The Risk of Sorrow: Intimate Conversations with a Holocaust Survivor

by Valerie Foster

“A beautiful, honest portrayal not only of survival, but of a friendship built from the telling of such a devastating experience.” –Kim Klett, Regional Education Corps, United States Holocaust Memorial

Helen Handler was just fifteen years old when she found herself alone in Auschwitz. The horrors she faced, family she lost, and lessons she learned would shape every moment of her life in ways few people could imagine. After rebuilding her life in America, and sharing her dramatic tale of survival to one group of high school students, she feels a unique connection with Irish-Catholic teacher, Valerie Foster, and entrusts her with her inspiring story. Helen bares her soul, challenging Valerie to listen, learn, and search her own self. The teacher becomes the student as their weekly visits begin to sculpt the profile of a Holocaust survivor as rarely seen before.

More than a Holocaust memoir, The Risk of Sorrow is an intimate look at two women of different generations, religions, and cultures who forge an extraordinary friendship as together they examine deep questions of survival, faith, humanity, and love. This is a story for today's world.

259 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 30, 2025

Reviews

[Melinda · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s no secret that I love the WWII genre and The Risk of Sorrow by Valerie Foster is a biography of her friend Helen Handler. Helen was just 15 when she was sent to Auschwitz with her family, the only one to survive. I’ve read many books about concentration camps, but this one told the horrors of these camps in a new way. When Helen was rescued she was covered in bites from lice and had tuberculosis and was in a sanitarium for months. She lost her childhood and never felt at home or safe again. Helen spoke about her experiences to high school children and to many organizations. When she met Valerie she felt she found the person to write her story. The two met weekly and shared so much more than Helen’s story. They had intense conversations about their faith. This is four stars and if you read this genre then this book will make you think. Sadly the murder of people has never ended.

[Kelley · Rating 5 out of 5]

read it.

Just read it. I didn’t expect to take away as much as I did. Highly recommended. Seriously, just read it.

[Cynthia Mara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Inspiring

Inspiring, challenging and gripping. Wonderfully written. Just try putting it down; you'll be drawn back to it time and again.

[Willow · Rating 5 out of 5]

Helen Handler lives to tell her story as a Holocaust survivor in hopes that awareness of the atrocities will prevent a reoccurrence for future generations. On a side note, I truly believe her son Barry born years after the war was also a victim of the Nazis. Their relationship was contentious and eventually toward the end of his life lived with Helen. He died a few years after Helen's death. Valerie Foster brought Helen to life for those of us not fortunate enough to have met her.

[Loren Power · Rating 5 out of 5]

a read for everyone.

Not what I expected, much better. We have all read about the Holocaust. This is what happens after the “liberation”. Excellently told by Helen Handler and written by Valerie Foster.

[Pat · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Risk of Sorrow

This is a wonderful of a holocaust survivor, Helen Handler. What a strong, strong woman at 80+ years old. This story tells about how she saw her family die and how she as a teenager survived and made something of herself.

[PK · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are, of course, many, many books about the Holocaust and its survivors, as well as many, many books by survivors--as there must be, lest we ever forget the depths of human depravity. While this book touches on several key themes of such approaches, it focuses on another important aspect: how survivors "survive" surviving. This is the "intimate" in the title, as it follows the story of a young girl who loses her entire family to the camps, and who's journey eventually brings her to, curiously, Phoenix, Arizona--today, supposedly America's fifth largest city, but, frankly, perhaps the biggest little city in this country and like the other side of the moon from mid-20th century Central Europe. There, Helen carves out a very small life as a business owner before finding herself and her voice as a local speaker about the Holocaust. Enter Valerie Foster, who, through her interviews, allows Helen to gently and gradually unburden on her experiences and their lasting impacts--both expected, and unexpected.

What emerges from the dialogues are three things: the power and importance of having deep and rich conversations; the will to survive and the importance of bestowing this on others; and the importance and value of standing up and saying yes to the hardiest of challenges.

A powerful and intimate read.

[David Dummer · Rating 5 out of 5]

In The Risk of Sorrow, author Valerie Foster artfully, compassionately, and honestly preserves for posterity the complex life story of Holocaust survivor Helen Handler—as learned through their weekly conversations over the course of two years. But this is much more than a memoir. It’s also the tale of an unlikely friendship. And it’s a candid reflection of the author’s own reaction to emotions evoked by the Holocaust and its lifelong impact on her new friend.

Foster mostly spares readers another detailed account of life in Auschwitz. Instead, she focuses—more poignantly—on Helen’s life after liberation and the far-reaching, often surprising effects of her trauma. She also captures Helen’s remarkable resilience. The narrative is at once tragic and hopeful and—eleven years after its initial release—resonated with me even more profoundly the second time. The expanded 2025 edition adds an epilogue with new details about Helen’s family and the final years of her life, and educators will appreciate the inclusion of a study guide.

This is not always an easy book to read—especially for those of us who knew Helen. But it’s an important and worthwhile one to which your thoughts will return time and again.

[Diane S. Garry · Rating 5 out of 5]

the world we must face

valerie's work and friendship with Helen handler is sweetly and profoundingly mind-numbing. the depth of emotion and caring is palpable throughout. I found myself closing the book to think through Helen's philosophical meanderings and self - searching my own beliefs. at times, I simply closed the book to take a breath. and I couldn't wait to pick it up again! one clear message - and one I also believe in : we are ALL human, and that's all we need to understand. that is enough to govern our actions.

[Barb Clark · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have no words

I have been interested in the Holocaust for a long time. This book as it interviews an actual survivor is very powerful. If you have an interest in this part of history please read this. It wasn’t a quick read for me as I could only read an absorb so much at a time. But the book is very powerful and tells the story and the aftermath of life in Auschwitz’s hold on one woman.

I pray that this does not ever ever happen again. It is pure evil. Thank you to Valerie for writing this story and being Helen’s friend. May God bring you many blessings.

[Jan Ropp · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautiful read describing the friendship developed between the author and a Holocaust survivor....not just a survivor of horrific trauma but a beautiful human who spent her life sharing her story / doing her part so we never forget. Lessons for the reader to pattern our life after! Well written , engaging. It will cause some deep reflection especially in these troubling times of too much spewed hatred. Our words and behaviors matter!

[MDK · Rating 5 out of 5]

A powerful insight into the experiences of Holocaust Survivor the late Helen Handler. I had the honor of interviewing Valerie Foster about her book and the interview is available wherever you get your podcasts including iTunes and Spotify https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast...