The Bielski Brothers: The True Story of Three Men Who Defied the Nazis, Built a Village in the Forest, and Saved 1,200 Jews

by Peter Duffy

Paperback, 2004

Status

Available

Call number

940.44 DUF

Publication

Harper Perennial (2004), Edition: Reprint, 302 pages

Description

It sounds like something from ancient mythology: three brothers living near the edge of a forest witness the coming of an invading army. They arm themselves, take to their horses and seek refuge in the woods they know as well as they know anything. The enemy arrives and systematically starts killing the long-oppressed minority to which the brothers belong. Horrified and angered, they lead guerrilla attacks against the enemy's installations and exact vicious revenge on local collaborators. Prompted by the eldest, who is selected as commander, the brothers and a growing numbers of warriors begin a campaign to save all their people, including the weak, the young, the old, the sick. Slowly the group evolves into a makeshift forest city with a hospital, workshops, a school and even a bathhouse. When the invading army retreats, the brothers emerge from the woods - the saviours of 1,250 people.… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member nyyankees24
An outstanding and unbelievable true story of three men who defied the Nazis, built a village in the forest, and saved 1,200 Jews. This book reads like an action novel. It is fast paced and so deeply moving. It is inspiring in its representation of the heroism of ordinary people. Although this book
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is obviously devasting due what it is about, its ending is magnificent. The motivation and strength that they had to live in the concrentration camps for two and a half years is incredible, especially after seeing what they saw and losing multiple relatives.
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LibraryThing member hredwards
Pretty interesting. Helps you to see WW2 from the Jewish/Russian perspective.
LibraryThing member mudmusher
Amazing story, read it!
LibraryThing member thornton37814
In Belarus during the Holocaust years of World War II, three brothers rescued over 1200 Jews by building a village in the forests that were well-known to them. While only a small portion of these survivors were armed and considered to be fighters, their watchfulness and resourcefulness saved many
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Jews that would have otherwise fallen victim to the madness created by Hitler and his supporters. It's a remarkable story demonstrating courage in the face of adversity.
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LibraryThing member dreskco
Quick easy read. Learned more about WW II in that area. Did not realize the impact Stalin had in that area. Clearly the brothers were fighting on multiple fronts.
LibraryThing member Becky221
Read in 2010. Not well-written, but worth reading. Contained many sobering facts about the Holocaust.
LibraryThing member ShouldIReadIt
A detailed description of the untold story of Zus, Asael and Tuvia Bielski, three Jewish brothers who, after having their families killed by the Nazis, decided to fight back. Their became a partisan fighting group in the forests of their homeland with a twofold goal: rescue as many Jews as they
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could, and kill as many Nazis as they could. Author Peter Duffy used personal interviews, written histories and memoirs from those who were part of this historical group of Jewish fighters to put together a well researched history of what it took for a band of brothers to save almost 1200 Jews from sure annihilation while surviving for two and a half years in the forest and carrying out a well thought out partisan battle against the Nazis. It's a great companion book to "Shindler's List."
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LibraryThing member nx74defiant
A fascinating part of the Holocaust I knew nothing about.

Language

Original language

English

Original publication date

2003

Physical description

302 p.; 6 inches

ISBN

0060935537 / 9780060935535

Local notes

2015-16 Reading Circle selection
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