What do you think?
Rate this book
No Reply: A Jewish Child Aboard the MS St. Louis and the Ordeal That Followed
May 13, 1939. The MS St. Louis ocean liner pulls out of Hamburg harbor and begins a long journey across the Atlantic Ocean toward Cuba. On board are more than 900 German Jews fleeing Hitler, including Hermann and Rita Goldstein and their 10-year-old son, Heinz. The passengers hope to stay in Cuba while they wait for visas to enter the United States. However, once the ship arrives in Havana’s harbor, the Cuban government refuses to let the passengers enter. An urgent request goes out to America, seeking permission to dock. But a plea sent all the way up to the White House is ignored. Passengers are told that, without visas, they cannot come into the United States. The ship’s captain has no choice but to turn back to Europe, where many passengers will be delivered into the lethal hands of the Nazis. "NO REPLY: A Jewish Child Aboard the MS St. Louis and the Ordeal That Followed" tells the story of Heinz and his harrowing flight for safety.
- GenresHolocaust
118 pages, Paperback
First published March 31, 2017
47 people want to read
About the author
Pamela Sampson
2 books31 followersI am a long-time journalist and former foreign correspondent. Currently based in Atlanta, Georgia. Mother to a 21-year-old Yellow Jacket.
MY RATING SYSTEM:
ONE STAR: A mess, or pointless.
TWO STARS: Less of a mess, but still pointless.
THREE STARS: Worth reading if you are interested in the genre.
FOUR STARS: Excellent content and/or exceptional writing.
FIVE STARS: Brilliant in conception, theme, and writing. A must-read.
MY RATING SYSTEM:
ONE STAR: A mess, or pointless.
TWO STARS: Less of a mess, but still pointless.
THREE STARS: Worth reading if you are interested in the genre.
FOUR STARS: Excellent content and/or exceptional writing.
FIVE STARS: Brilliant in conception, theme, and writing. A must-read.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
April 17, 2017
No Reply: A Jewish Child Aboard the MS St. Louis and the Ordeal That Followed
In "No Reply," Pamela Sampson does a great job of documenting the story of Henry Goldstein-Gallant and his family’s efforts to survive the Holocaust. This is a short, very readable, 95 page history that includes, as its centerpiece, the infamous pre-war voyage of 900 German-Jews on the cruise liner the MS St. Louis; AKA the Voyage of the Damned. These families were attempting to flee Nazi persecution and certain death by making a voyage from Germany to Cuba so that they could eventually apply for immigration into the United States. 10-year old Henry Goldstein and his mother and father were passengers.
As we all know, The MS St Louis was turned away by Cuba even though its passengers were able to raise money to guaranty to the Cuban government that they would not become financially dependent on Cuba for assistance. Ultimately, neither Cuba, Canada, nor the United States were willing to absorb these people and the ship was forced to sail back to Germany right back into the jaws of death.
During the return passage, the Jewish Joint Relief Committee negotiated with several European countries to arrange for a safe haven for the passengers. The “Joint” was able to provide a financial guarantee of support to any country in Europe that would take in the German-Jews. This led to a breakthrough and families were given a choice to immigrate to England, France, Belgium, or the Netherlands. Unfortunately, three of the four countries were soon to be overrun by the Wehrmacht. Henry’s family had the misfortune of choosing France. A few months later Hitler invaded Poland and shortly after that France fell like a house of cards.
Henry has a very interesting story to tell. Unlike the last book about the Holocaust that I read, this one has a relatively happy ending for Henry. The reader is spared the gory details of concentration camp atrocities because Henry and his mother were able to evade capture. A bit of luck was involved but I really think that Henry and his mother were very resourceful, clever, and determined. Sometimes you make your own luck through persistency and this story is about one family’s perseverance and will to survive.
By an ironic twist of fate, Henry’s father was interned by the French immediately upon entering France because he was German. When France collapsed Henry’s father was eventually sent to Auschwitz where he was most likely gassed. This is too bad. I think Henry’s father would be proud to learn what became of his son.
I have just scratched the surface on the holocaust and I am still searching for answers myself. Henry’s father and four uncles were very much assimilated Germans and considered themselves Germans first and Jews second. All 5 brothers enlisted in the German Imperial Army in World War I. Henry’s father Herman was awarded the Iron Cross at Verdun. One brother made the ultimate sacrifice with his life. So why did Hitler persecute these fellow Germans? Who knows? Hitler victimized former veterans including Iron Cross recipients not to mention the man that split the atom – the one weapon that could have won the war for Germany.
In the last few pages Henry Gallant compares his ordeal to the Mariel boatlift in the 1970s. At the time President Jimmy Carter allowed thousands of Cuban refugees to immigrate without any screening whatsoever and I am sure all were on public assistance. Henry mentioned that Castro pulled a fast one on Carter by emptying their mental hospitals and prisons. This caused quite a problem in Miami and Henry is a little bitter. Henry also ponders the moral quandary that the United States faces with future refugees. His perspective is valuable and the topic is very relevant. I do not think that Henry would commit to blindly taking in every refugee that arrives at our doorstep.
So why should you bother to read Pamela Sampson’s “No Replay?” As Brad Pitt said in Fury “Ideals are peaceful but history is violent.” We don’t need to dwell on the Holocaust but darn it, every so often we need to be reminded of it. History needs to be truthful, not sugar-coated and there is no room for political correctness. Only 75 years ago an advanced civilization wanted to eradicate the world of a certain type of people whose only crime was being born a certain ethnicity. Nazi Germany wanted to make a lamp shades out of their own law abiding and tax paying citizens including former recipients of the Iron Cross! How in the world could this happen and it was only 75 years ago. Things like this have happened throughout human history both before and since this Holocaust. Henry mentioned that after he immigrated to the United States that no one was willing to talk with him about his ordeal – both Jews and gentiles. This was most likely out of respect for Henry. But it is a topic that needs to be discussed. There are people out there that deny the holocaust ever happened. I too cannot fathom the Holocaust and the mass killing of the innocents on such a scale but it happened. So did the Armenian genocide, the Stalin purges, the gulags, the mass starvation in the Ukraine, the Russian pogroms in the 1950’s, Mao’s Great Leap Forward and the starvation of 20 million Chinese people, the murders by the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia, murders in Rwanda, Bosnia, Darfur etc. All these terrible things happened and they will happen again if we are not vigilant and proactive.
As Churchill said, those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it. Thank you Pamela Sampson for telling the world Henry Goldstein-Gallant’s story. The Holocaust is one history we need not repeat.
In "No Reply," Pamela Sampson does a great job of documenting the story of Henry Goldstein-Gallant and his family’s efforts to survive the Holocaust. This is a short, very readable, 95 page history that includes, as its centerpiece, the infamous pre-war voyage of 900 German-Jews on the cruise liner the MS St. Louis; AKA the Voyage of the Damned. These families were attempting to flee Nazi persecution and certain death by making a voyage from Germany to Cuba so that they could eventually apply for immigration into the United States. 10-year old Henry Goldstein and his mother and father were passengers.
As we all know, The MS St Louis was turned away by Cuba even though its passengers were able to raise money to guaranty to the Cuban government that they would not become financially dependent on Cuba for assistance. Ultimately, neither Cuba, Canada, nor the United States were willing to absorb these people and the ship was forced to sail back to Germany right back into the jaws of death.
During the return passage, the Jewish Joint Relief Committee negotiated with several European countries to arrange for a safe haven for the passengers. The “Joint” was able to provide a financial guarantee of support to any country in Europe that would take in the German-Jews. This led to a breakthrough and families were given a choice to immigrate to England, France, Belgium, or the Netherlands. Unfortunately, three of the four countries were soon to be overrun by the Wehrmacht. Henry’s family had the misfortune of choosing France. A few months later Hitler invaded Poland and shortly after that France fell like a house of cards.
Henry has a very interesting story to tell. Unlike the last book about the Holocaust that I read, this one has a relatively happy ending for Henry. The reader is spared the gory details of concentration camp atrocities because Henry and his mother were able to evade capture. A bit of luck was involved but I really think that Henry and his mother were very resourceful, clever, and determined. Sometimes you make your own luck through persistency and this story is about one family’s perseverance and will to survive.
By an ironic twist of fate, Henry’s father was interned by the French immediately upon entering France because he was German. When France collapsed Henry’s father was eventually sent to Auschwitz where he was most likely gassed. This is too bad. I think Henry’s father would be proud to learn what became of his son.
I have just scratched the surface on the holocaust and I am still searching for answers myself. Henry’s father and four uncles were very much assimilated Germans and considered themselves Germans first and Jews second. All 5 brothers enlisted in the German Imperial Army in World War I. Henry’s father Herman was awarded the Iron Cross at Verdun. One brother made the ultimate sacrifice with his life. So why did Hitler persecute these fellow Germans? Who knows? Hitler victimized former veterans including Iron Cross recipients not to mention the man that split the atom – the one weapon that could have won the war for Germany.
In the last few pages Henry Gallant compares his ordeal to the Mariel boatlift in the 1970s. At the time President Jimmy Carter allowed thousands of Cuban refugees to immigrate without any screening whatsoever and I am sure all were on public assistance. Henry mentioned that Castro pulled a fast one on Carter by emptying their mental hospitals and prisons. This caused quite a problem in Miami and Henry is a little bitter. Henry also ponders the moral quandary that the United States faces with future refugees. His perspective is valuable and the topic is very relevant. I do not think that Henry would commit to blindly taking in every refugee that arrives at our doorstep.
So why should you bother to read Pamela Sampson’s “No Replay?” As Brad Pitt said in Fury “Ideals are peaceful but history is violent.” We don’t need to dwell on the Holocaust but darn it, every so often we need to be reminded of it. History needs to be truthful, not sugar-coated and there is no room for political correctness. Only 75 years ago an advanced civilization wanted to eradicate the world of a certain type of people whose only crime was being born a certain ethnicity. Nazi Germany wanted to make a lamp shades out of their own law abiding and tax paying citizens including former recipients of the Iron Cross! How in the world could this happen and it was only 75 years ago. Things like this have happened throughout human history both before and since this Holocaust. Henry mentioned that after he immigrated to the United States that no one was willing to talk with him about his ordeal – both Jews and gentiles. This was most likely out of respect for Henry. But it is a topic that needs to be discussed. There are people out there that deny the holocaust ever happened. I too cannot fathom the Holocaust and the mass killing of the innocents on such a scale but it happened. So did the Armenian genocide, the Stalin purges, the gulags, the mass starvation in the Ukraine, the Russian pogroms in the 1950’s, Mao’s Great Leap Forward and the starvation of 20 million Chinese people, the murders by the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia, murders in Rwanda, Bosnia, Darfur etc. All these terrible things happened and they will happen again if we are not vigilant and proactive.
As Churchill said, those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it. Thank you Pamela Sampson for telling the world Henry Goldstein-Gallant’s story. The Holocaust is one history we need not repeat.
April 24, 2017
No Reply: A Jewish Child Aboard the MS St. Louis and the Ordeal That Followed is an autobiography of Henry Gallant as told to Pamela Sampson. This story occurs during the Holocaust in World War II. As tragic as the story is, the author did live to tell his story. The story is told by Henry in first person as he remembers those years. Pamela Sampson does a marvelous job of taking Henry’s story and adding the historical details necessary to bring more context to Henry’s story.
Heinz Goldstein and his parents lived in Berlin, Germany. They were assimilated Jews who belonged to a middle-class family. They were relatively well off. His father created and sold perfumes and perfumed soaps while his Mother dealt in buying silver items and reselling them as gifts. As the Nazis began taking control, his Father saw the need to get out of Germany. Luckily, they were able to purchase passage on the St. Louis to Cuba. However, upon their arrival, they were turned away and the St. Louis took them back to Europe. Going to France, Heinz and his parents were separated. Eventually Heinz and his Mother were reunited but his Father remained in a French Camp.
Heinz tells his story of flight and survival and how they ultimately came to the United States. His story is somewhat like many others and yet in many respects so very different.
The story is told in such a way that you felt you were there with him as he worked his way through the Holocaust years.
Heinz Goldstein and his parents lived in Berlin, Germany. They were assimilated Jews who belonged to a middle-class family. They were relatively well off. His father created and sold perfumes and perfumed soaps while his Mother dealt in buying silver items and reselling them as gifts. As the Nazis began taking control, his Father saw the need to get out of Germany. Luckily, they were able to purchase passage on the St. Louis to Cuba. However, upon their arrival, they were turned away and the St. Louis took them back to Europe. Going to France, Heinz and his parents were separated. Eventually Heinz and his Mother were reunited but his Father remained in a French Camp.
Heinz tells his story of flight and survival and how they ultimately came to the United States. His story is somewhat like many others and yet in many respects so very different.
The story is told in such a way that you felt you were there with him as he worked his way through the Holocaust years.
August 7, 2017
Reviewed by Carol Hoyer for Reader Views (7/17)
“No Reply” by Pamela Sampson is the emotional and historical memoir of Henry Gallant and his family's survival of the Holocaust aboard the MS St. Louis in 1939. There have been many books written on the persecution of the Jewish people during Hitler's terror. However, very few have been written about the impact on children and the refusal of many countries to provide a safe refuge.
Sampson met Henry in 2014 at the 75th Anniversary of the MS St. Louis. Given that many refuse to accept the torture, and death of so many individuals, Sampson felt this story needed to be told. Many who have read or studied facts about the Holocaust still refuse to accept the facts, and there are continued debates over it today. Henry shares memories of his experience through the eyes of a 10-year-old to Pamela Sampson. Sampson writes a very emotional story about Gallant's survival and historical facts about the Holocaust. I have read many facts on concentration camps, Hitler’s medical experiments on the Jewish people, but very few books address the impact on children and survival.
“No Reply” is a heartbreaking journey of 900 German-Jews on the MS St Louis, hoping to enter Cuba so they could eventually apply for immigration into the United States. Little did these individuals know that after paying exorbitant fees to the Nazis and anti-Semitic countries, their visas were not valid. Having no choice, the Captain of the ship sailed toward Florida hoping they would be allowed to enter.
I was very stunned to learn that FDR refused to deny entry into the United States. Avoiding all pleas and safety concerns for passengers, the White House stated visas must be valid, and all passengers would have to get in line for acceptance and admittance, just like all others wanting entry into the country. Having lived in Germany, we visited the Holocaust Museum and concentration camps, and it breaks my heart that people are so hated by others. If we ask or talk to some of our German friends, they say, “It never happened.”
“No Reply” by Pamela Sampson is an excellent 95-page history that is very informative, a tribute to all who survived or lost loved ones during WWII. Regardless of denial about these events, a fact is fact.
“No Reply” by Pamela Sampson is the emotional and historical memoir of Henry Gallant and his family's survival of the Holocaust aboard the MS St. Louis in 1939. There have been many books written on the persecution of the Jewish people during Hitler's terror. However, very few have been written about the impact on children and the refusal of many countries to provide a safe refuge.
Sampson met Henry in 2014 at the 75th Anniversary of the MS St. Louis. Given that many refuse to accept the torture, and death of so many individuals, Sampson felt this story needed to be told. Many who have read or studied facts about the Holocaust still refuse to accept the facts, and there are continued debates over it today. Henry shares memories of his experience through the eyes of a 10-year-old to Pamela Sampson. Sampson writes a very emotional story about Gallant's survival and historical facts about the Holocaust. I have read many facts on concentration camps, Hitler’s medical experiments on the Jewish people, but very few books address the impact on children and survival.
“No Reply” is a heartbreaking journey of 900 German-Jews on the MS St Louis, hoping to enter Cuba so they could eventually apply for immigration into the United States. Little did these individuals know that after paying exorbitant fees to the Nazis and anti-Semitic countries, their visas were not valid. Having no choice, the Captain of the ship sailed toward Florida hoping they would be allowed to enter.
I was very stunned to learn that FDR refused to deny entry into the United States. Avoiding all pleas and safety concerns for passengers, the White House stated visas must be valid, and all passengers would have to get in line for acceptance and admittance, just like all others wanting entry into the country. Having lived in Germany, we visited the Holocaust Museum and concentration camps, and it breaks my heart that people are so hated by others. If we ask or talk to some of our German friends, they say, “It never happened.”
“No Reply” by Pamela Sampson is an excellent 95-page history that is very informative, a tribute to all who survived or lost loved ones during WWII. Regardless of denial about these events, a fact is fact.
September 27, 2022
This riveting account of the experiences of Henry Gallant (Heinz Goldstein), one of 900 German Jews fleeing Hitler aboard the luxury ocean liner MS St. Louis from Germany during the Holocaust is spell-binding and heart breaking. The story starts out with a brief description of life before Hitler took power and led to the time Herman and Rita Goldstein and their only child Heinz left on the ocean liner. The ship's passengers believed they would end up in Cuba only to be turned away by the Cuban government despite having paid for their tickets, then denied entry to the U.S. because of a lack of visas, they were refused entry by Canada, forcing the ship's Captain Gustav Schroeder to return the ship to Europe. He did so reluctantly. The MS St. Louis docked in Belgium where families were split up between England, France, and Belgium. While a good many of the passengers survived and managed to get to safety, many more were delivered into the lethal hands of the Nazis.
Heinz and his parents ended up in France with his father being taken to an internment camp where he barely saw him. When the Nazi's invaded France, Heinz and his mother escaped to the south of France, and then ended up running from one place to another, being hidden by a family, and later escaping to Switzerland, and eventually making it to America where Heinz faced the problems of antisemitism and discrimination so bad that he eventually changed his name to Henry Gallant in order to get a job. The story of Heinz Goldstein is symbolic of many young Jewish survivors who suffered during the time of the Holocaust, and although they survived, they never forgot what had happened to them and their families, and it is one which should be on every required reading list lest we forget. It is also powerful and timely, given the plight of so many of today's immigrants and refugees seeking a better life.
Heinz and his parents ended up in France with his father being taken to an internment camp where he barely saw him. When the Nazi's invaded France, Heinz and his mother escaped to the south of France, and then ended up running from one place to another, being hidden by a family, and later escaping to Switzerland, and eventually making it to America where Heinz faced the problems of antisemitism and discrimination so bad that he eventually changed his name to Henry Gallant in order to get a job. The story of Heinz Goldstein is symbolic of many young Jewish survivors who suffered during the time of the Holocaust, and although they survived, they never forgot what had happened to them and their families, and it is one which should be on every required reading list lest we forget. It is also powerful and timely, given the plight of so many of today's immigrants and refugees seeking a better life.
April 15, 2025
This is a quick read memoir about a young Jewish boy who recounts the ordeals he endured. Along with his parents, Henry fled Germany with more than 900 other Jews after Kristallnacht aboard the MS St. Louis. It was sad to hear how these refugees were refused temporary stay in Cuba as well as visas to the USA (their intended destination), and so the ship reluctantly had to return to Europe. Selecting France as their place of refuge, the family once again came under the crosshairs of Hitler.
June 18, 2020
What a sad story. What a horrible ordeal to be sent back. I feel horrible about this group of people who had know place to go. They show their resilience for sure. Wow
Read
November 29, 2017This is a story that needed to be told. Would our government's response to humanitarian crisis be any better today?
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews