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Pearls of Childhood: The Poignant True Wartime Story of a Young Girl Growing Up in an Adopted Land
In June 1939, shortly before her 11th birthday, Vera Gissing escaped from occupied Czechoslovakia, leaving behind her parents, family, and friends, to spend six years in Britain. Throughout the war years, Vera kept a diary, recording her day-to-day experiences, her longing for her parents, her hopes, and her prayers for the freedom of her country. By the time she returned to Prague to set up home with her aunt in 1945, she knew that both her parents had died—her mother in Belsen, her father on a death march. She came back to England in 1949 and has lived there ever since. The memories and emotions rekindled by a reunion of the Czech school in Wales where she was educated encouraged Vera to go back to her diaries and the letters from her parents that she had not touched for 40 years, resulting in this powerful and moving account of the life of one child growing up in extraordinary circumstances.
176 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 1988
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August 4, 2018"When, years later, I asked Daddy Rainford what had decided him to take me in, he replied: " I knew I could not save the world, I knew I could not stop the war starting, but I knew I could save one human being. Great Britain broke the agreement with Czechoslovakia, and the Jews were most at risk, so I decided on a Czech Jewish child".
A few weeks ago, I went to a second hand bookstore with my mother and sisters. We each went to look at our separate "sections"that interest us. Mine is always world history, specifically WW2 . Since the age of 15, I've studied the Holocaust, read countless non-fiction, memoirs, and biographies concerning that atrocious time period. As I'm always on the look out for indeterminate life stories to learn and know about, I stumbled upon a book entitled: "Pearls of Childhood".
On the cover is a sweet picture of a little girl, named Vera. The description saying, she recounts her life of being a Czech Jew, escaping from the Nazi occupation by going to live in England, along with her sister, as part of the kindertransports program.
Never have I read a book that has moved me so much. Vera invited me in, sat me down and told me her life's story in great, poignant, eloquent detail.
Sometimes, when reading memoirs and personal accounts of the Holocaust, you can be swept away in an emotional trance, thinking the survivors and rescuers, not as real people, but as figures from a play.
Not so with Vera's story.
I was able to see Vera's life in a way that was real. She opened the country of Czechoslovakia, war torn England and Wales to me. She walked through the stages of childhood, adolescence, and her adulthood with such fervor and courage that it inspired me.
Nothing more can be said about this book from me. Please read it for yourselves.
A few weeks ago, I went to a second hand bookstore with my mother and sisters. We each went to look at our separate "sections"that interest us. Mine is always world history, specifically WW2 . Since the age of 15, I've studied the Holocaust, read countless non-fiction, memoirs, and biographies concerning that atrocious time period. As I'm always on the look out for indeterminate life stories to learn and know about, I stumbled upon a book entitled: "Pearls of Childhood".
On the cover is a sweet picture of a little girl, named Vera. The description saying, she recounts her life of being a Czech Jew, escaping from the Nazi occupation by going to live in England, along with her sister, as part of the kindertransports program.
Never have I read a book that has moved me so much. Vera invited me in, sat me down and told me her life's story in great, poignant, eloquent detail.
Sometimes, when reading memoirs and personal accounts of the Holocaust, you can be swept away in an emotional trance, thinking the survivors and rescuers, not as real people, but as figures from a play.
Not so with Vera's story.
I was able to see Vera's life in a way that was real. She opened the country of Czechoslovakia, war torn England and Wales to me. She walked through the stages of childhood, adolescence, and her adulthood with such fervor and courage that it inspired me.
Nothing more can be said about this book from me. Please read it for yourselves.
May 20, 2010
The author was one of the Kindertransport children, who left her native Czechoslovakia for Britain in 1939, along with her sister. There she was raised by caring foster parents and eventually went to stay in a special boarding school for Czech exiles. Most of Vera Gissing's family, including her parents, perished in the war. She returned to Czechoslovakia, but in the end decided to settle in England.
Gissing kept detailed diaries during the war and relies heavily on them for this memoir, copying many entries verbatim. She also includes photographs and letters her parents sent her. She does a very good job striking the right balance between details of her daily life in England and the constant worry and tension from back home. This is a better-than-average Holocaust memoir and a good example from the Kindertransport.
Gissing kept detailed diaries during the war and relies heavily on them for this memoir, copying many entries verbatim. She also includes photographs and letters her parents sent her. She does a very good job striking the right balance between details of her daily life in England and the constant worry and tension from back home. This is a better-than-average Holocaust memoir and a good example from the Kindertransport.
November 19, 2017
Naprosto neskutečné, silné vyprávění ženy, která byla jedním z "Wintonových dětí", které mělo možnost odcestovat vlakem do Velké Británie a zachránit si tak život před nacistickými zločiny v Československu. Už dlouho mě nic tak nezasáhlo jako tato autobiografická knížečka. Rozhodně doporučuji všem k přečtení!
February 10, 2021
What courage it took for Ms. Vera to write this book and tell her story. I was inspired to read it after hearing Peter Sis share the inspiration for his new book, and I am so glad I did. The horror of the Holocaust is something told in many books and diaries, but this story helped me see that the horror lives past the end of the war. Many people lived a lifetime with the sorrow of losing their parents, relatives and families. How could one be expected to return to “normal life” after such deep loss. Thank you Ms. Gissing for telling your story.
August 9, 2022
This memoir is very emotionally moving, and it has great specificity, with a unique cast of characters and lots of personal details. Some Holocaust and Kindertransport memoirs can blend together because of their many similarities, but this one stands out because of the specific details. The author includes frequent excerpts from diaries and letters that enrich the story and make it even more personal. I highly recommend this, and it is appropriate for middle-school-aged readers and older.
February 5, 2008
I liked this book even though it was given to me as an assignment for school.
It is a great story proving that there were always heroes like Sir Nicholas Winton even in the terrible times of 2WW. Written by a Czech author living in the UK based on her childhood diary. Very sad, very moving and thought provoking.
It is a great story proving that there were always heroes like Sir Nicholas Winton even in the terrible times of 2WW. Written by a Czech author living in the UK based on her childhood diary. Very sad, very moving and thought provoking.
December 14, 2017
Vera Gissing was one of the Winton's children. She descibes her life in England during WW2, her arrival to Czechoslovakia after the war and her return back to England because of the Communism. A very moving story.
May 6, 2014
This was one of the best books I've ever read about the Holocaust, the Kindertransport, and the disruption to families, and even nations, caused by Hitler. I cannot recommend this book enough!
January 26, 2022
Lovely, deeply moving.
July 27, 2021
After reading the picture book, "Nicky & Vera: A Quiet Hero of the Holocaust and the Children He Rescued" by Peter Sis, I wanted to learn more. The picture book is about Nicholas Winton, a 29 year old man who help save almost 700 children trapped in Nazi-occupied Czechoslovakia. He got all the paperwork done for them to take the train to England to live with foster parents. Vera is one of those children he saved. I wanted to find out more about Nicky and Vera, and came across this book. This is Vera's story written in her own words. The book includes diary entries she made along with letters written to her parents and other family members. There are also photos of Vera, her family, her life in England, and more. Vera struggled with finding her identity after the Holocaust. It took her decades to find her true place on this earth.
"Eva is always staring into the fire. When I asked her why, she said 'Just look at the fire: one moment the flame is shooting up high, the next it dies down, but a spark always remains. Hope is like that flame - one moment it is strong, the next it nearly dies. But there is always a spark left. One must never give up hope. Freedom will come in the end." p. 66
"The shrine for my parents still lies deep in my heart, where my love for them burns, undiminished by time. And when I feel unhappy, lost or lonely, and cry out, 'Where is my home?' - it is to this shrine that I turn as I have done ever since I went back to my roots in 1968 and found my identity. It was then that I discovered that my home was deep inside me, a precious and private refuge. Home is love, and you, my dearest ones, are still home to me..." p. 175-176
"Eva is always staring into the fire. When I asked her why, she said 'Just look at the fire: one moment the flame is shooting up high, the next it dies down, but a spark always remains. Hope is like that flame - one moment it is strong, the next it nearly dies. But there is always a spark left. One must never give up hope. Freedom will come in the end." p. 66
"The shrine for my parents still lies deep in my heart, where my love for them burns, undiminished by time. And when I feel unhappy, lost or lonely, and cry out, 'Where is my home?' - it is to this shrine that I turn as I have done ever since I went back to my roots in 1968 and found my identity. It was then that I discovered that my home was deep inside me, a precious and private refuge. Home is love, and you, my dearest ones, are still home to me..." p. 175-176
May 16, 2025
A poignant book based on a young girl's wartime diaries written after she and her sister escaped Czechoslovakia on a Kindertransport train and spent several years in England as refugees.
The book gave an excellent insight into the sheer stamina of evacuated children as they dealt with reaching a foreign land where they did not speak the language or know anything about the traditions and customs.
I learnt that there was a boarding school specifically for Czech children, eventually located in central Wales.
For many of these children, at the end of World War Two, there was nobody to go back to. Some stayed in England with the families who had taken them in or with other adults who adopted them. Some returned to their country, only to find themselves in orphanages with no family left after the Holocaust.
Interestingly, Vera returned to live with an aunt but found her country and countrymen much changed. She could not adapt to life there and returned to England, which her sister had never left.
A thought-provoking read.
The book gave an excellent insight into the sheer stamina of evacuated children as they dealt with reaching a foreign land where they did not speak the language or know anything about the traditions and customs.
I learnt that there was a boarding school specifically for Czech children, eventually located in central Wales.
For many of these children, at the end of World War Two, there was nobody to go back to. Some stayed in England with the families who had taken them in or with other adults who adopted them. Some returned to their country, only to find themselves in orphanages with no family left after the Holocaust.
Interestingly, Vera returned to live with an aunt but found her country and countrymen much changed. She could not adapt to life there and returned to England, which her sister had never left.
A thought-provoking read.
April 6, 2026
was a respectful read. emotional and eye opening to a world not often spoken of.
April 26, 2026
A clear interesting autobiography
October 27, 2018
Audiobook
Very good war bio of a girl sent to Britain
Very good war bio of a girl sent to Britain
Want to Read
January 29, 2016I may have already read this as the hard back came out in 1989.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews