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I Cieli Sono Vuoti (2010)

by Avrom Bendavid-Val(Favorite Author)

3.86 of 5 Votes: 2

ISBN

8823502438 (ISBN13: 9788823502437)

languge

English

genre

History & Biography

publisher

Guanda

review 1: The Heavens Are Empty is a compelling nonfiction read. Avrom Bendavid-Val has approached the subject matter with care and attention. This book is about a town--a village--that existed for a little over hundred years, the Jewish town of Trochenbrod. Trochenbrod did not vanish slowly but surely over decades, it's death was not natural at all. After sharing his personal story, his behind-the-scenes look at his research process, his motivation for wanting--needing--to know more, he presents his findings in four chapters. The first chapter focuses on "the first hundred years." This is a look, a glimpse, at what life was like in Trochenbrod in the nineteenth century and a little beyond. If this book has a "happy" section, this would be it. The second chapter focuses on the decad... morees between the first world war and the start of the second world war. Again, there are no great indicators of what is to come. The third chapter covers the years 1939-1942, readers see Trochenbrod under Soviet rule and under German rule. The fourth chapter is perhaps the most haunting, the most horrific. The fourth chapter focuses on how an entire village was massacred by the Nazis. This chapter includes three incredible accounts of survivor-witnesses. The Heavens Are Empty is rich in witness accounts. It's a difficult subject to read about, but important in my opinion.
review 2: Trochenbrod was a unique city in Poland,because it was created as an all Jewish city (the only one) in a marshy area which was unsuitable for agriculture and had not attracted other settlers. It grew and, in it's way, thrived, until the Nazis, with Ukranian help, totally destroyed it, murdering virtually all of its residents. But many from Trochenbrod had left before the war, scattering around the world, with a sizeable number in the DC area. The book, written by a descendant of residents of the town, tells the story well - the story of Trochenbrod's life...and its death. Its organization could be a little better, but that is a quibble; I knocked off one star. less

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