party’s ideology of anti-Semitism.
• The Invasion of Poland: Jan Karski’s paintings show a personal view and experience of the Polish Invasion.
• The Ghettos: Courage Under Siege is a book about the Warsaw Ghetton, showing the establishment of ghettos in Poland and other occupied territories.
• The Concentration Camps: The section discusses the establishment of concentration camps and the conditions that prisoners face.

The background section is a valuable resource for students who are new to the study of the Holocaust. It helps students understand the historical context of Korn’s story.

The post Abram Korn A Holocaust Survivor – Abe’s Story is a Look into His Life appeared first on Remember.org - A People's History.