A Match Made in Hell: The Jewish Boy and the Polish Outlaw Who Defied the Nazis

by Larry Stillman, Morris Goldner (Contributor)

"A Match Made in Hell" is the award-winning memoir of shy Jewish teenager Moniek (Morris) Goldner joining forces with hardened Polish criminal Jan Kopec to survive in Nazi-occupied Poland. First trained as Kopek's accomplice in robberies and black market activities, the orphaned Goldner eventually becomes an accomplished saboteur of the Nazi war effort for local partisan groups. Through it all, Goldner and Kopec forge a remarkable friendship and co-dependency born of need and desperation in a hellish time and place.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, World War II, Holocaust

258 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2003

About the author

LARRY STILLMAN, a lifelong writer, is the author of "The Rope Catcher," a popular historical novel about the Navajos during and after WWII. He is also the award-winning author of "A Match Made in Hell: The Jewish Boy and the Polish Outlaw who Defied the Nazis," a true story. He lives in Tucson, Arizona, with his wife, Loraine.

Reviews

[Lauren J. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an unbelievable and harrowing story about a young man who defied the odds and survived the war while being mentored by a resistance fighter. This resistance fighter with 8 children saved his life over and over again. He also killed many Nazi's during this time.

[Relstuart · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've read several books recently that followed experiences of people during WWII. And dealt with how people could mistreat the Jews the way they did. This book deals with the story of how a notorious outlaw saved the life of a young Jewish boy and then trained him to become his shadow and operative in mercenary and resistance operations. It is well written and I feel like the book itself could have been a story I sat in front of the author and listened to him tell me.

It does contain two descriptions, one witnessed by the author, and one anecdote from a concentration camp talking about how Jewish babies were killed. Tears filled my eyes reading about these two instances. How can monstrosities perpetrated on helpless children be acceptable to so many people. Isolated instances, while none the less terrible, are easier to comprehend in that one or two people can be easily viewed as outsiders and crazy. But these actions were done with the full knowledge and support of hundreds and cooperation of thousands. The author asks where was God while this was happening and struggled with that question. It is times like these that the answer is difficult to understand.

The book did remind me of the movie Defiance, about Polish Jews that hid in the woods from the Nazis and managed to escape capture and death that way. This book talks about interactions with people that lived that story.

Well written and worth the read if the subject matter sounds interesting.

[Ana Rebelo · Rating 4 out of 5]

O ponto de vista deste livro é completamente diferente daquilo que se tem visto acerca dos judeus durante a segunda guerra mundial. Não fala em campos de concentração nem em torturas. Foca-se na história de um sobrevivente, Moishe Goldner, que, após ver o seu pai morrer pelas mãos de um suposto amigo, é resgatado por Kopec. Este introduz o adolescente Moishe a uma vida dura no seio de grupos de Resistência aos Nazis. O rapaz fez coisas que muitos pensariam impensáveis mas isso manteve-o vivo e salvou alguns judeus. É impressionante pensar que este homem existiu mesmo até 2009 e conseguiu refazer a sua vida nos Estados Unidos.
Ao contrário do Pianista, a sobrevivência de Goldner não se deveu tanto à sorte. Ele teve de passar por numerosas dificuldades e tomar certas decisões que sabia que o iria marcar mas que também o manteriam vivo. Nunca questionou nada do que lhe era pedido e foi assim que saiu ileso. Ele chegou a perguntar a Kopec porque é que tinha nascido judeu. Ele não tinha pedido isso nem feito nenhuma escolha, tinha apenas nascido judeu. E, por isso, foi obrigado a fugir e a esconder-se para que não o matassem. Só porque tinha nascido judeu.
Um ponto importante a salientar é o facto de a narração não passar tanto pelos factos macabros que ele presenciou mas mais pelas emoções que sentiu ao encontrar-se naquelas situações. O livro apela mais a sensibilidade humana do que propriamente a destruição deixada pela guerra.

[Jessica Tengstrand · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book....It's an incredible story about a young boy's survival during the Holocaust!!! The atrocities he saw are unreal. It's pretty incredible how this young man survived when he was initially rounded up and with his family and others and while people were being separated and awful things were happening around him he simply walked away from it. It saved his life. I love how he met the "criminal" Kopec who kept him alive during the time he was living in the woods...I'm sad he was never able to see him again after they got separated. I love that he touched on what happened after the war-how he was alone because his entire family was slaughtered and he had nowhere to go. He was literally just wandering. The trauma he endured impacted him his entire life. When he finally arrived in America and had a hard time connecting to others because American's were so far removed from what was happening during the war. I'm glad he found his wife and was able to have a family and live a pleasant life even though he had gone through hell. I'm really glad he got to tell his story of survival. Amazing read!!!! I really loved how the author went and visited the places that Moishe described his hometown and all the surrounding areas he was in during the war!!! Its amazing that some of the places are still there.

[Allison · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a fantastic, fresh WWII novel. The main character being a fighter, not just a survivor, and the deep character development made this an all-around great read. I had to read these for a school literature circle, but would have enjoyed reading it independently as well. A great novel for students studying WWII, history buffs, or action fans. Trust me, Moniek and Kopec are a mismatched team you’ll want to root for.

[Sandy LeBeau · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing true story of a Polish Jew in WWII who loses his entire family, witnesses horrors and atrocities, but miraculously survives. He immigrates to the U.S. and ends up happily married and living in Chicago. Incredibly powerful and moving!!

[Rhonda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fabulous biography of a young Jewish teen surviving in Poland during WWII. He was shot and left for dead by Nazi officers and the man that turned him in. He was rescued by a criminal and together they survived and struck back at the Nazis. This was well written and you feel like you are there as the story progressed. I was moved to tears many times and my heart goes out the the young man who witnessed horrifying scenes and lost almost his entire family. IT is also inspirational that after everything he witnessed, he survived and eventually thrived after the war,

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

An amazing and true story of the survival of a teenage boy in Poland during WW II. Although it is non-fiction, it reads like an exciting novel. It happens to be written by a friend of ours that we've known for 31 years!

[Kris · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an autobiography.
My cousin recommended this book to me, after learning that I am interested in people's experiences during WWII. It is a true story and one of those 'can't put it down' books. An incredible story.

[Carrie Lindsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I applaud Mr. Goldner for being willing to relive his terrible experiences so that the world today can be appalled and maybe learn, by what he and his family should never have suffered. It was well written and hard to put down.

[Siberian · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a harrowing account of a young boy who, under the tutoring of a Polish criminal and resistance fighter, grows into a man. Their are details about the different resistance groups at the time and how they operated. Excellent book! I highly recommend this book.

[Marsmannix · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gripping page turner. saved by a Polish outlaw, and turned into a formidable saboteur, Morris Goldner's story is amazing and inspiring. There are hideous details of atrocities i was yet unaware of in the purging of Sedzizow.

very good book

[Brenda · Rating 5 out of 5]

a wonderful but very sad story of the halocaust

[Jacob Prentice · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a interesting book. He explains in good detail what he had to go through and what happend during WWII.It is great that he is able to share his story with people.

[Kristen Doherty · Rating 5 out of 5]

how a teenage jewish boy survives in the woods through the war.