Wolf: A Story of Hate

Holocaust Survivor Memoirs World War II #7

by Zeev Scheinwald, Ella Scheinwald (Preface)

The true story of a young Jewish man imprisoned in corporate-owned labor camps during WWII His name is Wolf. He was caught up in the most vicious and disgraceful mass slaughter of people in history. His experiences during the Holocaust are relevant today, resonating with decent human beings who are concerned about morally corrupt leaders and their admiring masses, which, together with self-serving corporations, can orchestrate tragedies against their own populations. Imagine Wolf’s story was your story. The story of your child, parent, friend, loved one. How would you cope knowing you are hostage to a government and manufacturing firms rallying to destroy you? Millions fell victim to political extremism and corporate greed and indifference. Alliances between political fanaticism and financial interests can quickly plunge societies into an abyss of exploitation and genocide. These alliances, if left unchecked, can once again create well-oiled machines of human destruction, where governments, corporations, and followers choose hate over kindness, murder over empathy, torture over love. ˃˃˃ This is where hate led humanity, and where it can take us again if we are not vigilant. "First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out - because I was not a socialist. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out - because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out - because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me - and there was no one left to speak for me.' Pastor Martin Niemöller Scroll up and grab a copy today.

Genres: Holocaust

258 pages, Paperback

Published May 3, 2020

Reviews

[(Ellie) ReadtoRamble · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book for a review request, so thank you to the publisher and the author for sending me a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

This was a very hard book to read, so if you are squeamish or don't like to read about death, torture, suffering, nakedness, war, then please don't read this book because it's very descriptive and vivid. I don't mind these topics, but I did find it quite hard to read and had to stop a few times because the amount of atrocities that are described in this book are quite extensive.

This book describes Wolf/Zeev's life, from just before the war, through the whole of WWII and the consequences of what he endured during the war. His daughter Ella has translated this book, all the narration is his own and it is emotional, raw and very vivid, but I do think that it needs to be so.

It feels horrible to say that I enjoyed it, but I learned a lot of things from this book that I had no idea had happened, and I'm really glad that I did read this book because it's important to know about this period of history and for it to not happen again. I gave this book 5 stars because the narration was amazing and it truly is something that needs to be read by everyone. I highly recommend.

[Iulia Ivana]

A memoir that sheds some light on the small, corporate-owned labor camps that were in function during WW2, as experienced by a young Jewish man. Despite being incredibly harrowing to read (as the descriptions do not spare the reader from extreme brutality), this book is essential to understanding where unfathomable hate led humanity during those appalling years.

[Sandra K. Rodriguez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gifted author

I have read numerous books about the Holocaust. Wolf told the facts about the happenings when he was incarcerated at several different death camps. There are many more incidents covered than in any of the dozens of Holocaust books that I have read. This book is a must read!

[Heidi Opdahl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ze'ev - (Wolf in translated to Hebrew) was a young man in Nazi-occupied Sochaczew, Poland when he was captured and forced to become a slave laborer. He was not a prisoner in Auschwitz, he was not sent to Majdanek or Treblinka for immediate death and extermination. Rather, he was sent to a smaller camp which was the result of a marriage between different parts of Hell - that between the Nazi ideology about Jewish people seen as Untermenschen, and profit-seeking companies seeking to explore the possibilities of modern slavery - a workforce that didn't have to be paid or taken care of - only used and abused till there was nothing left to exploit. When liberated in 1945, Ze'ev/Wolf was close to death in Mauthausen.

Families were split - some killed, some sent off to slavery - not a special situation in Nazi-occupied areas during WWII. But Ze'ev/Wolf describes how this separation happened gradually until no one was left of people's closest family members. And with those ties severed, the road to Death became quicker, harder to avoid. Not only because there was no one left to care for you, but because the love in your heart for your family, was spit upon, trodden upon by Nazi bullies and their collaborators. This finally meant that the humanity inside you was challenged to a point were only deliberate choices could keep it alive. Choices taken when you were starved, beaten, cold, and a possible victim of random killing. Or, not you, but the kid next to you, the room-mate you got a favor from yesterday, the relative or neighbor you got a glimpse of in the camp.

The book starts with the statement that this is a book about a murder and how Ze'ev/Wolf comes forth as a witness to this crime, his own murder. Also, he states how the perpetrators never had to pay for what they had done and how those international organizations that could have helped the slave laborers failed to do so. And then the book continues to explain this statement. How a body may survive such experiences, but the soul may be damaged beyond repair in this world. Ze'ev/Wolf survived, raised a family, became a successful businessman. But the joy of life could not be awakened in him again, it seems. No changes for the good in Ze'ev's/Wolf's life could take off again the cloak of heaviness that was laid upon him through World War II. No attempt of compensation could ever pay for his loss.

This is a book one wants to treat with due respect. Murder and crime fiction is a popular literary genre, hollywoodized beyond any respect for human life. But the murder described in this book, or in any testimony about the Sho'ah, is not something that anyone could possibly read about for entertainment, or to kill some time a Saturday evening. In a way, this book makes it clear how careful one should be when reading about human beings that became victims of killings and exploitation during WWII. Whenever their sufferings are described as a means to inform about the dangers of totalitarian systems, it is not done to make us un-bored or interested in a plot. It is about innocence, about vulnerable people, pushed into Harm's way, and an injustice that can never be undone or repaired for the individual or society exposed to it.

[Lisa M Pizarro · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hard to put down

Amazing life of a young man with full of courage and strength. I have read many stories of the Holocaust and this one is very vivid.

[Dana Cohen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book stirred up so many different emotions in me. The story follows Zeev as a teenager as WWII was beginning. His experiences are terrifying and shocking. It truly is a story of hate but also a story of luck & miracles. Everyone who was persecuted had no control over their fates. Those who were spared and those who were killed were at random and the evil that befell all of those who were at the hands of the Nazis is unimaginable. I would encourage anyone who is interested in history, suspense, mystery, biographies, memoirs, and more read this - this book truly spans a variety of different genres.

[Tom Schulte · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gosh, this really needed an editor to bring it clarity and focus. That feels terrible to say, since Holocaust memoirs like this are such important first-hand accounts of an unparalleled human experience. Still, the rambling, draft-like content made it hard to slog through.

Of the memoirs out there, this is remarkable for the author's 68 months of experience. Also, he points out many instances of civilian complicity or willful ignorance from train depots to direct integration, especially in damning instances with Poles and Austrians. (I think many think civilians had no direct knowledge of the cruel camp system.) He also goes into some details on HASAG, the Nazi arms-manufacturing conglomerate with dozens of factories across German-occupied Europe using slave labor. In reflecting on his extraordinary experience he remains nonplussed by the bizarre amount of energy and resources the Nazi government sapped from its own military effort to prolong to the very end its cruel, genocidal system.

[Rafaela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wolf is a different book about the Holocaust and the Nazi Regime. Many books about concentration camps and ghettos were written but this is a book about corporations actions during the war. Through German Government companies owners exploited slavery work during the war. Zeev Scheinwald, a polish jew, worked in a HASAG owned camp, an armament factory that through an alliance with the Nazi Regime, used prisoners as slaves. They had to work long hours receiving small amounts of food and punishments. Operating dangerous machines with no security at all. As the author said, future generations must know what happened and people who did all this evil should be held responsible for their actions. This book is a reminder for all and that’s why people should read it.

[JudyAnn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This Holocaust survivor lost his family, his community and his childhood.
He was sent to the labor camps as a young man, hoping to spare his father. Of course that was a lie. He was sent to more than one labor camp over the years. Wolf (Zeev) endured the hard labor, starvation and abuse — all Nazi ploys to use up and destroy their slaves. The people were primarily Jewish, but people of other nationalities and ethnicity were included. The intent was to kill all through the hard labor and abuse. His intent was to survive to tell as he has promised his mother.

This book is a memoir. More than ‘shock and awe’ about terrible atrocity and killing. Even though he feels he lost so much youth and education, he is a deep thinker with opinions about different things that could have been done to resist the Germans. His justified bitterness about the corporate labor camps where he suffered is clear. . His successful and generous life after the war honors the lives of his entire family. They were killed by German insanity. The book is written in first person, and published with the assistance of his daughter.
WOLF is a must-read. The Holocaust was and remains REAL!

[Dr. Chock · Rating 5 out of 5]

The saddest story ever told

There is a deep undercurrent of sadness and bitterness because while millions of innocent men, women, children, babies, were being slaughtered the world seem oblivious to the mass killings. Not only were whole families stripped of their homes, belongings, treasures, dignity, but also of the right to die a natural death. The little children who were murdered never had a chance to fulfill their destiny. How many Einstein’s were among them? We’ll never know.

[Taryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wolf's story is incredible. An eighteen year old with his whole life ahead of him, thrown into war, atrocities, murder, loss, and so much more goes into his survival. As a victim of the holocaust and Nazi regime, he really shows what it was like for jew in this time. His explanations paint a real picture of what it was like. These witnesses to this time are important to be shared and continue to be shared. I will continue to read what was witnessed. It's important to never forget. Continue to learn from the past.

[Bonnie Noehr · Rating 5 out of 5]

The subtitle of this heartrending book is A Story of Hate. That would be from the point of view of the perpetrators who allowed the horrific crimes against humanity the author lived through and poignantly described. Truly this is a story of a six year odyssey of despair so intense that the author’s life hung by a thread with physical and emotional scars so deep he would never recover. I have read a lot of books about the Holocaust but none describing the corporate slave camps from which Wolf survived. The writing is graphic and at times I could not go on. How incredibly difficult this must have been for him to write and relive in the writing. The lessons of how misguided leadership can produce unspeakable horror is important today and for future generations who must guard against this toxicity. I highly recommend this book.

[Jonathan Hardwick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wolf

Of all the holocaust books I have. read, this book was almost more than I could continue reading. I am sure it was true, but some of the actual situations this young child, adolescent and mature adult lived through just boggles the mind. At the end when he was trying to validate his feelings about how no country or group came to the rescue of the Jewish people does certainly give credence to other holocaust books and documents. I think the title of the book perfect.

[Janet A. Cervo · Rating 5 out of 5]

To Whom would I Recommend this book?

The answer is—Everyone old enough to read! This is Not pleasure reading, it is necessary reading. If we allow ourselves to ignore the horrors of what Germany did to our Jewish brethren, I fear we will be forced to see it happen again and again until we finally realize, we are all human beings and as such we are all responsible for the welfare of each other. We MUST learn from the mistakes and or indifference of ancestor’s. Life is precious.

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an eye opener

Wolf was a real eye opener. I have read many books on the Holocaust, but this person spared no expense to tell you like it was. If you don't feel something stirring within as you read this book something is wrong.

[Lynn Carr · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despair

Another first-person account of atrocities during The Holocaust. Much despair, forced hope, real evil, humans at their worst enslaving other humans.

[Linda Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Couldn’t put it down

Couldn’t put it down. Great read. We heard about the bigger Concentration Camps but didn’t know that they had smaller ones

[Wayne A Geraci]

Good book, very informative.

[MELANIE ROBERTSON · Rating 5 out of 5]

An unbelievable experience. Never forget.