In the Garden of the Righteous: The Heroes Who Risked Their Lives to Save Jews During the Holocaust

by Richard Hurowitz

“ In the Garden of the Righteous brilliantly describes how in the midst of the brutality of the Holocaust and the collaboration, acquiescence and passivity of millions, there were people who risked their lives to save others out of a sense of shared humanity. This book is more timely than ever.”—Stuart E. Eizenstat, author of Imperfect Justice: Looted Assets, Slave Labor, and the Unfinished Business of World War II

These powerfully illuminating and inspiring profiles pay tribute to the incredible deeds of the Righteous Among the Nations, little-known heroes who saved countless lives during the Holocaust. Less than a century ago, the Second World War took the lives of more than fifty million people; more than six million of them were systematically exterminated through crimes of such enormity that a new name to describe the horror was coined: the Holocaust. Yet amid such darkness, there were glimmers of light—courageous individuals who risked everything to save those hunted by the Nazis.

Today, as bigotry and intolerance and the threats of fascism and authoritarianism are ascendent once again, these heroes’ little-known stories—among the most remarkable in human history—resonate powerfully. Yad Vashem, the Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem, has recognized more than 27,000 individuals as “Righteous Among the Nations”—non-Jewish people such as Raoul Wallenberg and Oskar Schindler who risked their lives to save their persecuted neighbors.

In the Garden of the Righteous chronicles extraordinary acts at a time when the moral choices were stark, the threat immense, and the passive apathy of millions predominated. Deeply researched and astonishingly moving, it focuses on ten remarkable stories, including that of the circus ringmaster Adolf Althoff and his wife Maria, the Portuguese diplomat Aristides de Sousa Mendes, the Italian cycling champion Gino Bartali, the Polish social worker Irena Sendler, and the Japanese spy Chinue Sugihara, who provided hiding places, participated in underground networks, refused to betray their neighbors, and secured safe passage. They repeatedly defied authorities and risked their lives, their livelihoods, and their families to save the helpless and the persecuted. In the Garden of the Righteous is a testament to their kindness and courage.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Holocaust, World War II, Historical, Biography, Jewish

480 pages, Hardcover

First published January 24, 2023

Reviews

[Linden · Rating 4 out of 5]

Even though this book celebrates rescuers, people whose conscience overruled the rules they were supposed to follow, it is difficult to read. Many nationalities are recognized (among them diplomats from Portugal and Japan who issued visas to Jews even though they were forbidden to do so), a French pastor, British POWs, and even an American. All were recognized by Yad Vashem (World Holocaust Remembrance Center) as righteous, even though they insisted that they had done nothing special. Could the horrors of the Holocaust have been prevented if there had been more people like this? We will never know, but we can hope that there are still people with a conscience who will do “nothing special” if confronted by injustice. Thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for the ARC.

[Davec · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although it's a stretch to say that this was a pleasant read, I think it was an important one that people in general should be aware of and should read at least once. It does go into a lot of detail in an anthology style of the people that stood up against the atrocities that occurred in world war II, but the part that I found most enlightening was at the end where the author discusses key traits that applied to those few who stood up for the jewish people in spite of the fact that they had arguably little skin in the game.

If one's assertion of learning history is to prevent its repetition, this is essential reading.

[Jennifer Mangler · Rating 3 out of 5]

I learned several stories that I'd never heard before, and that alone makes the book a worthy read. Some of the chapters seemed to meander and were difficult to stick with, but overall I'm glad I read this book. The heroes in this book deserve to have their deeds known and remembered. We can all learn a lot from them.

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

While there are common threads of benevolence, altruism, and courage in the 10 profiles of rescuers, all of whom survived the war and were acknowledged by Yad Vashem, this is a necessarily unflinching and unsparing account of the horrors of the Holocaust. Despite a degree of familiarity with the topic, I found it difficult to read at times. The conclusion, which connects findings from studies of rescuers' backgrounds to more recent atrocities and to principles that we as individuals can carry through in our daily lives, is excellent and welcome.

[Carol Kearns · Rating 5 out of 5]

I listened to this book on a road trip. It is an excellent remembrance of the many righteous rescuers during such a horrible time in the world’s history. Each chapter is about an entirely different person (or group) and set in a different location. The prologue and conclusion chapters give a deeper understanding of the stories. The narration was good.

[Lori L (She Treads Softly) · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the Garden of the Righteous: The Heroes Who Risked Their Lives to Save Jews During the Holocaust by Richard Hurowitz is a very highly recommended historical account and tribute of ten individuals who risked their lives to save others during the Holocaust. Because they chose to put their personal safety at risk to rescue others during a time of overwhelming danger, their extraordinary actions and deeds were recalled by those they saved and they were all honored as the Righteous Among the Nations at the Yad Vashem complex on Jerusalem’s Mount of Remembrance.

Many know the stories of Raoul Wallenberg and Oskar Schindler who risked their lives to save Jewish people. Hurowitz presents the background and actions of ten lesser known individuals who demonstrated great strength of character, determination, and compassion while doing the right thing when their actions could result in their demise too. The ten righteous people covered include: the Portuguese diplomat Aristides de Sousa Mendes; Princess Alice of Battenberg in Greece; Gino Bartali, an Italian tour de France winner; the Japanese vice counsel/spy in Kovno, Lithuania Chinue Sugihara; circus ringmaster Adolf Althoff and his wife Maria; Georg Ferdinand Duckwitz a German Foreign minister in Copenhagen and the entire population of Denmark; Polish social worker Irena Sendler; Hiram Bingham IV (Harry), vice counsel at the consulate in Marseille; protestant pastor Andre Trocme in the French village of Le Chambon sur Lignon in the département of Haute-Loire.

The well-written and researched accounts of these individuals and those who assisted them are all compelling and include their backgrounds, details of their extraordinary actions, and the aftermath of their actions. Hurowitz’s research also reveals the rescuers’ greatly varied motivations and examines the common traits among these individuals that encouraged them to do the right thing. Since the historical accounts are detailed and cover a wide variety of areas across many countries, this is a history that requires careful reading to follow who is where and what is occurring there. In the Garden of the Righteous by Richard Hurowitz is an excellent biography of ten people who are the Righteous Among the Nations.
Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of HarperCollins via Edelweiss.
http://www.shetreadssoftly.com/2023/0...

[Sheldon Stone · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is one of the most, if not the most riveting stories of people risking their lives to save others; others that are strangers to them. Expertly written, each chapter is a new account of hero’s who rescued Jews during the Holocaust.
These accounts bring tears and smiles of joy to the reader. I have read many books about the Holocaust, but this book stands above the rest.

[Deviant Quill Reviews · Rating 4 out of 5]

https://www.deviantquill.com/post/in-...

World War II literature, fiction or non-fiction, is so abundant nowadays, that it's getting harder to come by original titles that are worthy of taking the spotlight on the shelf. In the Garden of the Righteous is a compilation volume of biographies of 10 people who were extraordinarily selfless during the Holocaust.

Everyone knows about Oskar Schindler, but even though he's briefly mentioned in the opening, the book focuses on people who are not as well-known as he is. Actually, some people in this volume saved a lot more vulnerable people during the Holocaust. One of them is Aristides de Sousa Mendes, who issued visas to an undetermined number of Jews. It's believed he saved over 30,000 people. Or Irena Sendler, a nurse in the Polish Underground Resistance who dedicated her life to saving Jewish children. Other 8 extraordinary people's lives and good deeds are extensively covered in this volume.

The author paints a vivid picture of the hardships they encountered, the near-death experiences, and the aftermath of the war when they were seen as abnormal. However, a striking feature of the chapters is the way in which Richard Hurowitz goes into detail about their lives before the war, and their lives after the war up until their deaths.

The audiobook version is clean and masterfully narrated by Paul Heitsch.

In the Garden of the Righteous: The Heroes Who Risked Their Lives to Save Jews During the Holocaust is a beautiful book for every reader who is interested in the authentic experience of World War II survivors.

[Philip Kuhn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good book, well researched and well written. The long listing of works cited serves as a great bibliography of Holocaust works. I found the whole book to be positive and uplifting. It was uplifting to read about these true heroes who risked everything to help their fellow man.

All of the ten people profiled were amazing in their own right. I can't say any one was my "favorite" but there were all moving. I won't go through here each of the people profiled--read the book!!

Part of the point of the whole book was the different occupations, backgrounds and nationalities they came from who saved Jews from the Nazis; some researchers later (read in the afterword) studied them to find the common qualities.

Recommended reading,

PHILIP KUHN
EDGEWOOD KY

[Katie Bee · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Portuguese consul; a circus troupe; an Italian superstar cyclist; the country of Denmark; a Polish social worker; the French community of Le Chambon-sur-Lignon; a group of POWs; and many others populate the ten chapters of this book. (Each chapter focuses on a separate person or group.) Irena Sendler and the Sugiharas are probably the most well-known of the author's protagonists.

This is a book to be read slowly and carefully. It is a hard read at times, as would be expected from its subject. The chapters primarily focus on their protagonists, but the author has a thoughtful introduction and conclusion that frame and interrogate what we can take away and learn from the tiny number of Righteous Among the Nations.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

An outstanding look at 10 distinct stories from one of the worst eras in human history. Hurowitz delivers the perfect dose of info and engagement and guides us in considering important questions of humanity.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

"It is a historical injustice if the names of Heinrich Himmler and Herman Goering remain more well-known than those of Raoul Wallenberg and Oscar Schindler."

On May 30, 1941, shortly after the Nazis began their occupation of Greece, two Athenian partisans climbed atop the Acropolis and tore down the Swastika flying overhead. Resistance groups and other segments of Athenian society banded together to rescue Jews and other refugees. Most prominent was Damaskinos Papandreou, the Archbishop of Athens and the head of the entire Greek Orthodox Church. Damaskinos was the only head of a European church to formally condemn the final solution. In addition, he issued false baptismal papers and ordered priests and nuns to hide Jews in churches and convents. The church's efforts, resistance groups, and private citizens saved 2/3 of Athens's Jews.

Damaskinos is honored in the Garden of the Righteous at Israel's Holocaust Memorial, Yad Vashem. The garden pays tribute to individuals who risked their lives, liberty, or careers to save Jews during the Holocaust. The 27,000 individuals honored constitute half a hundredth of one percent of the European population or one out of 20,000.


In his book, named after the memorial garden, Richard Hurowitz presents in-depth case studies of individuals from various nations who took significant risks to do what they believed was right.
These include diplomats such as Sousa Mendes of Portugal and Chiune Sugihara, a Japanese diplomat cum spy who defied government orders and issued Jews visas saving thousands of lives; Georg Duckwitz, a German diplomat in occupied Denmark, who alerted the Danes to the intended date of the Jewish deportation and helped arrange their safe transport to Sweden; Polish social worker and nurse, Irena Sender who worked with the Polish underground and rescued over 2,000 children from the Warsaw Ghetto and Gino Bartoli, champion Italian Tour de France, cyclist who transported false documents across northern Italy, during cycling practice, saving hundreds of lives.

The case studies are moving and engaging. Hurowitz combines fine writing with in-depth research. Each case incorporates the individual's backstory and the historical context specific to the region. Hurowitz's finely crafted narrative captures the tensions, heroism, and consequences faced by those who sought to thwart the Nazis.

Hurowitz concludes with research findings about rescuers. Despite the difficulties and dangers rescuers faced, most tended to minimize their deeds and describe them as nothing special or just doing the right thing. Significant studies found no correlation between gender, age, nationality, race, family size, or birth order in the rescuers' backgrounds. However, parenting style was a common thread. Most grew up in households where the discipline style was loving, consistent, and nonauthoritarian. In addition, rescuers tended to have a strong moral code based on religion, ethics, ideology, or compassion. They had parents who acted altruistically and were accepting of people from different backgrounds.

In the Garden of the Righteous is a timely book. Unfortunately, we live in a world where racism, antisemitism, and homophobia are again rising. The vivid portraits of rescuers provide inspirational reminders of the possibility of fighting against irrational forces.

This review was originally published by Jewish Book Council. JBC enriches and educates the community through public programming, a literary journal, weekly reviews and essays, discussion questions, and over twenty literary awards. Find out more here.

[Donna Lewis · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Good Reads description of this book tells it all. This book chronicles ten lesser-known heroes of the thousands that did big and little efforts to thwart Hitler and his Nazis.

Portuguese consul Aristides de Sousa Mendes signed the a visa for Hans as H. A. Rey Reys, author of “Curious George.” By issuing them visas, Mendes rescued an estimated thirty thousand people in the summer of 1940, “quite possibly more people than any other individual during the Holocaust.”

The great Jewish circus families were being destroyed. Adolf Althoff, true circus royalty, rather than capitalizing on the tragedy of his brethren, hid seven Jews, in spite of constant Nazi inspections.

“Two-thirds of the Jews of Athens would survive due to help from their neighbors.”

“In 1938 Gino Bartali won the Tour De France and become one of the most famous athletes in Europe.” As a courier in the underground, he also was able to ride all over Italy with forged papers for Jewish refugees.

As a diplomat in Lithuania, Chiune Sugihara wrote more than 1,500 visas for Jews, which allowed hundreds to leave Lithuania for Russia with Japanese visas. He also issued visas to Curaçao while stationed in the Netherlands.

Georg Ferdinand Duckwitz was a card-carrying member of the Nazi Party assigned to the Danish embassy. When Hitler tried to implement the Final Solution in Denmark, Duckwitz frantically worked to issue Swedish visas to as many Jews as possible. Thousands of Danes hid or helped transport Jews. “In the end, 99 percent of the 7,800 Jews in Denmark survived the Holocaust.”

Half a million Jews were barricaded in the Warsaw Ghetto. For several years, Irena Sendler, a young mother, left the Ghetto daily to oversee “a network of mostly young women, some still in their teens, who risked and sometimes gave their lives to rescue hundreds of Jews, most of them infants, toddlers, and children.”
An estimated 2,500 children were rescued.

Hiram Bingham IV was a senior-level American ivy leaguer assigned to the consulate in Marseille, France. Contrary to the General Consul, Bingham believed in “getting as many visas as I could to as many people as possible.” Other prominent Americans formed the Emergency Rescue Committee, supported by cultural and political figures, including Eleanor Roosevelt. They worked to rescue “high-profile German refugees at the top of Hitler’s enemies list.” The list included Marc Chagall, Matisse and Picasso.

Andre Trocme was a Protestant pacifist in Catholic France. He was forced leave Paris to find work in a small community in central France, where he started a school. Here he spoke out about Nazi ideology. He helped set up homes for refugee children, including Jews. They developed a method of producing forged documents, and they helped many to escape to Switzerland.

The final story is about 10 British POWs who were able to protect and hide a 16-year-old Jewish girl, who had escaped from a concentration camp death march.

Each of these modest heroes was honored in Jerusalem and given the title Righteous Among the Nations. As of 2021, more than 27,000 have been so honored. “We should value the courageous over the selfish. For, as Martin Luther King Jr. put it, ‘Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that.’”

[Gregg Lines · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a well written and moving account of ordinary people doing extraordinary things. It’s fascinating to learn about these heroes’ lives and how they used their talents and positions to aid those in need. From professional athletes to consular officials, princesses, and POWs, their stories give hope and inspiration. On a deeper level, analyzing their psychology is enlightening. As a whole they never sought credit and recognition nor did they consider what they did to be out of the ordinary. They just did “the right, decent thing.” Unfortunately we know most people did not, so their stories stand to show us a model to follow, while also illuminating the guilt and responsibility their neighbors would have had. With the Holocaust we often hear that “maybe average people didn’t know…” but these average people show that they did.

Apart from individuals, the author also explores larger communities like various Greek islands, Albania, Bulgaria, and Denmark. These provide a very different view narrative than we often see with Holocaust accounts and histories in France, the Netherlands, and Germany. Communities too can come together and take a stand to defend their members and neighbors and stand up for human rights.

A great and different kind of read into the Holocaust. I highly recommend. I enjoyed the chapters each focusing on different stories, so in a way it reads like a collection of short personal narratives.

[Polina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Difficult to rate this book. Writing is quite dull, mostly on the level of retelling a Wikipedia article, hardly can give it 3 starts, the concept of the book, however, and the stories author picked are remarkable.
First of all this is a good historical book that gives an overview of the state of whole Europe and beyond during WWII.
Secondly, one can notice a clear pattern of high conscientious people, disobeying inhumane orders or going against the common stereotypes being punished for their choices for the rest of their lives. One could think the people who saves Jews from gas chambers would be celebrated - this is far from what happened in real life.
And finally, from the stories it becomes evident that it is not only the evil Nazis and Hitler himself who killed millions of innocent people, but also the common citizens of the countries occupied by Fascists who genuinely hated Jews. As Russian saying about Gulag goes: "That was not Stalin who wrote 2 million of denunciations"

This book, while quite boring proudly enriched my knowledge on the matter, so I would definitely recommend it to anyone interested in WWII history.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is full of incredible, inspiring, and amazing people. It’s an emotional read, full of horror stories from the Holocaust, but also full of hope that there are still people so selfless and caring in the world.

This book is full of detail, I listened to the book but I recommend actually reading it for the best experience.

I could listen to or read stories about these literal heroes all day long. The sacrifices they made, the danger they were in, I cannot imagine being so brave and selfless as these amazing people were. They risked their careers, their families, and their lives to save complete strangers. We should all know their names and look to them as examples of how to treat our fellow humans.

Highly recommend for anyone looking for inspirational stories of hope against all odds.

[Sydney · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was truly a unique compilation of stories, and what I appreciated most about the collection was that the narratives were unfamiliar to me, which is always welcome as an avid reader of World War II literature. Each story was well-researched, and a few made me feel emotional—something that is quite rare for me. However, I found the structure challenging; the format of telling a person’s story, then jumping to their childhood, returning to their main narrative, and then relaying the stories of the people they worked with made it difficult to stay fully engaged. It also felt somewhat rigid, resembling more of a research book. Nonetheless, it is a wonderful collection highlighting the lesser-known heroes of the Holocaust. If it were possible, I would rate it a 3.5.

[Evan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Richard Hurowitz has written a splendid account of ten different persons/groups who heroically saved the lives of Jews during World War II. These men and women, faced with personal peril, risking their own lives, reached a higher moral plane that most of us never will reach, or even imagine. Each chapter leaves the reader literally gobsmacked by these heroes fearlessness, bravery, and sheer kindness. Each person and/or group is brought to life by tireless research, beautiful and elegant writing and storytelling. Of the countless number of Holocaust works, this one stands out. Mr. Hurowitz should be applauded -- and honored -- for this book. If you read no other book this year, make it In the Garden of the Righteous.

[Diane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Stories of 10 different individuals who defied their governments to help save the Jews. They range from an Spanish Olympic cyclist, a Japanese spy, an American, a Portuguese immigration official, pastors, and the Danish people as a whole ( 99% Danish Jews saved through a massive flotilla similar to Dunkirk!). Photos of these people who said they did nothing extraordinary, it was just what was good and right, are honored in Yad Vashem in Jerusalem. This is not a book to be read quickly but to read and ponder.

[Laurel Stavros · Rating 5 out of 5]

hares some of the untold, unknown (at least for me) of the courageous rescuers and helpers during the Holocaust. The stories share heart breaking accounts while giving you hope in humanity. None of the rescuers felt like they did enough but saved thousands. They are “normal” individuals driven by a greater calling. Thank you for sharing these wonderful stories. Stayed up all night to finish the book in a day (despite three young children lol)
A must read.

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an incredibly moving set of stories of people who rescued Jews during the Holocaust. It includes detailed biographies of the parties involved, and really paints full pictures of the whole situation. It is also heartbreaking that such work was necessary, and although knowing what heights of courage and compassion people can reach is encouraging, this is still a painful book to read. I recently read Conscious and Courage by Fogelman, which is briefly referenced by Hurowitz in his conclusion. That book tries to analyze some of the psychology behind rescue behaviors. This book’s deep dive into a few of those stories makes a masterful companion to such a study.

[Mary Porter · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my top reads of 2024 so far. This book was both inspiring and terrifying. 10 stories of people or groups of people who helped Jewish people escape certain death. Included in these stories are a Japanese man, a German man, and more than one self-proclaimed anti-Semites who ended up helping Jewish refugees when they saw the reality of the Nazi holocaust. The hardest chapter to read was about Jewish children who were saved from the Warsaw ghetto. The women who ran the undercover operation was very courageous. One of the most inspiring stories was of the county of Denmark.

The one thing these people all had in common was that they acted on their conscience. They all risked their lives and some didn’t even get to see all of the fruits of their actions and lost their government jobs because they refused to follow orders. I borrowed this book from the library and I’m going to buy it for my own library and share it with my kids when they are old enough to read it.

[Hermine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this book that describes the diverse cross section of humanity that risked their lives and the lives of loved ones to save those hunted by the Nazis before, during and after WW II. A lot to read and take in but this book inspires the reader to try and do more in life to help others.

[Captain Absurd · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too much distance between the reader and the protagonists ruins it for me. It's a history as seen from birds eye view. However, it seems we need such books once every few years, so that we won't forget that a good human being has to act bravely.

[Carrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Inspiring to know there are people so brave - and disheartening that they are needed. Now more than ever.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book detailing individuals who at great risk saved the lives of Jews during World War II

[Bob T · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ten stories of otherwise ordinary people doing remarkable deeds of goodness in extraordinary times.

[Rachel Carlin · Rating 5 out of 5]

these stories of rescuers who risked their lives to save persecuted Jews during WWII exemplify the better angels of our nature. uplifting and important stories of ordinary people doing the extraordinary

[Laura Todd · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent read. Good introduction to stories you might not have heard of before. Well written.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

each of the ten chapters is a book in itself. And each moved me to tears. The research is unbelievably thorough and the writing masterful. This is a book I would recommend to anyone (and everyone).