Remembering Forever: A Journey of Darkness and Light

by Eva Olsson

On May 15, 1944, 19 year-old Ester Malek (now Eva Olson)and her family were marched seven kilometers from the Jewish Ghetto to the train station to Satu Mare, Hungary, where they were crammed into boxcars with 100 other people. ON May 19, 1944, the boxcar doors were opened and the people spilled out, dazed and uncertain. They had arrived at Auschwitz-Birkenau, in Nazi-occupied Poland, the largest of the concentration camps established to implement Hitler's dream of "the Final Solution to the Jewish question." Within a few hours, 75% of them were killed in the gas chambers. Although 87 members of Eva's family were murdered by the Nazis, Eva, her youngest sister Fradel, her father, and her favourite brother Lazar were selected to be slave labourers. Eva and her sister survived the Holocaust; her father and brother perished. On September 28, 2007, 82 year-old Eva Olsson boarded a plane in Toronto, bound for Budapest, on a journey to retrace her life from Satu Mare (now in Romania), to Auschwitz-Birkenau, in Poland, Buchenwald and Bergen-Belsen in Germany, and finally to Sweden, where she had gone after the war as a refugee. She had never wanted to make his rip before, but after publishing her autobiography, Unlocking the A Women's Struggle Against Intolerance, eight years ago, she felt the need to trace her roots. She knew that if she didn't do it soon, she never would. This book is a record of that trip and its impact on Eva and her mission to tell her story in the hope that people, especially young people, will not be bystanders when they see injustice

218 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 2011

Reviews

[Debbie W. · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I heard this lady speak at a teachers' conference, I was mesmerized. We all were!

[Sharon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I book everyone should read! What a real life journey of a women who had survived hell and went back to find answers but only found unthinkable truths and Europe countries that have still have hatred for Jews, Gypsies, and discrimination against anyone different from the normal like special needs people. Many times in this novel the fear, the unrest, the unsettling of being a foreigner visiting their country with military on trains demanding & dictating what people can & can not do through Romania, Hungry, Poland, Germany. She did not feel safe & as I emotionally felt myself on her journey I did not feel relaxed until she landed on Swedish soil! I learned a lot about Sweden staying neutral & the mistakes they made though put the war. I also learned that country is better for excepting people the way they are regardless of race, religion, colour extra then Canada does & that makes me sad as a Canadian but so proud she choice her to live & raise a family.

[Lindsy C. · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an incredible story. I was honoured to hear Eva Olsson speak yesterday at a conference. Wow! To hear her powerful story of hope is inspirational. This book chronicles her journey back to Europe to revisit both the places of her youth and ancestors, and her horrific experiences of the Holocaust. It reads quickly and instills within the reader such positive messages. This is a compelling story you will want to share with others, and it will leave you wanting to read more of Olsson's books.

[Marie-France Leclerc · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fantastic book about resilience. I admire this woman for not giving up after what she has gone through during WW2.

[Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good book... well written.. hard read at times about the Holocaust... We must not ever forget.

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked up the book after Eva Olsson came to our school to give a presentation. I was moved to tears by the story she told us at our school, in front of eight hundred students she stood before us and recounted her experience in the holocaust and spread her message that love is better than hate. That hate can tear apart the world. She stood before us a short old women with her story. After her presentation she recived a standing ovation from the entire auditorium. That rarely happens at our school, yet students 14-18 were showing her the best way we knew how, that her presentation was moving, as we clapped I noticed more than one person wiping tears from under there eyes.
Remembering forever is about Eva's Journey back to europe, this non fiction work is probably one of the first non fiction novels I finished cover to cover. Everything that Eva says has a meaning, is not for nothing. I was horrified at parts of the novel about the human condition. Yet I can only say how incredibly strong this women is, someone I could only hope to achieve to be. I think everyone should read at least one of her books. She opens your eyes to so many things.

[Audrey · Rating 5 out of 5]

When Eva Olsson was a young woman she survived the Holocaust. Now years later she shares about her journey into the past. She visited old Jewish communities where her family used to live and the concentration camps where she was prisoned. The trip brought back very painful memories for her but she also shares about the joyful reunion she had with her late husband's family in Sweden. The time in Sweden was a haven after the horrors of the War. When this book was printed in 2008 Eva was well into her 80s and traveling around Canada sharing her story with schools. She felt that it is very important to teach children the dangers of bullying and the need to treat others with love and respect.

[Terri Lenihan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very moving read. Eva Olsson is a remarkable woman and is very well spoken.