City of Belmont - Ruth Faulkner Public Library

The Nazis knew my name, a remarkable story of survival and courage in Auschwitz, Magda Hellinger & Maya Lee with David Brewster

eng

autobiography

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non fiction

The Nazis knew my name

Magda Hellinger & Maya Lee with David Brewster

a remarkable story of survival and courage in Auschwitz

In March 1942, twenty-five-year-old kindergarten teacher Magda Hellinger and nearly a thousand other young Slovakian women were deported to the Auschwitz concentration camp. Soon the SS discovered that by putting Jewish prisoners in charge of the day-to-day running of the accommodation blocks, camp administration and workforces, they could both reduce the number of guards required and deflect the distrust of the prisoner population away from themselves. Magda was one such prisoner and over three years served in many roles, from room leader, to block leader, and eventually camp leader, responsible for 30,000 women. She found herself constantly walking a dangerously fine line: using every possible opportunity to save lives while avoiding suspicion by the SS. Through her bold intelligence, sheer audacity, inner strength and shrewd survival instincts, she was able to rise above the horror and cruelty of the camps and build pivotal relationships with the women under her watch, and even some of Auschwitz's most notorious Nazi senior officers. Based on Magda's personal account and completed by her daughter Maya's extensive research, including testimonies from fellow Auschwitz survivors, this tale offers us incredible insight into human nature, the power of resilience, and the goodness that can shine through even in the most horrific of conditions

adult