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Destined to Live
On the night of August 28, 1939 in a romantic garden in the city of Lvov a young Jewish couple declared their love. Early the next morning the young man, an army reservist, was suddenly called up as Poland prepared to defend itself against the imminent Nazi onslaught. So began the desperate odyssey of Wilo Ungar.
In this tale the reader follows a soldier into the crucible of the Blitzkrieg. The only Jewish fighter in his unit, Ungar volunteered for a perilous mission and was badly wounded in the collapse of Poland's dramatic last-ditch effort to break the German advance. Given the last rites by a priest who believed he was Catholic, for months afterward Wilo languished in a German military hospital, where his captors were equally ignorant of his identity. Finally released, he made his way on crutches back through war-ravaged Poland sustained only by an unquenchable need to be reunited with his beloved.
Wilo and Wusia were married, secure in the belief that Hitler would not dare to attack Soviet-occupied eastern Poland. With Wusia pregnant and near term, the German armies smashed across Russian lines and Lvov's Jews were thrown into the terror of the Holocaust.
For a year, Wilo, Wusia and their baby Michael evaded the Nazi roundups, but on a warm June day in 1942 their luck ended. In a massive deportation action, Wilo was sent to the right, Wusia and Michael to the left. In a moment his wife and child were gone, disappeared into the void of "resettlement in the east." Thus began Wilo's second journey - to find his vanished loved ones and to survive himself in a place where the Nazi death machine was in full cry.
In this tale the reader follows a soldier into the crucible of the Blitzkrieg. The only Jewish fighter in his unit, Ungar volunteered for a perilous mission and was badly wounded in the collapse of Poland's dramatic last-ditch effort to break the German advance. Given the last rites by a priest who believed he was Catholic, for months afterward Wilo languished in a German military hospital, where his captors were equally ignorant of his identity. Finally released, he made his way on crutches back through war-ravaged Poland sustained only by an unquenchable need to be reunited with his beloved.
Wilo and Wusia were married, secure in the belief that Hitler would not dare to attack Soviet-occupied eastern Poland. With Wusia pregnant and near term, the German armies smashed across Russian lines and Lvov's Jews were thrown into the terror of the Holocaust.
For a year, Wilo, Wusia and their baby Michael evaded the Nazi roundups, but on a warm June day in 1942 their luck ended. In a massive deportation action, Wilo was sent to the right, Wusia and Michael to the left. In a moment his wife and child were gone, disappeared into the void of "resettlement in the east." Thus began Wilo's second journey - to find his vanished loved ones and to survive himself in a place where the Nazi death machine was in full cry.
362 pages, Hardcover
First published November 8, 2000
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
May 18, 2020
Remarkable story of survival during the Holocaust. This is far different than many of the other books I have read on this subject in that he seems to blunder through life and immensely lucky things happen to him.
What I found most interesting about this book were the insights into his thought processes as the Nazis tightened the noose around the Jews. Looking back on events, it is easy for us to criticize them and wonder how they didn't see it coming. The author sheds some light on the psychological methods the Germans used to slowly bring their final solution about while keeping people relatively comfortable and placid until it was too late.
What I found most interesting about this book were the insights into his thought processes as the Nazis tightened the noose around the Jews. Looking back on events, it is easy for us to criticize them and wonder how they didn't see it coming. The author sheds some light on the psychological methods the Germans used to slowly bring their final solution about while keeping people relatively comfortable and placid until it was too late.
September 10, 2025
Finding hope and inspiration from those who survived right wing fascism after suffering incredible horrors and the losses of so many friends, relatives, and loved ones. The bravery, resilience, and faith in the face of so much darkness and despair is a testament to the human spirit. William Ungar lived long after those who tried to exterminate him were crushed and defeated.
November 10, 2017
Absolutely wonderful story of survival and perseverance.
May 2, 2012
William Ungar's biography is a first hand account of a young Polish soldier who suffered tremendous personal losses during the Holocaust. Despite losing several of his loved ones, Ungar did not succumb to anguish and despair. Ungar lost not only his entire family but his wife and son, under the German occupation. In America, he renewed his life, remarried, raised a happy family, and started a very successful business.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews