A Detail of History: The harrowing true story of a boy who survived the Nazi Holocaust

by Arek Hersh

How do you survive when you’re 11 years old and all your family have been taken from you and killed? How do you continue to live, when everything around you is designed to ensure certain death? Arek Hersh tells his story simply and honestly, a moving account of a little boy who made his own luck and survived. He takes us into the tragic world imposed on him that robbed him of his childhood. The depth of the tragedy, strength of courage and power of survival will move you and inspire you. Contrary to assertions that the Holocaust years were a mere ‘detail of history’, Arek Hersh gives us a glimpse into the greatest catastrophe that man has ever inflicted on his fellow man.

Genres: Holocaust, Nonfiction, History, World War II, Historical, War

168 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1998

Reviews

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

A relatively short but moving read detailing one young boys journey through the Holocaust. From orphanages to Jewish ghettos to the most notorious of camps, the author describes how he survived. Some of the details are incredibly shocking although not a surprise for those who have read extensively about this time in history.

What is so inspiring is how the author has gone on to educate people about this devastating time. He dedicates his writing to the family and friends who were systematically murdered by the Nazis. This comes as a highly recommended read for those interested in wartime history.

[Robynne Lozier · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the story of a Jewish boy who survived 4 labor camps during WW2.

Arek Hersh was born in Poland in 1928. In 1939 at age 10 he was sent to his first labour camp - Otoschno where he was forced to help build the railroad. 2 years later he was released and sent home.

Days after returning home, his family were rounded up and sent to a local catholic church. Arek slipped out telling his mother that he was going to find some water. While he was out, the family (along with others from that town) were pushed into trucks and sent off to Chelmno Camp. Arek discovered after the war that his family were shot and killed in the forests outside of Chelmno camp.

Arek was later sent to the city of Lodz where he eventually ended up in the orphanage. He was there for 15 months until 1944 when the Germans finally arrived. From October 1944 until May 1945, Arek was sent to 3 different camps - Auschwitz - where he survived by changing lines - Buchenwald and Thersienstadt.

At Auschwitz Arek chose to move out of the line of old men and young orphans, that he knew was going to be gassed, into the line of male adults that would most likely be used for the workforce. Having spent 2 years in a labor camp already, Arek knew what the Germans were looking for.

Arek spent 4 months at Auschwitz tending to horses and pigs and also to fishing in the neaby river - all this food was preoduced for the German soldiers. The prisoners receive thin soup, the occassional potato and water for food and drink.

In January 1945 the German Army began retreating from the russian front, and some of the prisoners at Auschwitz were forced to march for days from the camp to the nearest train station in Katowice. Once they were packed into the train like sardines, they spent several days on the train travelling west, with very little food, and eventually arrived at Buchenwald camp in central Germany.

Arek barely spent 2 months at Buchenwald, before he and the other prisoners were once again rounded up and sent on a forced march to the nearest city of Weimar. Rumors were flying around that the Russians or the Americans were getting close. By now it was April 1945.

At Weimar Arek was packed into another train, which spent a whole month trying to get to Theresienstadt (aka Terezin) ghetto - but it seems to have had to backtrack a lot to avoid Americans or Russians. Arek was also told that Hitler was dead, which explained why the Germans were retreating and taking their prisoners with them.

The train finally arrived at Theresienstadt on 4 May 1945, and the Russians arrived just 4 days later. Arek spent some time in a hospital having injuries seen to before he and 300 other orphans were sent off by plane to England.

Arek spent a several months in the Lake District in Northern England learning English and eating good food to recover his health. In 1946 he was sent to Liverpool, and in 1947 he was sent to Manchester where he settled down to live. He does not say what occupation he followed.

In 1948 Arek travelled to Israel where he helped fight for Israeli independence, but he chose not to emigrate to that country. He returned to England. He is married to Jean and they have 3 daughters and several grandchildren. They now live in Leeds, England. Arek wrote this book in 1995.

This is probably the first decent description I have read of life in the camps by a survivor, especially since he was not in those camps for any long length of time. As a teenager he was also more resilient and had a stronger mind set to survive. I gave this book 4 stars.

[Jude · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book was very descriptive and moving, adding more to my cache of info regarding the Holocaust. I will never be able to fathom how anyone survived the horrors and abuse they endured that was relentlessly dealt to them by the violent, murderous, barbaric, merciless, quasi-human beings that Hitler and his cohorts created and used in his attempt to eradicate Jews and others from Europe. There was one incident described by the author that was so horrible that I had to stop reading and recenter myself: An absolute brute of a beast killing a prisoner - another human being - by chopping him up alive with a shovel. I've read many, many books about the Holocaust, but this one act of brutality was an unbelievable kick in my gut. What kind of demented mind could allow a human being to do this to another? A Nazi...

Upon being freed, the author and his fellow prisoners showed what decency and humanity truly is:
"The Russians gave us twenty-four hours to do whatever we wanted to the Germans, but being human beings we did nothing."

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I heard Arek Hersh speak at a Holocaust Remembrance event and found him very honest, and very earnest, in the way he presented his experiences. He took questions from the audience and said that we could ask him anything. The book provides more detail than Mr. Hersh presented, which is right - it must take an extraordinary amount of strength to speak about his early life no matter how much time has passed or how many times he has been compelled to speak. He is one of the dwindling numbers of people with blue tattoos on their arms; listening and witnessing is important for the rest of us for as long as we have survivors among us. Buying, reading and sharing their words will continue their contributions to society.

[Christine Robak · Rating 1 out of 5]

No comment

I have nothing to say really . The book was interesting in relation to everything that happened during the tieswar and the atroc

[Anamaria Huluba · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Detail of History by the Holocaust Survivor Arek Hersh is a moving account of a boy who made his luck and survived.

Arek Hersh, who is 92 years old today, has spent his life educating people on the depth of the tragedy, the strength of courage and the power of survival in order to move and inspire us all.

During the greatest catastrophe that men has ever inflicted on his fellow man, Arek gives us a glimpse into his experiences as a young boy and young man.

In spite of all of the above, Arek found haven amidst his nightmare when he was welcomed into an orphanage where he met his first love, Genia, making his life in the ghetto so much easier to bear.

I can not sum up here all the grotesque events that were going on in those camps, but I know that this is a story I will never forget!

To conclude, we need to remember that there's good in this world and with kindness and love, life can be turned around :)

[Dizzyshelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am of the generation that WW2 is distinct enough to be film like. We know it was real but everything we read or watch is so far removed from us that emotionally it’s like it didn’t really happen. This book makes it real. It’s not a great literature. It’s raw. It’s real. It’s as horrific as it is fascinating with the hindsight of generations. Everyone should read this. Especially with today’s threat of war. Humans really are the worst species.

[Carla Safie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was fairly short and readable. Had some details of that journey that I had not read before. It wasn't riveting, but good. It was mostly told in the voice of the young boy that he was. I think he was in his early teens. A scrappy kid and that is probably how he survived.
I am always in wonder how a whole country went along with this. Didn't they question their disappearing neighbors? Did people really dislike or even hate other groups this strongly to allow this?

[Gail Rubinfeld · Rating 5 out of 5]

Compelling story.. I read it in a day.

Well written account of a young boy and his harrowing Holocaust story. It was hard to put down this testimony and difficult to imagine his painful journey in the Nazi hell. Luck and courage sustained him and he managed to live to tell his story, unlike most. A compelling read with so much honesty.. just telling His story for history.

[Terry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gripping story of the will to live in Nazi camps

This is a story that should never be forgotten. The incredible evil of the Nazis should never be allowed to be altered by historical revisionists. This is a compelling and very sad read.

[eddie jezierski · Rating 5 out of 5]

A harrowing story of survival

This book I couldn't put down, the experience of one survivor of the holocaust. My father and his brother's and sister went on the same journey and survived. And it brought back many memories not good ones.

[Chantelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Arek's journey begins aged 10 where he is faced with the most horrible of circumstances. Through the years to follow, Arek evades certain death; with strong will and determination he lives to fight another day until the liberation of his camp. This is a must read!

[Judith Ring · Rating 5 out of 5]

A harrowing true account of a Jewish boy’s horrific journey through WW2. There are many of these accounts although each one is different. In my view it is therefore massively important that each one is told. We must never forget, although sadly atrocities still occur in this world.

[Tansy Hepton · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars because of the importance of the subject and the simplicity of the story. It's not professionally written, but that makes it more compelling. Arek Hersh's voice needs to be heard on behalf of all those voices that were cut short. An important record of history.

[David Knox · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heart breaking

Once I started to read this book I couldn't stop I knew how cruel the Germans had been during the war but read the stories from a young boys first hand account we're truly heart breaking

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating read but also heartbreaking to read.

[tracy · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book that needs to be read and remembered so we never forget, it is a difficult read but is written with honesty about a time we should never forget.

[Margaret Mercer · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Detail of History

A child should never had to have gone through such horror. Everyone should read these survivor accounts so it never happens again.

[Virginia H · Rating 5 out of 5]

Stunning

A must read. I thought I knew the details of the holocaust but this child’s recount brings them into very harsh daylight.

[Jim Stam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Luck and intelligence helps the author to survival. Every story from this time is important and interesting. Easy to read - but so hard to accept these things happened.

[Evie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Definitely worth reading

[Alexander Preece]

Great in a way. Hugely Eye opening.

[Alan Brackenbury · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read

[Jack · Rating 4 out of 5]

Met Arek at primary school when I was a boy, and was given a copy of his book. Recently picked it up and found Arek's story so engrossing that I read it in a single sitting.

[Dan Godfrey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have no words

[Lisa Garside · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. View and experiences of such a small child during a horrific time in our world.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

A truly fascinating story - one which everybody should read! Arek's account of his childhood from age 11 to 16 is beyond anything any one of us could imagine. To live his 'childhood' is to stand as a witness to one of the worst crimes in history. From life in German occupied Poland, through a work camp, the Lodz ghetto, and then 'liquidation' to Auchwitz Birkenau, his tale of survival in the face of constant terror and brutality is almost impossible to believe. He tells his story in a simple, matter of fact way, that enables the reader to see directly into his memories. The fact of his survival is incredible, but as you read his story, you realise that he survived through making his own luck, through his own ingenuity, and because he learned at a very early age to face the reality of just how bad the Nazis were. When he and 150 of his fellow orphans were being shipped from Lodz to Auchwitz, he knew not to believe in tales of resettlement, and paid attention to the sorting process when on the platform at their dread destination.
As an aside, I think this book would make a very interesting companion to 'A Long Way Gone', as both are accounts of children forced to grow up before their time due to the brutality of war.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a fascinating first hand account of one boy's remarkable survival of the Nazi holocaust. Repeatedly dodging death, getting in the right line when the wrong one led straight to the gas chambers, being in the right place at the right time, Arek Hersh must conclude that he beat the odds again and again.

His story is harrowing but always delivered in a matter-of-fact way. There's nothing exceptional about the style and often it feels a little like your granddad telling his old war stories. At times I found the level of detail to be unbelievable - do people REALLY remember such details after many years have passed - but it doesn't get in the way of the story.

I'd have liked to know more about what Arek Hersh did after the war. There are many photographs at the end that suggest he's become very much involved in keeping the holocaust alive for younger generations and I'd have enjoyed knowing more about life after the camps.

He is unquestionably a remarkable man and the book is well worth a read.

[Dane Cobain · Rating 5 out of 5]

Disclaimer: While I aim to be unbiased, I received a copy of this for free to review.

This book is effectively Hersh’s memoirs of persecution from the holocaust, and so it’s an incredibly interesting and heartwarming read. The author even included some photographs, which help to bring the story to life. Of course, the holocaust is something that we should never forget, and so any book which details a survivor’s experience is automatically likely to score high.

That said, the editing is of a high quality, and the book does look and feel professional. I’d hate to feel as though it was printed by a vanity press, because with something as unique as this, it really does deserve appropriate treatment and respect. Luckily, I think that Hersh has done the subject justice, and his family would have been proud. He’s doing lots of good work, and this is a great example of it.

[Roxanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

After a book swap with my boyfriend - history for me, fiction for him - (I gave him Atonement), I was somewhat apprehensive about this book. It is a real-life account of a Polish survivor of the Holocaust. My history knowledge is rather sparse, and this book was a real eye-opener. From detailed accounts of Auschwitz conditions, to escape attempts - Arek survives against all the odds. The level of violence is sickening, and seems very surreal.
Due to the subject matter it is not a pleasant book, however it is very well written and provides a very real account of the horrendous conditions for Jews during that time. I would recommend this book for people who want to have a better understanding of the Holocaust, or those who want to read a historical account from the view of a child.