I Have Lived a Thousand Years: Growing Up in the Holocaust
By Livia Bitton-Jackson
Winner of the Christopher Award
An ALA Best Book for Young Adults
This is the memoir of Livia Bitton-Jackson, born Elli L. Friedmann. The Friedmanns lived in Czechoslovakia. Elli stood helpless as all of the rights and priveledges of the Jewish community were taken away. First came the curfew. Then the yellow stars they were made to sew on any clothing worn outside. Soon Elli found herself and her family living in a ghetto. When Elli was 13 she and her family were sent to Auschwitz. She would never see her father or her frail Aunt Serena again.
Elli and her mother struggle together to beat all odds to survive the horrors of the camps. Even when her mother suffers a devastating injury that leaves her partially paralyzed, Elli manages to keep her alive. Eventually they are reunited with Bubi and the camps are liberated.
Bitton-Jackson has also written two additional books My Bridges of Hope: Searching for LIfe and Love After Auschwitz and Hello, America: A Refugee's Journey from Auschwitz to the New World.
I enjoyed the book. I felt that there were a lot of parallels between Elli and Anne Frank, at least in their personalities. Bitton-Jackson does an excellent job detailing her experiences in the camp while still capturing the innocence of her 13 year old self. Many of the inmates were unaware of what happened in other parts of the camps (the crematorium, etc.). Elli's discovery of those atrocities is conveyed with palpable horror. Though her story is tragic, it ends with hope. I think students, especially in middle grades, will appreciate that Elli and her mother survive and will look forward to reading the subsequent books about her journey to move past the camps. I would recommend this to middle school students. It isn't too graphic and Elli's age would make it appealing. I feel that girls would like if far more than boys, so I'm not sure I would use it in class. This is a great Holocaust memoir for middle school. I would save Anne Frank for high school students.
Book Talk Hook:
What would you do if everything was taking from you?
Your possessions.
Your friends.
Your family.
Your identity.
What would you do to survive?
I am glad to have another title that I can share with students and staff for book studies. Examining the parallels between the characters, comparing how they approached their situations and the different type of isolation they endured are all possibilites for discussion. I am also pleased to have a book on this topic that ends on a note of hope.
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like a really great book. I've always enjoyed reading Anne Frank's story, and I'm glad to hear there is a similar story, only this one with a happier ending. I was surprised to hear you say that Anne Frank is better for High Schoolers, as I read it in middle school, and really enjoyed it even then.
ReplyDeleteBethley, I only based that on my experience teaching it to 8th grade students. The maturity level just wasn't there and the comments they would make... It just frustrated me beyond belief. I read it in jr. high as well, and enjoyed it, but I would only teach it at that level if I had a very mature, sensitive group.
ReplyDeleteI look forward to reading a Holocaust story that is written in first person and ends on a somewhat less horrific note. Sometimes the survivors get lost in the crowd and we need to help students see their side as well.
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like a really good title. I agree that the Anne Frank book may bew better for high school students. this sounds like it would make a good read for middle school. I'll have to look for this one. I may want to add it to my collection.
ReplyDeleteWow, like Susan Bartoletti's Hitler Youth and The Boy Who Dared, it sounds like this book would be a valuable addition to any library's information books collection. Our students are often sheltered about the horrors of events such as the Holocaust. Reading about real people and the terrors which they had to endure, will give students a greater understanding of such historical events.
ReplyDelete