We randomly chose 2 books from the suggestions sent in (see here). The others will be included on our site later.
But before we get to the vote choosing which book to read, I wanted to bring up Terezín (or Theresienstadt as it was known in German) which was a Nazi concentration camp near Prague.
As detailed by the Jewish Virtual Library, the Nazis needed to answer the growing concern about the horrors being perpetrated, but wanted to continue their annihilation of Jews, Roma, Slavs, & others. Deciding to use Terezín to trick the world into believing there were no death camps, they created a fake model camp which they claimed was a “city for the Jews”. Most prisoners stayed only briefly as the camp was primarily used as a transit stop before the majority were shipped off to killing sites elsewhere. But notable musicians, writers, artists, & leaders were often kept there permanently for “safer” keeping to stave off any uprisings around the world.
The Red Cross was allowed to visit Terezín once & given a charade of a tour following a predetermined path filled with fake shops & cafés to imply life in relative comfort. The phony shops were filled with goods just for the day creating a fantastic illusion. Certain inmates were dressed up & made to stand at strategic places pretending all was well. The Red Cross believed the ruse & that single visit benefited the Nazis for a long time.
This was not a death camp by the usual definition. There is no way to compare Terezín to Auschwitz-Birkenau or any of the other death camps where hundreds of thousands were murdered each year. However, starvation & disease proved rampant. More than 155,000 people passed through the camp gates. Roughly 80% of them died—35,440 perishing due to malnutrition & exposure while 88,000 were deported to be murdered.
This makes the book included below an absolute wonder.
“The sheets of paper were as brittle as fallen leaves; the faltering handwriting changed from page to page—the pages were filled with recipes, poems, and stories. Each a memory, a fantasy, a hope for the future. Written by starving women in Terezín on scraps of paper, on onion skins, on anything they could find, the 70 recipes included gave instructions for making beloved dishes in the rich, robust Czech tradition. Sometimes steps or ingredients were missing, the gaps a painful illustration of the condition and situation in which the authors lived.
The book was smuggled out, but only decades later was the person who had them able to find the daughter of the woman who'd gathered them together.
Reprinting the contents of the original hand-sewn copybook, In Memory's Kitchen is a beautiful memorial to the brave women who defied Hitler by preserving a part of their heritage and themselves. Despite the harsh conditions in the Nazis' ‘model’ camp, this handwritten cookbook is proof that the Nazis could not break the spirit of the Jewish people. ‘A monument to the women of Terezín who saw beyond indescribable horror and sent the food of their hearts to nourish ours.’ (Newsweek)”
“This book born in Terezín is both intimate and disturbing—a poignant reminder of a lost world and a spirit that refused to die.” —People Magazine
Now onto the vote.
THE VOTING
You can vote from now until Wed., April 21 at 11:30PM on which book you’d like the club to read next. (That's NYC time. See this converted to your local time below.)
To participate:
1. Review the books.
2. Then, click here to vote.
We'll publish the anonymous results afterwards so you can get the book in advance.